A Lesson about Mission

The SML Charity Home Tour is an annual event at Smith Mountain Lake. It was founded over 20 years ago as a way to generate funding to assist local charities. SML Good Neighbors has benefited from this event for the past six years. The story below is a real-life event that happened to me as we prepared for the 2014 home tour. 

Russell Baskett

October 14, 2014

     Last Thursday, October 9th, I had picked up all of the supplies for the parking and docking activities from the Charity Home Tour storage building. Jim Mullens and I met at the Moonan house, put up the signs, and made certain everything was in order to ensure the safety of the guests that would begin coming to tour the home the next morning. It had been a long day, getting the supplies was a little chaotic; it was now 6:30. I was tired, hungry, thinking about spending the next three days on my feet parking cars, shuttling volunteers from their parking area to the house and helping coordinate our parking volunteers—my mood was not good (that's an understatement). On the way home I stopped at the Exxon station across the street from the Blackwater Cafe to put gas in my car and buy water. As I came out of the store I saw a man cleaning out the trash containers by the gas pumps. He was looking at my van and specifically at the magnetic SML Good Neighbors sign I had put on the door. As I got closer we nodded to each other and he started the conversation:

            "Are you part of the Good Neighbors?"

            "Yes I am; I helped start the program."

            He reached out and shook my hand

"You folks are doing a wonderful thing. I really thank you. My two daughters came to the camp this summer and they loved it."

Although we didn't exchanged names I found out that his daughters are ages 6 and 9.

"We were in a real tough spot this summer. We didn't know how we could get our daughters to the school. It is expensive but my wife took them anyway. One day when I picked them up a lady asked me, “Do you know about our gas card program?" "I said I didn't. She explained it to me and got me a gas card. It was the help we needed."

He shook my hand again and said, "you folks are doing wonderful things; this is a great program, thank you."

     As you can imagine, I left the Exxon store in a much better mood than when I arrived; my bad mood was gone, my spirits were lifted. This chance meeting (was it chance?) with a parent reminded me that the Good Neighbors program is a mission—it's about the children we serve, not my comfort. It was a good and humbling lesson.

"Arrow to the Sun"

A Great Idea—Saturday Enrichments in the Arts (S.E.A.) Becomes a Reality

Well—it has happened again; another bright idea has become a reality at SML Good Neighbors. We have been talking for many months about having out-of-school programs for our Good Neighbors kids during the school year as well as in the summer. Many of our ideas have focused on the arts, and on January 11, 2014 the first S.E.A. program was launched in partnership with the Roanoke Children’s Theatre. We have been partnering with RCT since 2009 so a theater program as our first S.E.A. was a natural.

The program that began on the 11^th was the idea of Pat Wilhelms, Artistic Director of the RCT, who said one day during the summer; “it would be great to have a theater program for the Good Neighbors kids during the school year.” So, here it is—a great idea that became a reality; thanks Pat!!!

Following a shared lunch, the kids were led through a series of warm- up exercises to loosen up their muscles, voices and inhibitions. It didn’t take long before the shyness melted away and everyone was having a great time. Benjamin began the day very quiet and reserved, but as caught in this photo—he got over it!

Pat and Caroline taught the kids to do mime and use it to help tell the story, Arrow to the Sun. This folktale from the Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico tells the story of a mysterious boy’s search for his father. As the story unfolds, “The Lord of the Sun sent a spark of life to earth, and it became the Boy. When he grew older, he sought his father—until finally, Arrowmaker made an arrow of Boy and sent him to the Sun.” Using, mime, drumming, and dialogue, the kids—with Pat’s guidance—made this story in to a dramatic presentation. I was impressed and surprised at how quickly our kids connected with this theater activity. And, I felt a special connection to this folktale having spent time at the Acoma Pueblo. It is a very special place.

Did our first S.E.A. program live up to our expectations? ABSOLUTELY. The kids worked together (team-building), they learned about another culture, they used listening and verbal skills, and practiced story telling through metaphor and imagination. What a fun way to experience education! What does Pat have in store for the next seven (7) classes? I love surprises; so do our kids.