A few weeks ago, my dad spent several days in the hospital with a kidney infection. Since my mom passed away 5 years ago, he lives in Michigan by himself. The closest of us children lives an hour and a half away from him. Thankfully, Dad has good friends who check on him.
One friend, Brent, took him to the hospital and stayed with him until one of my brothers arrived.
Brent also stayed with Dad when he got home from the hospital between visits from us siblings.
Besides helping out when he was sick, Dad’s friends regularly invite him over for dinner, help him with projects, and keep an eye on his house when he is gone. I had a chance to talk to some of his friends when I visited him after he came home from the hospital. His friend Carolyn said her mother lives across the country and gets help from friends there. Carolyn figures since she can’t always help her mother directly, she pays it forward by helping people around her — like my dad.
I’ve had the same thought and I also try to help those around me. Sometimes this involves taking someone dinner, mowing someone’s lawn, or just stopping by for a visit. Donating time, supplies, or money to various local organizations is another way I try to serve others.
We have a great opportunity to pay it forward by helping out the Afghan refugees who will be staying temporarily at Camp Atterbury and standing in for their far away families and friends.
According to their Facebook page, the Bartholomew County Public Library (BCPL) “is accepting donations of Android and Apple charging cables (Micro-USB, Lightning Charger, and USB-C), wall adapters, and portable charging banks to be given to the Afghan evacuees staying at Camp Atterbury. Many of them brought phones or tablets with them but do not have charging cables and adapters. Access to online information and communication is important, but impossible without the ability to charge devices.”
Donations of charging cables, adapters, and power banks for Apple and Android devices should be placed in a sealed bag and dropped off at any BCPL service location, or in their outdoor drop boxes. BCPL staff will ensure that donations make it to Camp Atterbury for distribution to evacuees as soon as possible.
The organization Team Rubicon is coordinating donations for the Afghans at all of the sites where they are being housed. Besides device charging equipment, new modest clothing, baby supplies, and hygiene items are needed. You can get more information about what supplies are needed at teamrubicon usa.org/resettlement or by emailing [email protected]. You can also sign up to volunteer or make a monetary donation. See the website for more information on how to do so.
Donating to our local food pantries, where the number of families served has steadily increased over the past few months, is another great way to pay acts of kindness forward. Love Chapel is always in need of volunteer help and donations of food or money. Their website, lovechapel-bartholomew.org, has information on all their programs and their needs. I’ve also learned that both Indiana University Purdue University Columbus and Ivy Tech Community College Columbus have food pantries to provide food and personal care items for their students. Contact Bailey Moss at [email protected] or Sarah Martin at [email protected] for more information.
I’m grateful my dad has friends to help him since neither my siblings nor I can always be there. To pass along kindness I’ve started checking in more regularly with one of my friends who is having health problems and I’m going to collect some charging equipment to donate to the Afghans. I encourage you to find ways to help those around you.
