757 Give Local initiative is a shining star in these dark times
I have not, to my knowledge, contracted COVID-19, but I’ve still felt its sting.
And that makes me like most people in Hampton Roads — or the 757, or Coastal Virginia, or Tidewater, or whatever it is we call this busy little corner of the commonwealth. We’ve all paid a price. I’m lucky enough, though, to have seen silver linings with many of the dark clouds.
For example: A few weeks ago, my mother needed to see a medical specialist, but the appointment kept getting delayed because of the coronavirus crisis. Her painful condition got so bad that she was taken to the emergency room and admitted to the hospital. On the plus side, she would get the care she needed, but she could not have visitors — too coronavirus risky. So an 86-year-old woman with bad hearing and so-so eyesight was alone in the hospital trying to keep up with the dizzying rounds of doctor visits.
Thank God we could reach her by phone, that the doctors patiently explained to my sister what was going on, and that nurses were kind to the frightened little old lady in Room 1058. One nurse used her own smartphone to allow my mother to see more than a dozen family members through a FaceTime call on Mother’s Day. Now there’s an angel.
When the virus came ashore, the newspaper industry’s pre-existing condition was not, shall we say, robust. As businesses were forced to halt operations, some stopped advertising, and our revenue has a bad case of indirect COVID-19. Also, as responsible social distancers, we are mostly working from home.
Insecurity and isolation don’t mix well as a daily pick-me-up. I work with some wonderful people and miss their energy, humor, ideas and conversation. Online meetings, messaging systems and phone calls are a poor substitute, but they do help us to keep working.
Plus, at home, I can always pick up a guitar, crank an amp up to 11 and take a rock ‘n’ roll break. Couldn’t do that at the office.
I’ve also learned that viruswary friends don’t want to do what friends used to do — like be in the same room, or ZIP code. But not everyone is in that camp, and for the rest the phone will do until better days come.
Tammy Lynne, director of philanthropy for the Peninsula Community Foundation, said this year’s Give Local 757 campaign emerged as a shining star in our dark times. During the 24-hour online event last week, about 10,000 donors raised more than $1.6 million. That was a 60% increase from last year. The money will go to 220 local nonprofits, including many arts groups.
As someone who believes the arts are an essential part of life, I was glad to hear her say: “Arts the front lines. … They still need our support.”
The Peninsula Community Foundation runs Give Local 757, which is sponsored by Bank of America and the Hampton Roads Community Foundation, and supported by many other local groups.
“I think what we saw is that the people who could give were really wanting to give,” Lynne said. “They really wanted a way to give back to the community.”
Love those silver linings.