2 Words that will Change your life TODAY by Joel Osteen: Faith Words, Oct. 2019

my personal “IAM” daily affirmations:  some are from, paraphrased from &/or inspired by Joel Osteen’s book 2 Words that will change your life TODAY.

Thank You, Eternal divine Christ-Light Presence, that I AM [that ALL-who-are-willing are:  e.g., all beings, non-beings species, non-species; within, around & through all dimensions, non-dimensions & infinitely more …]

gently, safely, calmly, securely, easily, effortlessly, peacefully, protectedly, lovingly, infinitely, instantly, automatically, eternally, everlastingly, compoundingly, gratefully, joyfully, joyously, blessed, completely, kindly, always … & infinitely more …

awesome, amiable, affable, acclaimed, admitted, admired, applauded, amazing, advanced,  abundant, abundance, amazing, awarded, all …

beautiful, brilliance, brilliant, bubbly, blessed, bright, brightest, bountiful …

courageous, courage, caring, calm, cheerful, charismatic, charisma, calming, charming …

delightful, delighted, delighting, delight, dear, dearest, darling, dedicated, divine …

efferescant, everlasting, eternal, early, enough / more than enough, enthusiastic, enthusiasm, effervescent, effervesence, exciting, excited, excitement, enlightened, enlightening, enlightenment, enriched, enriching …

fun, fun-loving, funny, friend, friendliest, friendly, friend, fantastic, fabulous, family, fulfilled, free, fine, forgiven, forgiving …

gentle, gentlest, gently, generous, grace, graceful, gracious, glory, glorious, generous, generosity, glamorous, grand, grandest, guided, genius, gifted, gifting, guarded, gratified, gratefully …

Highest Power, Highest Glory, Highest Destiny, healthiest, happiest, holy, holiest, heart-felt …

intelligence, intelligent, illuminated, instant, inventive, ingenious, inspired, inspiring, immortal, immortality, interested, interesting, I AM, innovative, innovated,  …

justice, joy, jubilant, jubilation, just, joyous, joyously, joyful. joyfully …

kind, kin, king, knowing, known, kindest …

love, loving, light, Life, lucious, luciously, lavish, lavishly, luxurious, luxuriously, lovingkind, likeable, lovable, lovingkindness …

mindful, magnificent, magnificently, majestic, majestically, miraculous, miraculously, marvelous, marvelously meaningful, meaningfully …

new, now, numinous, nice, neighborly, noteworthy …

Om, order, orderly, omnipotent, omniscient, omni-loving, omnipresent, omnipopular, omni-healthy, omni-prosperous, omni-beautiful, opportunities-filled …

peace, prayer, presence, present, popular, pretty, powerful, patience, pleasant, plenty, protected, protection, prosperity, prosperous …

queenly, quintessence, quickened, quiet, queen, quick …

regal, royal, rested, resplendent, resplendence, restored, restoring, resurrected, redeemed, redeeming, revitalized, revitalizing, recognized, recognition, renewed, renewing, rejuvenated, rejuvenating, renewing, renewed, reenergized, re-energizing, resurrected, resurrecting, re-beautifying, re-beautified …

safe, safest, secure, serene, serendipity, sensation, spirited, spirit, strong, strongest, splendid, satisfied, satisfying, stupendous, soulful, successful, sacred, smart, smartest, showcased, spotlighted  …

tremendous, trustworthy, truthful, truth, transfigured, transfiguring, transformed, transforming, thankful, thankfully, thanksgiving, tremendous, tremendously, terrific, trustworthy, thrilled, thrilling …

union, uplifting, uplifted, unconditional, unconditionally, unconditionally lovingkind, understanding, understood …

vim, vigor, victorious, vivacious, victory, victorious, victoriously …

wise, willing, wealthy, winsome, wonderful, wondrous, wealthy, winner, whole …

x  ecstasy, ecstatic, exhilaration, excel, excelling, excellent, excellence, exuberance, exuberant, exciting …

