Yesterday I left you with a a glimpse of my time at Simon Fraser Lodge. Here's the rest of it.
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There is this
one man at SFL that I have formed a personal relationship with. What started
off as being just volunteering for bingo has evolved into an attachment that I
am grateful for. This man may have some problems communicating, but even in
this little window of communication, he was able to convey to me everything he
wanted me to know.
It all
started with bingo, but then I went back and played checkers with him; being
late for supper once because we played for four hours! He would always be
thankful for anything I did for him, even if it was something really small – a
very humbling experience for me. The Strong Kids Challenge may be over now, but
I will be going back to play bingo and checkers with my new found friend!
There was
another resident at SFL who was an inspiration. She had fallen very ill and her
family had packed most of her belongings; a manner that said she would not be
coming back. She was so angry at them and became very determined to get well
and leave SFL to go home. Two weeks ago, she left SFL. I bought her a gift, and
again she was so thankful for it; the small gestures, my friend, make the
difference.
Finally, I would like to talk about YAP and
Misty. Not many people know about this initiative and Misty. Even Misty does
not realize how important she is to all of the children and the community at
times. As I said, I feel that the outreach and exposure efforts are not at optimal
levels for me, so I preached what I practiced! There were two sessions for YAP,
and I went to both; bringing a few of my employees each time. And in both
sessions, they were all very affected by this initiative.
At the end,
they came up to me and discussed various ideas on how they would help YAP. One
of them has taken it upon herself to take stuff that is not needed over to YAP.
This is how strong an affect YAP has; not only on those kids, but everyone in
the community. Even when it comes to myself, the impact is pretty great.
Although, as much as I like to, I cannot volunteer my time at YAP. So I try to
help out as much as I can financially.
In this
challenge, I was able to expose about 27 people to the various initiatives the
Y is part of. I took employees not only to YAP, but SFL too where they enjoyed
it thoroughly. Again, the volunteer, in my opinion, experiences the greater impact.
All in all,
I had a wonderful time taking part in the Strong Kids Challenge. It helped
raise money, but it also provided me a great learning experience that helps me
better define myself. I do not know if I will do the challenge next year, but I
do know that the relationships that I have built will stay with me for a very
long time.
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Take care,
Selen
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