Miracles, big and small, happen all around us every day. Most of us, me included, are so wrapped up in the “daily grind” that many of these miracles go unnoticed. I’m extremely guilty of burying myself in the day-to-day “junk.” Ever since Jacob passed, it’s been my way of keeping my mind occupied. Just recently, though, a series of miracles happened that I just cannot ignore and that I want to share with you.

I began brainstorming for an idea for a BUY LOCAL, SHOP LOCAL, GIVE LOCAL event. How could the Shore Update further help local businesses and members of our community? How could we continue to reach out to the community? Then “Christmas by the Bay” was conceived. The concept behind Christmas by the Bay involves getting area businesses to offer local residents attractive deals on gift cards. For example, the Jetty is offering buy one $25 gift card and get an additional $10 free. We knew this would be a great opportunity for us to help businesses gain new customers and to solidify the loyalty of the current customer base while helping residents ease the dollar crunch.

So, with one fell swoop, we had covered BUY LOCAL and SHOP LOCAL. Now what about GIVE LOCAL? Then the string of miracles began to unwind. The Schwink family emailed us about getting some press for a toy drive they were organizing in honor of their son Michael, who died after a hard-fought battle with melanoma. Touched by their story and making an obvious connection with their plight, we ran their release immediately.

I wanted to do more…but what? Then we came up with the idea of holding an event to culminate the gift card extravaganza. People could pick up their gift cards and enjoy a community Christmas celebration. We decided to make it a family celebration with admission being a toy for the Schwinky Toy Drive. At the same time, Bobbie Bell from Feed-A-Family emailed us about some press…which led to a feature article…which led to the idea of the Shore Update donating one canned good for every toy donated. Cascia Vineyards, Oh My! Chocolate and Ramon Matheu came on board quickly. Bingo! The event was taking shape.

But where? Then Tammy Harper of Kentmorr Restaurant emailed us about starting an advertising campaign. We immediately knew this would be the perfect place for our event as the Harper’s have been so involved and supportive of not only our community, but of us, over the years. Just as we thought, Tammy embraced the idea wholeheartedly. She offered to contact the United Communities Volunteer Fire Department about bringing Santa and his house and suggested having an Adopt-A-Bear tree at the event to keep the giving going. Without hesitation, she had the entire venue covered.

So that afternoon, I called Pat Schwink, Michael’s mom, to let her know about our plans. She wasn’t able to talk for long and called me later to reconnect. Recognizing me from articles I used to write about the boys and then Jacob’s ordeal, we spent quite a while on the phone. Listening to stories about Michael, I could hear the inconsolable pain in her voice. I wanted to help, but knew there was nothing I could say even though I had shared a similar pain losing my son. I knew life would never be the same again and the pain doesn’t “get better with time,” but you do in fact learn how to live again. It’s a slow process, but it is possible. One day at a time becomes the daily mantra. When our community hugged us (and hugged us again and again), I felt the greatest sense of gratitude and support. This community celebration was my way of hugging Pat.

As her story unfolded over the phone, I learned that Michael was a volunteer at the United Communities Volunteer Fire Department. MIRACLE. He used to work at Kentmorr. MIRACLE. He loved to ride the truck as Santa. MIRACLE. Tammy and Dave are honorary members of the fire department. MIRACLE. Becky Groff of Inspired Events and my angel during Jacob’s plight said, “Sign me up to help…whatever you need.” MIRACLE. I didn’t even get the word “Help” out of my mouth and all the teenage girls at my tutorial hugged me and asked what they could do. MIRACLE. The tentacles that began weaving through this event and propelling it into motion were truly astounding.

Christmas by the Bay, a first annual event, will be held on Thursday, December 1st, 2011, at Kentmorr from 5-9 p.m. I hope you stop by… and experience the miracle.

Until next time,
Cheri