Lucy Reflects

It takes an experience like feeding the hungry to put your own world into perspective.

As Whitney and I launched our Birthday Project, a week of Random Acts of Kindness taking place between our birthdays, my kiddos fell on hard times with a wicked stomach flu.

I wanted to throw my hands in the air and tell Whitney “I quit.”

Our first official random act was for me to run an errand for the Power Packs Project, a non-profit organization who supplies children and families in need with meals and recipes over weekends when school meals aren’t available. I happily took on the task. Along the way, I met the executive director in Lancaster, Kim McDevitt and Perlita Hains who is graciously helping to introduce the program to Lebanon. Both, so kind and caring, their work is an inspiration and their testimonies are an expression of what we can all do to help. Little do many of us know how many children go hungry and these are just two of many individuals making certain that doesn’t happen. Power Packs in near and dear to my heart. I had the privilege to learn about them as a journalist. I was more than happy to donate my time to such a meaningful group. My act was a snippet in what this group does for families in need. I’m grateful to I could help them in a small way.

Our second act was for Whitney and I to serve breakfast at Water Street Mission at 5:45 a.m. on a Saturday. Though Max was better, his little sister caught his stomach bug and was up all night.

“I can’t do this,” I thought to myself as I sat with my daughter. Whitney was an easy text away to cancel. I decided to push myself and we were at the Water Street Mission by 5:45. I felt like crap. I was tired. I was mad that my birthday plans were thwarted by a stomach virus.

At 6:30 a.m. on an extremely cold and windy Saturday morning, homeless people of all ages lined up for breakfast. My job was to fill dishes of fruit and serve yogurt. We worked with employees and residents of Water Street Mission. I met a man who was unable to find work because of a brain aneurism. I met a woman who had a background in business but chose to work for Water Street simply because it was the right thing to do. I saw a world I knew nothing about. One where the simple things I had would be a luxury.

I held back tears, I smiled, I wished a good day to people I knew were going to be forced to battle the weather without shelter.

Here’s the thing. My week sucked. Two sick kids. During my birthday.

Then I had a quick glimpse of true suffering.

When you sit back and put things into perspective, when you stop and see what is around you, the struggles, the needs of others, families like mine with no home, that’s a truly humbling experience. Suddenly all that frustration melted away. Despite the cards I was dealt that week, or ever, they were never going to be as bad as many others.

Thank you to those who work for and volunteer for Power Packs Project. I watch the kiddos at school carry their food on Thursdays and am so grateful for what you do. To Water Street Rescue Mission, I did nothing more than donate a few hours of time. Thank you to all who support this organization, the early hours to prepare the food, the other volunteers, and the residents.

Thank you all for enlightening me.

For more information on how to donate to Power Packs Project, visit www.powerpacksproject.org. Make a donation or just wrap your plastic grocery bags for them to distribute food.

For more information on Water Street Mission, visit www.wsm.org. There are many ways you can donate. And if you chose to donate time in the kitchen, tell those heroes we said hello.