y  yes, Yahweh, yielding, yield, yahoo! yippee! …

zest, zeal, zip, zoom …

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

anti-Human Trafficking speakers & Websites

George Segura  Joint FBI/SAPD Human Trafficking Task Force

  george.segura@sanantonio.gov. 210-207-2569

District HT Champion

PDG Stephanie Macchia(210)349-8888

or smacchia@elmslaw.com

Video with Ashton Kutcher

http://video.rotary.org/bt4d/human-trafficking-panel-discussion/

Kirsta Leeburg Melton
Deputy Criminal Chief of the
Human Trafficking and Transnational/Organized Crime Section
Office of the Texas Attorney General.

Brooke Axtell, Founder of She Rises: http://brookeaxtell.com/bio/. She charges to speak and is a victim herself.

Diana Mao, Founder/President of Nomi: https://www.nominetwork.org/nomis-story/

 Dr. Ken Small from the H.U.G.S. Foundation @ H.U.G.S.org

The main one we recommend is ransomedifetexas.org

They have several speakers including ones specifically for teens. My favorite  contact and friend is Susan Burkholder. Her email is burkholder@ransomedlifetexas.org.

Use humor to raise your business’ awareness

 SIGN IN A SHOE REPAIR STORE IN VANCOUVER READs:  We will heel you  We will save your sole  We will even dye for you.

 A SIGN ON A BLINDS AND CURTAIN TRUCK:  “Blind man driving.”

 Sign over a Gynecologist’s Office:  “Dr. Jones, at your cervix.”

 In a Podiatrist’s office:  “Time wounds all heels.”

 On a Septic Tank Truck:  Yesterday’s Meals on Wheels

At an Optometrist’s Office:  “If you don’t see what you’re looking for, You’ve come to the right place.”

 On a Plumber’s truck:  “We repair what your husband fixed.”

 On another Plumber’s truck:  “Don’t sleep with a drip. Call your plumber.”

 At a Tire Shop in Milwaukee:  “Invite us to your next blowout.”

On an Electrician’s truck:  “Let us remove your shorts.

In a Non-smoking Area:  “If we see smoke, we will assume you are on fire and will take appropriate action.”

 On a Maternity Room door:  “Push. Push. Push.”

At a Car Dealership:  “The best way to get back on your feet – miss a car payment.”

 Outside a Muffler Shop:  “No appointment necessary. We hear you coming.”

 In a Veterinarian’s waiting room:  “Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay!”

 At the Electric Company:  “We would be delighted if you send in your payment on time.  However, if you don’t, YOU will be de-lighted.”

In a Restaurant window:  “Don’t stand there and be hungry; come on in and get fed up.”

 In the front yard of a Funeral Home:  “Drive carefully. We’ll wait.”

 At a Propane Filling Station:  “Thank Heaven for little grills.”

In a Chicago Radiator Shop:  “Best place in town to take a leak.”

And the best one for last:  Sign on the back of another Septic Tank Truck:  “Caution – This Truck is full of Political Promises.”

Politics!

Theodore Roosevelt:  The most practical kind of politics is the politics of decency.

Visit “Gillespie County Country Schools” mobile application: https://youtu.be/cEEBNKuRWzw

Visit “Gillespie County Country Schools” mobile application: https://youtu.be/cEEBNKuRWzw

Friends of the Gillespie County Country Schools were invited to work with Texas Historical Commission on this Mobile App.  We think you will like what they have produced And did a great job in helping us tell our story to heritage tourist with or without bicycles!

Why God made a dog: https://youtu.be/9wWHLdHroyQ

Why God made a dog: https://youtu.be/9wWHLdHroyQ

Oprah’s Golden Globes’ acceptance speech: this generation’s version of “I Have a Dream” speech

Oprah Winfrey’s rousing acceptance speech about social values for her Lifetime Achievement Award:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ss6qQM054B0

Friends!

