Doing For Others

8243548_SFor most of us, this is a special time of year, with family gatherings, celebrations with friends, and decorations and food taking up our time and thoughts.

For some people, however, the holiday season is no pleasure. Lack of funds, family issues, or the loss of a loved one can make the holidays a challenge to survive rather than something to enjoy. Amidst your fun activities, this is a good time of year to add helping others to your holiday list. Here are a few suggestions.

Donate to a food bank or rescue shelter. With the economy still down, many people rely on this type of assistance and these services are stretched to the limit. By donating food and dollars, you can make a difference for people and families not as fortunate as yours.

When giving, think of holiday needs. Rather than digging through your pantry for those cans of olives no one wants to eat, shop for special holiday non-perishables, or donate a turkey at one of the local turkey drives.

Adopt a family: Many non-profit organizations have families of people in financial trouble that could use a hand. You generally get a list of ages and genders of family members, along with some things on their wish lists. It can be a fun family experience to shop for another family, choosing special things to make their holiday brighter.

Donate your time: Hospitals and nursing homes have rooms full of lonely people who would love a visit and maybe a few homemade cookies. Shut-ins often receive holiday meals, and by volunteering to deliver some you can brighten someone’s day with your visit. Often you are the only person they will see that day, so taking the time to chat and say cheering words can make a world of difference.

Take a few minutes to think about how fortunate you are, and then you may want to help others feel fortunate too.

The Awesome Hom100

Last month we wrote about some Fulton Homeowners we’re particularly proud to know. Tony Hom, who is facing the challenges of ALS, and his good friend Trevor Davenport, who volunteered to run for 24 hours or 100 miles to raise money to help fight this disease. We, at Fulton Homes decided to help sponsor the run because we’re proud to support these two amazing men. Trevor’s course circled the Fulton Freeman Farms community and Trevor ran from 9 a.m. on May 25th until 9 a.m. on the 26th.

Let’s learn about the results by drawing on Trevor’s own words and photos below. For his complete description, check out his blog here.

“The Hom100 Race Report

Hom1009 am to noon: …multiple neighbors, friends and family gathered in front of the Hom house right about 9 am and just like that…we were off.
… I sped off leaving most of the pedestrians (and Tony) behind.… My biggest concern was just staying hydrated and keeping the mood light and fun. (distance: @20 miles)

Hom100.1Noon to 6 pm: …the heat was taking its toll. A strange thing started to happen around 2 p.m. though…more people started showing up! Better yet, people I didn’t even know!

…It seemed like someone new was joining us each lap to show their support for the event and Tony. It certainly made the hottest hours of the day fly by. (distance: @44 miles)

6 pm to midnight: Several of the guys who ran in the morning actually came back for more miles…awesome!

Hom100.2

Thanks to the Grady family (Sarah, Greg and Reagan), we had a good hour or so filled with country, blue-grass, Zumba and other assorted Barbie songs that kept us going for at least a couple laps…well, we did our best to outrun it anyway.(distance: @64 miles)

Midnight to 6 am: Night miles are the hardest. The miles go slowly and time physically slows down (well, it feels that way anyway!). Again, thank goodness for some real troopers who decided that running with me was a better idea than sleeping.

Hom100.36 am to finish: I had made my peace with simply running the 24 hours and being satisfied with whatever the mileage turned out to be. I knew it would be 90-something miles…surely a great effort by most standards right?

As we came around on that ‘last lap,’ my wife asked what my total mileage was.

“94,” I said.

“What!? You can’t be done,” she replied. “It’s the Hom 100!”

“I’m done” I told her.

But like a small flicker of flame that grows when you fan it, everyone else rallied behind her idea. Clearly, they had not read the fine print on the website!

As we started the “official” last loop, my wife stopped and gave me a kiss. She pulled her sunglasses down, exposing the tears welling up in her eyes.

“Do it for Tony,” was all she said.

Instantly, nothing else mattered…

Hom100.4The final 100 yards was full of clapping, pictures and congratulations from friends, family and neighbors. I savored the thrill of completing 100.1 miles just long enough to see Tony in his wheelchair, grinning from ear to ear. I walked over and gave that dude a hug.

He is the man, not me.

Now, I’m not going to lie – aside from Tony, the only other thing going through my mind was sitting down and putting my feet in a big bucket of ice. As you can see, I did enjoy that a little bit 🙂

…special thanks to Fulton Homes and Cadence Running Company for all their support and generosity.”

God willing, we’ll do it again next year.  Thank you, Trevor and Tony for allowing us to be a part of such an amazing event!  You two are truly special and an inspiration to everyone!

For the complete blog and link to more photos, click here.