EDITORIAL: Thank you for reminding of us of the power of community, kindness
By West Northumberland Independent staff
Community. It’s a powerful word.
We use it often, including in the newsroom when referencing a community newspaper and in our stories. But how often do we feel it?
There are those who are wiser and have managed to learn to slow life down or just slow down enough to relish in the little moments where our humanity shines brightest through a kind act or to appreciate when the power of community reaches our lives.
Life is hard. We are dealing with a multitude of intersecting crises on the international stage currently. The list seems never-ending.
And yet, there’s also beauty all around us. And while you may feel like those moments are fleeting, one person’s kindness can start a chain reaction that’s hardly anything but.
Let’s talk about a real example of this.
On July 16, the Northumberland Hills Hospital Foundation put out a call from an anonymous local couple who had stepped forward with a $51,795 gift to help with the purchase of five cardiac monitors and were urging the community to answer and help fund a remaining 33 monitors needed.
These monitors we just expect to be there when we or our loved ones become critically ill and need them at the hospital. Each monitor costs more than $10,000. The anonymous donors shared hopes their gift would inspire others.
On July 31, the Independent published its inaugural edition, and reporter Natalie Hamilton penned a story on the anonymous donors’ call to action.
Last Thursday, Aug. 20, NHH Foundation CEO Rhonda Cunningham reached out to our editor Sarah Hyatt and GM Peter Dounoukos.
The subject line of the email read: “I have some news …”
“Want to know the power of your new newspaper? Let me share,” she wrote, as she went on to talk about the story in the July 31 paper and their significant fundraising effort still underway to fund 28 additional monitors.
“Someone in the community read that story and decided to purchase a monitor outright,” Cunningham told the Independent, adding it was “incredible.”
“The donor was not someone who receives our mailings or e-newsletters – had they not read the story in your newspaper this gift simply would not have happened.
“For me, it was a powerful reminder of the important role a community newspaper plays, especially in a smaller community,” she said. “Your reporting connected a community need with someone willing to make a difference, and the result was immediate and meaningful.”
Cunningham’s email was met with a flurry of staff responses (and we’ll get back to this.)
And yes, we can accept a small role in this success story – and this is what community journalism should be all about, is helping to drive meaningful change in the communities we serve.
But let’s delve into the kindness here. A local couple steps up with a $51,000-plus donation, which inspires another to fund an additional $10,000-plus monitor outright?
These are hardly fleeting moments. How many people will these individuals’ kindness help in hospital? How many of our families or friends?
Their kindness and passion for community will have a long-lasting impact for years to come when people turn to the hospital for help.
And to Cunningham and those who we don’t even know their names, last Thursday, your kindness reverberated throughout our team – at a time when we were feeling worn with our own ambitious undertaking.
You made us feel the power of this community and kindness, and without even knowing it, lent us strength through your generosity and encouraged us to keep fighting the good fight.
Thank you, for your kindness. We certainly thought it worthy of some more ink.
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