FROM ONE FRIEND TO ANOTHER

Take two minutes to read these sayings and be sure to read all the way to the bottom:

Written by Andy Rooney, a man who had the gift of saying so much with so few words.  Rooney used to be on 60 Minutes TV show.

I’ve learned that

the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.

when you’re in love, it shows.

just one person saying to me, ‘You’ve made my day!’ makes my day.

having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.

being kind is more important than being right.

you should never say no to a gift from a child.

I can always pray for someone when I don’t have the strength to help him in any other way.

no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.
sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.

simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.

life is like a roll of toilet paper.    The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.
we should be glad God doesn’t give us everything we ask for.
money doesn’t buy class.
it’s those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.
everyone hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
to ignore the facts does not change the facts.
when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.

I’ve learned….
That love, not time, heals all wounds.

I’ve learned that

the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.

everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.
life is tough, but I’m tougher.
opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.
when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.
I wish I could have told my Mom that I love her one more time before she passed away.
one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.

I’ve learned that

a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.

when your newly born grandchild holds your little finger in his little fist, you’re hooked for life.

I’ve learned that everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you’re climbing it.

… hat the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.

To all of you:  Make sure you read all the way down to the last sentence.
It’s National Friendship Week.Show your friends how much you care.

Send this to everyone you consider a FRIEND, even if it means sending it back to the person who sent it to you.

If it comes back to you, then you’ll know you have a circle of friends.

HAPPY FRIENDSHIP WEEK TO YOU!   YOU ARE MY FRIEND AND I AM HONORED!
Now send this to every friend you have!   And to your family.  This was sent to me by a friend.

Why bother with education?! Education is a powerful passport to your future.

Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.     Malcolm X

Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.     Nelson Mandela

He who opens a school door, closes a prison.   Victor Hugo

An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.     Benjamin Franklin

Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.     George Washington Carver

Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.     William Butler Yeats

Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you … grow.     Anthony J D’Angelo

 

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.     Maimonides

Education is not preparation for life; it is life itself.     John Dewey

The aim of education is the knowledge, not of facts, but of values.    William S. Burroughs

A person who won’t read has no advantage over one who can’t read.     Mark Twain

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Humorous “truisms” about my home state: Kansas!

Leave it to Jeff Foxworthy to talk about our beloved state Kansas!  The funny part is…it’s all true…every bit of it! Only in Kansas! (Comic Jeff Foxworthy’s in-laws live in Derby, Kansas.)

#4 is true for me (when I lived in Austin, TX, 1987-2004):   After a recently deceased Kansan’s relatives accidentally called & left voice-mail messages frequently, I returned their call.  We mutually made time for a get-acquainted chat — before discovering that they had been using the wrong area code when they reached me.  <smile>

 

Other truisms I’ve experienced

Kansas According to Jeff Foxworthy:

If you’re proud that your region makes the national news at least 96 times each year because it’s the hottest or the coldest spot in the nation, you might live in Wichita, Kansas.

If your dad’s suntan stops at a line curving around the middle of his fore head, you might live in Pratt, Kansas.

If you have worn shorts and a parka at the same time, you might live in Colby, Kansas.

If you have had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number, you might live in Kansas.

YOU KNOW YOU ARE A TRUE Kansan WHEN ‘Vacation’ means going east or west on I-70 for the weekend.

If you measure distance in hours, you might live in Kansas.

If you know several people who have hit a deer more than once, you might live in Medicine Lodge, Kansas.

If you often switch from ‘Heat’ to ‘A/C’ in the same day and back again, you might live in Fredonia, Kansas.

If you can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard, without flinching, you might live in Kansas City, Kansas.

If you see people wearing camouflage at social events (including weddings), you might live in Great Bend, Kansas.

If you install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked, you might live in Augusta, Kansas.

If you carry jumper cables in your car and your girlfriend knows how to use them, you might live in Manhattan, Kansas.

If driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow, you might live in Wichita, Kansas.

If you know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road construction, you might live in Pittsburg, Kansas.

If your idea of creative landscaping is a statue of a deer next to your blue spruce, you might live in Derby, Kansas.

If “Going Down South” means Oklahoma, you might live in Coffeyville, Kansas.

If a brat is something you eat, you might live in Altoona, Kansas.

If your idea of going out to eat is a tail gate party every Friday, you might live in Cimarron, Kansas.

If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car; you might live in Goodland, Kansas.

If you find 0 degrees to be ‘a little chilly’, you might live in Concordia, Kansas.

If you actually understand these jokes, and you forward them to all your Kansas friends — you might live (or once lived) in Kansas.

Inspiring Websites from “The Passion Test” by Attwood & Attwood

Take what you like & leave the rest (copy & paste into your browser, if any links, below, don’t instantly connect to the your chosen Website; or use “Google” to find most up-to-date links):

http://www.ThePassionTest.com & to take the Passion Test:  www.PassionTestOnLine.com & to access the e-book:  www.ThePassionTest.com/fromsadtoglad or become a certified Passion Test facilitator:  www.ThePassionTest.com/cert

I participated in two “Money & You” 3-day, intensive experiences & highly recommend the wisdom, focus & power of the dynamic learning:  www.ThePassionTest.com/moneyandyou;

Additional resources for your consideration:  www.ThePassionTest.com/perfectcustomers; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/detinytraining; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/jamesray; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/jimbunch; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/creatingpower; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/eker; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/alexm; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/emi; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/aaron; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/onecoach;  www.ThePassionTest.com/bni; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/pierce; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/successu; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/wildlywealthy; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/healingcode; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/stephenco; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/sunildas;  www.ThePassionTest.com/amazon; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/marsvenus; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/hendricks; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/teens; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/supercamp; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/selfgrowth; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/scc; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/lefkoe; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/coachville; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/doinglife

from “Passion Test” contributor-authors:  www.JanetAttwood.com; http://www.StayinInLove.com; http://www.EnlightenedAlliances.com

Read interviews of folks, whose remarks are included in “The Passion Test” book:

http://www.DebbieFord.com; http://www.BestYearOfYourLife.com; http://www.RichardPaulEvans.com; http://www.TheChristmasBoxHouse.org; http://www.CoveyLink.com; http://www.Abraham.com; http://www.MarciShimoff.com; http://www.HappyForNoReason.com; http://www.ISTPP.org; http://www.TM.org; http://www.PermanentPeace.org; http://www.Hagelin.org

More resources:  www.ThePassionTest.com/thework; http://www.PassionTest.com/sedona; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/centerpointe; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/canfield; http://www.ThePassionTest.com/bustingloose;

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dealing with grief: https://www.neptunesociety.com/resources/the-guide-to-pet-bereavement-what-to-expect-after-the-loss-of-a-loved-one & more

As many years as I’ve been in the health field, it’s never been easy to lose someone, whether personally or professionally. Although it’s something many people avoid talking about, death & the grief that follows it are unavoidable.

I was reminded of this recently after losing a lifelong friend who lost her battle with cancer. We knew some months ago that we would lose her… but it didn’t make it any easier. My grief is something I’m still dealing with (& know I will continue to deal with). I’ve been doing a lot of research for Public Health Corps on this topic lately in an effort to help any of our readers who may be going through a similar difficult time, & I thought I would share some of my findings with you, as well.

