Woodstock Pantry News Brief December 2nd

I would like to share a story. On Friday, there was a man sitting behind the pantry. He was so cold his body was convulsing. His name is Ghena (pronounced Yanah), and he is from Romania. I got him clothes, blankets, food and hot tea. And I called 211, requesting a welfare check. I don’t know if they ever came. This morning, I found Ghena cuddled by the door next to the church. He had gotten worse. So, we all pitched in to help. Cultivate Initiatives, the nurses from Concordia College, the Hot Meals team and the All-Saints Deacon. And, the pantry volunteers kept the pantry operation going, without a hitch, serving all who came. The medical staff called for an ambulance, but he refused to go to the hospital. That is when the Preceptor told me that Ghena would probably die in the night. So, Ghena and I made a deal. We agreed that I would take care of his things and he would go to the hospital. We all hugged him goodbye before the ambulance took him to the hospital. And then we packed his belongings and loaded my car.

This, my friends, is community. We all came together. We gave whatever we could, and we cared for a man who has no family and no friends….no wait, that’s wrong. He has us. His name is Ghena, and he is part of our community. Thank you. The work you all do is so critically important. You are a light in a sometimes-dark world.