Category Archives: Great people doing great things

Polish Mothers

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Tonight I am going to tell you a story about a very special woman from Poland whose name was Irena Sendler. I saw a tv movie about her about 5 or 6 years ago. She was a Polish Catholic social worker who, during the second world war, worked in the Warsaw ghetto vaccinating and treating imprisoned Jews. Being shocked and horrified by what she witnessed, combined with the growing knowledge that the ghetto would eventually be emptied, sending many Jews to their death, she began to work with the Zegota (the resistance organization) in order to secretly save lives.

Along with others who worked in the Polish underground, Irena Sendler smuggled babies and children out of the ghetto and into the safety of Catholic families. She would inform Jewish families that, if they were willing to give their children over to her, she would sneak them out of the ghetto to be absorbed into Catholic families on the outside. As you can well imagine, this was a heart wrenching decision for Jewish families. Disbelieving the rumours they were hearing regarding systematic extermination, many families refused her offer. Other families, knowing and accepting the fate which awaited them, kissed their children for the last time and handed them over to Irena – an almost complete stranger to them.

Irena kept very detailed records of the names and the exchanges so that, should the biological parents or other family members survive, she could match children up again with their families. She was eventually caught by the Nazis, tortured and sentenced to death. Somehow she evaded the death sentence and survived the war.

What makes her story even more interesting is that it went largely unknown until a group of students in Kansas fell upon her story while doing research for National History Day. The students made it into a play which was later adapted to television as The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler – the movie to which I am referring.

People such as Irena Sendler fascinate me (hence the name of my blog). How many people would demonstrate this kind of self-sacrifice? Stories such as this also make me wonder what I’m made of – what would I risk to save others from something as horrific as this? What is it that makes someone go so far to save those they don’t even know? And what of the mothers who said good-bye to their own children in order to ensure their safety? Could I do it?

Irena Sendler and other members of the Zegota were responsible for saving 2500 Jewish babies and children from certain death. When interviewed for a clip at the end of the movie she had this to say.

“Not so long ago it was mother’s day. So today I would like us to celebrate that day in the name of some of the most anguished mothers in the world – the Jewish mothers who had to part with their children during those terrible times. And let us reflect on those Polish women who took the Jewish children in and brought them up as their own – risking their lives everyday and every hour in the process. They loved those children so much that when the war ended they could hardly bear to part with them. So let us give thought to those mothers.”

C is for Charity, Compassion and Caring

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For my ‘c’ post in the a to z challenge I am going to share a speech I wrote two summers ago when I spoke for a charity. My chief editor Babs assures me that this is not cheating. She says it is “recycling”. I figure even if it is cheating at least it starts with a ‘c’. :) So here it goes……

It is a pleasure to attend dinner with you all tonight and speak as a representative of a recipient of Hockey With Heart.

In February of this year, a fund-raiser took place, run by family and friends called Keep Sean Moving. Sean is our 10-year-old son who, at age 5, was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Seeing the need for major home modifications, my brother began planning a fund-raiser. Hockey With Heart caught wind of the event and soon afterward, John Cabrelli came to our home for a visit to see how the charity could help Sean out. Our home was lacking a wheelchair accessible bathroom and a ramp outside to the back yard. Hockey With Heart began planning a very major renovation and while we were on vacation in July, they came into our home and completed the project. The result is simply beyond comprehension. It truly has to be seen to be believed. From the moment that Hockey With Heart had an architect draw up the plans to the moment the last piece of hardware was installed, they operated with efficiency, thoroughness and caring. Sean now has a fully accessible backyard, bathroom and bedroom. Hockey with Heart has certainly played a major part in helping to Keep Sean Moving.

It is an honour to be associated with a charity committed to helping others in their own community. In a world where it is easy at times to feel isolated, Hockey With Heart reminds us that there are people right in our own community who care, and who are willing to give of themselves in order to ease the burdens of others. A big thank-you to Peter Sands from the Unionville Men’s Hockey League who first brought our situation to the attention of Hockey With Heart. And to John Cabrelli who spearheaded the project and made sure everything proceeded with speed and efficiency, and to Bill Dawson who also dropped in consistently to see how things were coming along. I would also like to mention Larry Roma who was integral in gathering the various professionals to help in getting the job done.