Laid to Rest at Home: How to Plan a Home Memorial Service for Your Departed Loved One
https://www.redfin.com/blog/how-to-memorial-service-at-home

The New Stages of Grief: 5 Tasks, No Timeline  https://www.caring.com/articles/five-stages-of-grief

Final Logistics: A Step-by-Step Guide to Handling a Loved One’s Belongings After Their Death:  https://www.closetbox.com/resources/final-logistics-step-step-guide-handling-loved-ones-belongings-death/

Supporting a Child When Someone Dies:  https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/help/bereaved-family-friends/supporting-grieving-child

Coping with a Child’s Illness While You’re in Recovery: Learn Coping Methods While Going Through this Difficult Time:  www.drugrehab.org/coping-childs-illness-recovery/

Dementia Patients and Grief:  https://www.pathwayshealth.org/dementia-care/dementia-patients-and-grief/

The Guide to Pet Bereavement: What to Expect After the Loss of a Loved One:  https://www.neptunesociety.com/resources/the-guide-to-pet-bereavement-what-to-expect-after-the-loss-of-a-loved-one

When Grief Becomes a Mental Health Issue:  www.healthyplace.com/blogs/recoveringfrommentalillness/2016/03/when-bereavement-becomes-a-mental-health-issue/

publichealthcorps.org   340 S Lemon Ave #5780 | Walnut, CA 91789

Death is nothing at All by Henry Scott-Holland: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/death-is-nothing-at-all-by-henry-scott-holland

through Sherril.Skibell@TTU.edu at Dr. Margaret “Peggy” Sheffield Lutherer’s memorial service & read by Alice at memorial service of Dr. John Aure Buesseler at the 46-yr.-old CEO Roundtable:  This poem is often read at funerals. The author, Henry Scott-Holland (1847-1918), a priest at St. Paul’s Cathedral of London, did not intend it as a poem, it was actually delivered as part of a sermon in 1910. The sermon, titled, “Death, the King of Terrors” was preached while the body of King Edward VII was lying in state at Westminster.  READ  COMPLETE STORY  PRINT

Death Is Nothing At All by Henry Scott-Holland More Henry Scott-Holland  

https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/death-is-nothing-at-all-by-henry-scott-holland

Death is nothing at all.
It does not count.
I have only slipped away into the next room.
Nothing has happened.

Everything remains exactly as it was.
I am I, and you are you,
and the old life that we lived so fondly together is untouched, unchanged.
Whatever we were to each other, that we are still.

Call me by the old familiar name.
Speak of me in the easy way which you always used.
Put no difference into your tone.
Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow.

Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes that we enjoyed together.
Play, smile, think of me, pray for me.
Let my name be ever the household word that it always was.
Let it be spoken without an effort, without the ghost of a shadow upon it.

Life means all that it ever meant.
It is the same as it ever was.
There is absolute and unbroken continuity.
What is this death but a negligible accident?

Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight?
I am but waiting for you, for an interval,
somewhere very near,
just round the corner.

All is well.
Nothing is hurt; nothing is lost.
One brief moment and all will be as it was before.
How we shall laugh at the trouble of parting when we meet again!

LifeStories Alive: MOKrent@LifeStoriesAlive.com

You are invited to FBG Morning Rotary’s breakfast on Thur., June 22, 6:45a at The Buffalo Nickel Bar & Grill at 105 S. Llano St. in downtown Fredericksburg – in case our  “LifeStories Alive” speaker* might be of special interest to you & your family.

* Mike O’Krent –  the founder of LifeStories Alive, LLC, specializes in the making personal history videos for families.  MOKrent@LifeStoriesAlive.com

Born and raised in San Antonio, TX, Mike received his degree in Marketing and Management from Southern Methodist University.

In a life-changing experience, from 1996 through 2000, Mike interviewed Holocaust survivors for Steven Spielberg’s Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, now the USC Shoah Foundation. It was through that experience he discovered the significance and technique of recording the life stories of loved ones. That formed the basis for his LifeStories business.

 

Since founding the business in 2006, LifeStories Alive has filmed legacy videos for hundreds of client families and non-profit organizations.

Mike currently serves as a Trustee for Austin’s ZACH Theatre. He has served as the Chairman of the Yom HaShoah (Day of Holocaust Remembrance) Committee for the Jewish Community Association of Austin from 2009 to the present.

