This week, in the midst of our global celebration of athletic prowess at the Olympics (yup, my kids are hooked), the Chicago Sun-Times is publishing a series on "50 people who make Chicago a better place." It's a tribute to outstanding professionals and volunteers who touch the lives of others.
In our own community, the newspaper spotlights Ms. Daphnee Rene of the Rogers Park Young Women's Action Team for her fine leadership on an important cause. Congratulations to her and her team members for some well-deserved recognition!
There are many other unsung heroes who make a difference everywhere and in every community. The Sun-Times series prompted me to think about the many hundreds of Rogers Park "neighbors who give" I've met over the years. So many go the distance, whether they work occasionally or year-round. In a myriad of ways they devote long and mostly thankless hours, and still give even more to make something good happen here.
Well, there just aren't enough gold medals given for such dedication in Rogers Park, and certainly there's no Olympic-sized recognition for those who truly deserve it. If it were up to me, I'd say there is no need for a contest, and we should just go right to the gold medal award ceremony. To highlight one category of many, I'd start off by honoring the decades of community service delivered by my own church's Community Feast at United Church of Rogers Park and by the Good News Community Kitchen at Good News Community Church.
I'm thankful for the gift of these two local institutions, the thousands of meals they serve every year, and all your work and support for them. I'm also thankful that they have helped my partner and I teach our kids to better appreciate what we have. Surely, since my family has helped prepare and serve meals at both, we are among many thousands of families who have benefitted in this way.
The phrase "There go I but for the grace of God" occupies more than a few brain cells in my mind. In relation to that, a very powerful Salon essay. It's from a mother who took her children to her local soup kitchen. Thankfully, it was there when she needed it most.
From now on I'm going to make it my business to say thank you to folks around me who I feel have earned a gold medal. Please share this with anyone whom you think deserves one too!
Peace, Michael J. Harrington
3 comments:
my gold for this summer goes to Eva
My gold goes to Eva, Sister Cecile, and Toni. Let’s honor their effort by not forgetting that the battle to keep the Gale Park Community Center public and not private is still going on. We've come so far but we can't stop yet. Check out Howard 24/7 for details.
Of course, then there's all the incredible Rogers Park bloggers, with Craig, Toni, Tom and Bill leading the pack. No one pays them to do what they do; they just do it because they want to help the community by shining a light on it. We may not always agree with what they have to say, or how they say it, or even their choice in what to say something about - but thanks to their efforts, none of us can say we know less about what's happening in Rogers Park. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for our elected and government appointed officials.
Keep on blogging, my friends; Rogers Park will keep on reading.
- PEACE -
I hadn't seen that Salon piece. Thanks for posting it. I always stand in awe of people who are able to be so humble and self-reflective. It is a gift in many ways.
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