I must also give a brief but special shout out to the Children’s Wish Foundation who are here tonight and who are beneficiaries of Hockey With Heart. Sean was a recipient of this great charity last December when they sent our family to Hawaii so that Sean could realize his dream of swimming with dolphins. It was an unforgettable trip in which we were witness to the fact that sometimes wishes really do come true.

It was on this trip that we heard of a Hawaiian saying that simply states “No rain, no rainbows”. On that day back in 2004, when Sean was diagnosed with such a debilitating disease, some rain certainly began to fall into our lives. But it is because of this tragic situation that we have had the honour of glimpsing rainbows that would otherwise have been hidden from us. To the hockey players who first formed this wonderful charity and all of the other friends and connections who willingly gave of their time to complete our renovation this summer and to all of you here tonight supporting such an amazing charity I must tell you that you are a very bright rainbow in the sometimes stormy life of a family who must cope with watching their child suffer. You represent all that is good in this world – a strong sense of community, kindness, selflessness, caring and compassion. It is people like you who bring some meaning to our suffering.

It is quite overwhelming to be the recipients of so much kindness. It is like being awed into silence.

Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you. A million times over we thank you.

 

Where Was God?

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For all the horror, shock and sadness that envelops September 11, 2001, stories that glimmer of goodness fascinate me. The story of Abe Zelmanowitz glimmers like that. On that unforgettable day, Abe was at work on the 27th floor of Tower One. Ed Beyea, Abe’s co-worker and friend was also at work on the 27th floor. After the attack, the elevators weren’t working. For Abe, this did not present a problem. He could easily flee on foot and walk the 27 flights to safety. But his friend Ed was not so fortunate. Ed was a quadrilplegic. Without the elevator, Ed was trapped.

Abe told Ed’s support worker to go save herself and that he’d wait with his friend until help arrived. The story goes that the two of them were last seen on the stairs of Tower One trying to make their way down to safety - Ed on Abe’s back. Neither man survived the attacks that day.

Being an Orthodox Jew, most people credit God for Abe’s actions. But I don’t see it that way. With or without his religion, whether he was an Orthodox Jew, a Buddhist monk, a born-again Christian or an ardent atheist, Abe Zelmanowitz was, quite simply, not going to abandon his friend.

I do not go to church, I do not believe in strict rituals or dogma in God’s name and I don’t believe in one righteous path to heaven. But I have always had a little theory that tells me that, if he exists at all, God is not some outside, powerful force dolling out favourable consequences for some and catastrophic lives for others. Instead, he’s that little glimmer of goodness that resides inside everyone - that little tiny potential for compassion and greatness. Where was God on September 11, 2011? If he was anywhere at all, he was right there, inside Abe Zelmanowitz as he stood by his friend Ed Beyea.

A Car Salesman, An Owl and A Vet

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When a customer arrived at Andersons GM in Woodstock, Ontario to have his front grill replaced, a unique and touching story was set in motion. The customer had hit what he thought was a hawk that morning while driving to work. Thinking the bird dead, he carried on through his day and arrived at GM after work looking for a new grill. Mic Leuszler, a sales rep at GM noticed something moving in the hole in the front grill of the pick-up truck and upon closer examination, Leuszler, a bird enthusiast, discovered the victim was actually an owl – a great horned owl! He asked the owner of the truck to follow him to Yates Veterinary Clinic where Dr. Gord Yates carefully extracted the bird from the front grill of the truck. Miraculously the bird suffered no broken bones and was just generally shaken up. Dr. Yates cared for the owl and nursed it back to health in order that it could be released once again into the wild. It is impossible not to feel good after hearing a story such as this. Wouldn’t you agree? There is so little of people just doing for the sake of the good these days – everyone has an agenda, everyone is looking out for number one. My hat goes off to Mic Leuszler and Dr. Yates. Neither was to gain a thing from what they did for the owl that day – no money, no fame, no accolades. Just two people who cared about another living thing simply for the fact it was another living thing. So simple, so reverent, so compassionate – so refreshing in the sometimes dark, untrustworthy world in which we operate. On behalf of the owl, indeed on behalf of all of us, thank-you Mic Leuszler and Gord Yates. The world needs people like you.

