At the Epicenter of a Ripple of Change

Busy!  Me too.  This weekend my overscheduled life collided with a reality perception many of us lose sight of from time to time:  Hunger!

I mean the not-having-enough-deciding-between-heat-and-food hunger! 

I documented the community effort known as the LCAC Thanksgiving Food Drive.  Before this weekend, I’d heard about it.  I knew my kids donated food at their respective schools in the past.  In my mind, it was another group in Lakewood that is made up of “L”s and “C”s always looking for volunteers. 

Whap!  Reality hit me in the face!  Perception changed!

Officially they are:  LCAC: Lakewood Community Charitable Assistance, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of under-privileged Lakewood, Ohio residents. 

In my words, they are Lakewoodites that make Lakewood one of the best places in America to raise children.  The dedicated leaders organized thousands of donations, and hundreds of people.  The effort took months to prepare, but only hours to complete. 

On Friday, donations were gathered from schools and other sites.  It was sorted, counted and bagged.  On Saturday, LCAC purchased perishable foods and brought them to the Masonic Temple for distribution.  A sea of people, ranging in ages from 5 to 95, flowed in and out of the Temple creating 300 deliverable meals for the Turkey holiday. 

300!

An orchestrated army of vehicles packed with meals delivered them to Lakewood families in need.  I was privileged to take part in delivering a few meals with three H2O volunteers and LCAC member Jeff Worron. 

Whap! 

We arrived at a house that did not look as I expected.  Strange, I thought, as we parked.  As it turned out, the single mother in need works three jobs.  She couldn’t take off work to receive the donation. So, a neighboring family of the street’s Block Watch group stepped up and told LCAC to deliver it to them and they would make sure the mom received her meal.

That is Lakewood!  That is why I live here! 

Note the levels of awesomeness! 

1. LCAC exists.
2. Thousands of people donate.
3. Hundreds help get it together and get it out.
4. H2O a city/school-sponsored group (one of many awesome groups in Lakewood) teaches kids to see the value of service.
5. The Block Watch program ties a street together.
6. An ex-teacher now turned filmmaker re-opens his eyes, perceptions changed!
7. A hard-working single mom will enjoy a delicious Thanksgiving meal.

It’s a beautiful day for Lakewood!

This blog post is one of a series in the creation of a transmedia documentary about H2O entitled Ripples of Change.  Please reach out to me (facebook or twitter or chrisjkarel@gmail.com) if you’d like to help tell the story of Help To Others!  The quest is to make H2O sustainable for another 20 years! 

For more information about LCAC please visit their website.  Learn how you can be a part of their Christmas Food Drive on December 14th and 15th.