How much good there is in the world!

It is so many years since 9/11/2001,  but here is a wonderful story about that terrible day.

Jerry Brown, Delta Flight 15…(true story) from a flight attendant on Delta Flight 15, written following 9-11-’01:

On the morning of Tuesday, September 11, we were about 5 hours out of Frankfurt, flying over the North Atlantic .

All of a sudden the curtains parted and I was told to go to the cockpit, immediately, to see the captain. As soon as I got there I noticed that the crew had that “All Business” look on their faces. The captain handed me a printed message. It was from Delta’s main office in Atlanta and simply read, “All airways over the Continental United States are closed to commercial air traffic. Land ASAP at the nearest airport. Advise your destination.”

No one said a word about what this could mean. We knew it was a serious situation and we needed to find terrafirma quickly. The captain determined that the nearest airport was 400 miles behind us in Gander , New Foundland.

He requested approval for a route change from the Canadian traffic controller and approval was granted immediately — no questions asked. We found out later, of course, why there was no hesitation in approving our request.

While the flight crew prepared the airplane for landing, another message arrived from Atlanta telling us about some terrorist activity in the New York area. A few minutes later word came in about the hijackings.

We decided to lie to the passengers while we were still in the air. We told them the plane had a simple instrument problem and that we needed to land at the nearest airport in Gander , New Foundland, to have it checked out.

We promised to give more information after landing in Gander . There was much grumbling among the passengers, but that’s nothing new. Forty minutes later, we landed in Gander … Local time at Gander was 12:30 PM … that’s 11:00 AM EST

There were already about 20 other airplanes on the ground from all over the world that had taken this detour on their way to the U.S.

After we parked on the ramp, the captain made the following announcement: “Ladies and gentlemen, you must be wondering if all these airplanes around us have the same instrument problem as we have. The reality is that we are here for another reason.” Then he went on to explain the little bit we knew about the situation in the U.S. There were loud gasps and stares of disbelief. The captain informed passengers that Ground control in Gander told us to stay put.

The Canadian Government was in charge of our situation and no one was allowed to get off the aircraft. No one on the ground was allowed to come near any of the aircrafts. Only airport police would come around periodically, look us over and go on to the next airplane. In the next hour or so more planes landed and Gander ended up with 53 airplanes from all over the world, 27 of which were U.S. commercial jets.

Meanwhile, bits of news started to come in over the aircraft radio and for the first time we learned that airplanes were flown into the World Trade Centre in New York and into the Pentagon in DC. People were trying to use their cell phones, but were unable to connect due to a different cell system in Canada . Some did get through, but were only able to get to the Canadian operator who would tell them that the lines to the U.S. were either blocked or jammed.

Sometime in the evening the news filtered to us that the twin towers buildings had collapsed and that a fourth hijacking had resulted in a crash. By now the passengers were emotionally and physically exhausted, not to mention frightened, but everyone stayed amazingly calm. We had only to look out the window at the 52 other stranded aircraft to realize that we were not the only ones in this predicament.

We had been told earlier that they would be allowing people off the planes one plane at a time. At 6 PM, Gander airport told us that our turn to deplane would be 11 am the next morning. Passengers were not happy, but they simply resigned themselves to this news without much noise and started to prepare themselves to spend the night on the airplane.

Gander had promised us medical attention, if needed, water, and lavatory servicing. And they were true to their word. Fortunately we had no medical situations to worry about. We did have a young lady who was 33 weeks into her pregnancy. We took REALLY good care of her. The night passed without incident despite the uncomfortable sleeping arrangements.

About 10:30 on the morning of the 12th a convoy of school buses showed up. We got off the plane and were taken to the terminal where we went through Immigration and Customs and then had to register with the Red Cross.

After that we (the crew) were separated from the passengers and were taken in vans to a small hotel. We had no idea where our passengers were going. We learned from the Red Cross that the town of Gander has a population of10,400 people and they had about 10,500 passengers to take care of from all the airplanes that were forced into Gander !