In Memory of Arland D Williams Jr

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I truly believe there’s a little bit of good and a little bit of not-so-good that lives inside all of us. Some tend to display more of the “good” part and others the “not-so-good” parts. Certainly, we can all think of people in our own lives that would fit into either category.But very few of us are associated with someone who philosophers would call “supererogatory” – someone who does something that is so above and beyond the norm that it deserves its own category. Mr. Arland D. Williams Jr. was one such man. Thirty years ago today, Mr. Williams did something beyond heroic – in fact it is almost beyond comprehension. He was aboard Air Florida Flight 90 when it took off from Washington and a short time later slammed into a bridge and plunged into the icy cold water of the Potomac River. Of the 74 passengers and crew aboard, 68 would die on impact. One would die a short time later. Arland Williams had the opportunity to save himself by grasping and holding on to the life ring offered by the hovering rescue helicopter not once, not twice, but three times. In each case, Arland caught the life ring but handed it over to a fellow survivor. When Arland remained the only person clinging on to the tail end of the plane in the frigid river the life ring was lowered one more time. But he was tired and cold and weak with exhaustion. As the tail end of the plane slipped under the water it dragged Arland Williams with it. I am not sure how Arland conducted himself in other areas of his life but on that fateful day he was more than a virtuous man. He was almost super-human. And for what? Simply for the good of his fellow human beings – who, by the way, were all strangers to him. There are all sorts of definitions of virtue out there – the overwhelming majority including an element of self-interest. It is such a rare and precious opportunity to hear a story such as this one. The words of Roger Rosenblatt, a Time Magazine reporter who wrote about the incident shortly after it occurred sum it up quite nicely. “So the man in the water had his own natural powers. He could not make ice storms, or freeze the water until it froze the blood. But he could hand life over to a stranger, and that is a power of nature too. The man in the water pitted himself against an implacable, impersonal enemy; he fought it with charity; and he held it to a standoff. He was the best we can do.”  Bless the man in the water. In a world so often full of greed and selfishness, of prejudice and judgement, of deceipt and hypocrisy it is his story, his fate, that reminds us of the human capacity for benevolence and kindness, for altruism and selflessness. Here’s to you Mr. Arland D. Williams Jr. You have left a legacy of all the best of what it means to be human.

Everyday People

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Everyday people. Wasn’t that a song at some point? Sorry I digress. :)

Today a colleague helped me out with my blog. This whole thing is so new to me and learning how to use a web editor is a very steep learning curve for me. This guy sat down with me and helped me out a bit, answering some questions I’ve been struggling with over the past few days. What a nice thing to do. It seems to me the world is getting a little short on “nice people” these days. Lucky me I work with one of them. Without going into details this same colleague also stood up in defense of some underdogs last year. Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. People who do the right thing, who stand up for those who are unable (for one reason or another) to speak up for themselves are usually “nice people”. Do you ever notice that? Anyway, his name is Chris. He has a blog too. He is totally into martial arts. So if you love martial arts – or even if you just like to read stuff written by a decent, stand-up guy then check it out at  www.realmartialarts.com.

Mom Fights for Son’s Legal Rights

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A Mom whose son had been diagnosed with ADHD in Grade 1 was appalled when she moved her family from Alberta to Ontario only to find the educational system in Ontario did not offer supports to children with ADHD. She took her case to the Ontario Human Rights Commission and was integral in getting this inequity reversed. Approximately four weeks ago the Ministry of Education in Ontario sent a memo to all directors of education explicitly stating that ADHD is included as one that requires access to special education.

And this is the change that can be affected when someone makes noise for the underdog. That is one special Mom.