Random Acts of Kindness

I'm stepping back here a little bit...as I had wanted to thank the beautiful people of Cornish, Maine who came to my aid at the time of the accident and in the days that followed.

We had our dog, Sheriff, with us in the car and when Amanda came to be by my side until the paramedics arrived she had asked if anyone else was in the car - other than myself and Troy. I told her our dog. She called for her son, Jesse, I believe, to get the dog. This nice boy went and picked up Sheriff, who was near the car and unhurt, and came over to me and knelt down to let me know Sheriff was okay. He was shivering and Jesse told me he would take Sheriff to the house to keep him warm. Later that evening a nurse delivered me a message that Amanda and her family would watch Sheriff until I could get him, not to worry that he was fine, and left phone numbers for me to call them. The next day I did make a call to their home and Amanda was so reassuring that they had no problem watching Sheriff. I couldn't believe how kind and generous Amanda and her family were! They didn't know me, they had just put my needs ahead of theirs.

On Monday, I also called Joe at the funeral home to see what I needed to do for Troy and give him information. I mentioned to Joe that there had been photo equipment in the car and also that I had a cat at the farmhouse. He told me he knew the tow-truck operator who had taken our vehicle and would make arrangements to get the important items out of the car and hang onto them until I returned. He also volunteered to go to the house to check on Handsome. Again, this was someone whom I had never met and who took time from his busy schedule to help me.

The nurses and other staff at Maine Medical Center went above and beyond the call of duty to make me comfortable, offered words of strength and understanding and also allowed me to make and receive calls at all hours of the day and night. My nurse the first night in the hospital, Ruthie, shared with me a story of personal loss and told me that she would be thinking of me every day for the next whole month. On Monday my room was a revolving door of counselors, mental health professionals, nursing staff and social workers. They wanted to do all they could for me - physically, emotionally and mentally - it was truly amazing to feel such an outpouring of support. Even the switchboard operator, Kimberly, brought me a lovely vase of flowers, as she had heard my story from numerous friends and family from across the country, but felt so bad that I didn't have someone there in Maine to be by my side. After the doctor visited with me on Monday afternoon and explained more about my injuries, that they needed time to heal, but that I didn't have to remain in the hospital, he also told me he knew of my situation of losing my husband in the accident and that my family and friends were out of state (but some on the way to be with me). He said to me that if I needed to stay in the hospital for a week until I was comfortable leaving, that there was a bed for me and not to worry. Can you imagine? A doctor and hospital who treated me in a holistic manner...not just my body, but my heart, mind and soul, as well??

These were difficult days, but without the help and support of these amazing people they would have been much harder to get through.

Thank You!
With deepest gratitude,
Lori