When I am working with children in schools, I always remind them that one of the great things about writing is that it always stays with you.The poem Things by Eloise Greenfied summarizes the feeling:
It includes the words:
Bought me some candy …
Ain’t got it no more
… Made me a poem
Still got it
Click here for the full text of the poem.
So what a joy it was to find this heartwarming story that I wrote back in 1992 when I was working as a reporter for The Morning Call in Allentown, PA.
Ten wheelchair-bound people last night were rolled up a closed-off St. John Street on their way to hear songs, jokes and words of inspiration at a service that honored three people who had made a major contribution to bettering their lives. The procession went from Good Shepherd to Grace Lutheran Church of Allentown.
The Rev. Daniel G. Gambet, president of Allentown College of St. Francis de Sales, quoted Mother Theresa, saying, “Electric wire is useless unless the current passes through it and lights up the world,” at the seventh annual Raker Memorial Award Service, named for the founders of Good Shepherd. … Gilbert E. Castree, a 78-year-old resident of Allentown, said his 15 years as a member of Good Shepherd’s board of trustees have been the best of his life. Stricken with polio, meningitis and pneumonia all at age 9, Castree gave testimony to the human spirit by going from being handicapped to playing high school football.Read: Good Shepherd Bestows Honors On Three Who Made Difference
“The feeling you get volunteering here is unlike the feeling you get anywhere else,” Castree said. “The many years have meant more to me than I could ever express.”
Hat Tip to The Morning Call for keeping their archives public, going back so many years.
And I remind young learners that “even when archives are no longer there, your story always is.”
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See this recent related article on the topic of faith in the public square, from the Idaho State Journal.
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