It will come. Surely, it will come. We know it will come. It is coming….
First, a trickle. Women (well, pregnant ones) and children first, just like on the lifeboats. Clinics opened, anxious parents and others in vulnerable groups — and some that just wanted to cut in line — stormed them.
Finally, the vaccine began to arrive in sufficient quantities that any of us that wanted to come one down and face the needle or the nasal spray could.
And what happened? Well, not much. The crowds for the first day of the Durham County Health Department’s H1N1 vaccine clinic were sparse. Perhaps, officials conjectured, it was a case of out of sight, out of mind.
We’ve had few cases around here, so maybe the urgency has gone away.
Well, if that’s how you feel, think about the tragic case this week in Chapel Hill. UNC student Lillian Chason died Wednesday, the victim of swine flu she came down with over Thanksgiving.
No excuses are left — the vaccine is available, by all accounts it is perfectly safe, and many public and private clinics are giving the shots.
As Nike folks say, just do it.
- On Sunday afternoons, Southern High School graduate David Garrard is playing on one of sport’s most prominent stages.
Quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Garrard is a top player in a sport that captivates millions of Americans every week. He’s good at what he does — his team is in second place in the National Football League’s AFC South division (albeit well behind the 13-0 Indianapolis Colts).
But what really sets Garrard apart is that he is successfully battling Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disorder that afflicts half a million in the United States. He’s not only battling it himself — he’s crusading for research funds to help all the sufferers from the disease.
Garrard’s first reaction when he was diagnosed with the disease, after noticeable weight loss, was typical of our modern vision of medicine. “Just give me some kind of pill and I’ll be done with it,” he suggested.
It’s not that easy, he now knows. But he keeps persevering, using what the bully pulpit of his NFL role to raise awareness of and funds for the disease.
Richard Geswell, president of the Crohn’s and Colities Foundation of America, called Garrard’s story “inspirational.” It’s also deserving of this week’s Durham Grit Award.
- ’Tis the season of good works, for which we are extremely grateful.
And one of those good works which particularly attracted our notice was by members of the law firm of Twiggs, Beskind, Strickland and Rabenau. The firm donated $11,000 to replace a broken oven at Urban Ministries’ of Durham.
And the firm’s partners and others didn’t just donate money. They put real skin in the game, as several of them rolled up their sleeves, sometimes with children in tow, and baked cookies to try out the new oven and to ready for the ministry’s open house this weekend.
Giving back to the community is important to the law firm, and their efforts to not only replace the UMD oven but to put it to good use exemplify that belief.
“It’s magic,” UMD Executive Director Patrice Nelson said.
That it is, and very much a part of Durham’s culture of generosity this holiday season.
