The warming power of one

Ohio had some bitterly cold weather in January. For a couple of weeks, it was way below freezing with the windchill. That may not seem REALLY cold to you Utah folk, but when you factor in the humidity, it's darn cold!!! Anyway, there were news stories every night about how the homeless shelters were overcrowded and how the city wouldn't be opening up its emergency shelters unless the temperature hit (or passed) a predetermined low---I think it was zero, but I'm not sure.
Anyway, everyone seemed to be talking about it, but my friend's neighbor decided to do something about it. She went around to all her neighbors and friends and told them that she was gathering up blankets and food to take down to the shelter the next day, and that she'd happily take anything they wanted to send. She had no idea the kind of response she was going to get. She not only loaded up her vehicle, but my friend Brenda ended up loading up her SUV as well. Everyone seemed to have a blanket or two that they could donate, and it added up quickly. My friend had a bunch of food in her food storage that was about to expire, so she took that down as well. What a great way to rotate your food storage!
When they got to the shelter, they were warmly welcomed, and the volunteers there were amazed that so many donations came because of just one woman. She was so galvanized by the experience that she organized another donation drive in her neighborhood for later that month. She bought a gift card for a local grocery store and gave a raffle ticket to each family for each item donated. At the end of the drive, she drew a ticket and awarded the gift card to the winning family. Most people who donated, didn't really care about winning the gift card. They just wanted to help, and their neighbor provided an easy, painless way of helping. The power of one is amazing!!! She influenced an untold number of lives---both the givers' and the receivers'---because she saw a need and found a way to fulfill it.