Kindness of strangers

ON FRIDAY, February 16, l took my elderly, infirm and disabled mother to Clifford Gardens.

My mother has replaced knees, a new right hip and a largely fused spine with metal rods; she requires the assistance of a wheelie-walker and a walking stick to get about.

As is customary of late, there were no reserved disabled parking bays available at the entrance, but after some driving about we found one in the undercover parking area.

After completing her errands my mother wanted some money withdrawn from her bank account.

On the way back to our car I stopped at the NAB ATMs at the front of the Centre to withdraw her money.

Next thing there was a very loud slap, bang, and a lot of commotion behind me.

I turned around and saw all of these people rushing to my mother’s aid - she had taken a very heavy and nasty fall!

I instinctively left the ATMs and went to assist my mother.

A lovely middle-aged couple were already getting my mother up and an NAB employee had rushed out of the bank with a chair.

It was then that I realised I only had my mother’s money and an ATM receipt in my hand.

I went back to the ATMs where there was a young ‘lady’ at each of the machines.

To the ‘lady’ at the ATM, where I had been only minutes earlier, I stated that “I was just here, that my mother had fallen, and that I had left her card at that ATM.”

The younger of the two ATM customers proceeded to open her wallet and pull out my mother’s bank card with the words, “I was just going to hand it into the bank!”

Albeit the sour interlude, the kindness of the strangers didn’t end there.

My mother’s belongings were gathered up by the kind middle-aged lady, whilst her husband attended to my mother.

The couple then assisted me to not only get my mother back to our car, but to get her seated and comfortable.

After a few hours at the Toowoomba Hospital my mother was found to have suffered – in addition to her loss of dignity – a fractured tailbone and a very large bump on her head.

To the kind strangers – thank you very much for your assistance, time and patience.

To the person who had my mother’s ATM card - I can only hope that your intentions were noble and that no impropriety had crossed your mind?

To Clifford Gardens – please start policing the disabled parking areas with more frequency to ensure that parked customers are stringently adhering to the terms of issuance of their disability parking permits.

— GEORGE W. HELON, Kearneys Spring