We were told to just relax at the hotel and we would be contacted when the U.S. airports opened again, but not to expect that call for a while.

We found out the total scope of the terror back home only after getting to our hotel and turning on the TV, 24 hours after it all started.

Meanwhile, we had lots of time on our hands and found that the people of Gander were extremely friendly. They started calling us the “plane people”. We enjoyed their hospitality, explored the town of Gander and ended up having a pretty good time.

Two days later, we got that call and were taken back to the Gander airport. Back on the plane, we were reunited with the passengers and found out what they had been doing for the past two days. What we found out was incredible.

Gander and all the surrounding communities (within about a 75 Kilometer radius) had closed all high schools, meeting halls, lodges, and any other large gathering places. They converted all these facilities to mass lodging areas for all the stranded travellers. Some had cots set up, some had mats with sleeping bags and pillows set up.

ALL the high school students were required to volunteer their time to take care of the “guests”. Our 218 passengers ended up in a town called Lewisporte, about 45 kilometers from Gander where they were put up in a high school. If any women wanted to be in a women-only facility, that was arranged. Families were kept together. All the elderly passengers were taken to private homes.

Remember that young pregnant lady? She was put up in a private home right across the street from a 24-hour Urgent Care facility. There was a dentist on call and both male and female nurses remained with the crowd for the duration.

Phone calls and e-mails to the U.S. and around the world were available to everyone once a day. During the day, passengers were offered “Excursion” trips. Some people went on boat cruises of the lakes and harbors. Some went for hikes in the local forests. Local bakeries stayed open to make fresh bread for the guests.

Food was prepared by all the residents and brought to the schools. People were driven to restaurants of their choice and offered wonderful meals. Everyone was given tokens for local laundramats to wash their clothes, since luggage was still on the aircraft. In other words, every single need was met for those stranded travellers.

Passengers were crying while telling us these stories. Finally, when they were told that U.S. airports had reopened, they were delivered to the airport right on time and without a single passenger missing or late. The local Red Cross had all the information about the whereabouts of each and every passenger and knew which plane they needed to be on and when all the planes were leaving. They coordinated everything beautifully.

It was absolutely incredible.

When passengers came on board, it was like they had been on a cruise. Everyone knew each other by name. They were swapping stories of their stay, impressing each other with who had the better time. Our flight back to Atlanta looked like a chartered party flight. The crew just stayed out of their way. It was mind-boggling.

Passengers had totally bonded and were calling each other by their first names, exchanging phone numbers, addresses, and email addresses.

And then a very unusual thing happened.

One of our passengers approached me and asked if he could make an announcement over the PA system. We never, ever, allow that. But this time was different. I said “of course” and handed him the mike. He picked up the PA and reminded everyone about what they had just gone through in the last few days. He reminded them of the hospitality they had received at the hands of total strangers. He continued by saying that he would like to do something in return for the good folks of Lewisporte

“He said he was going to set up a Trust Fund under the name of DELTA 15 (our flight number). The purpose of the trust fund is to provide college scholarships for the high school students of Lewisporte. He asked for donations of any amount from his fellow travelers. When the paper with donations got back to us with the amounts, names, phone numbers, and addresses, the total was for more than $14,000!

“The gentleman, a MD from Virginia , promised to match the donations and to start the administrative work on the scholarship. He also said that he would forward this proposal to Delta Corporate and ask them to donate as well.

As I write this account, the trust fund is at more than $1.5 million and has assisted 134 students in college education.

“I just wanted to share this story because we need good stories right now. It gives me a little bit of hope to know that some people in a faraway place were kind to some strangers who literally dropped in on them.

It reminds me how much good there is in the world

“In spite of all the rotten things we see going on in today’s world this story confirms that there are still a lot of good people in the world and when things get bad, they will come forward.”

This is one of those stories that need to be shared. Please do so.