In today’s conflicted world it is easy to get mired
in the negative messages. Despite
the uncertain economy, unrelenting crime and the concern over world events,
there is much to celebrate.
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| Peggy Sparks Rappa Witches Night Out 2011 |
Recently my cousin, Peggy Sparks Zubry Rappa, began a simple
task to look for a positive thought each morning and send it to everyone on her
e-mail list. That solitary act has
brightened my morning. I look
forward to reading the short simple message she sends each day. She said that she began the project after watching
a program on PBS. The speaker
talked about healing, happiness and the outside forces that affect one’s
life. Rappa decided to
begin a project to create a positive spin on life.
The task was to choose a support group from her
e-mail list of at least 21 people.
Each morning she would send an email to with a good wish or thought for
21 days… or forever. Rappa said that was hard at first to remember to get up and do it.
She didn’t expect her small project to create
ripples. I can’t help but respond
each morning with comment and reaffirmation. I smile as I send a quick reply into the electronic
divide. And I’m not the only one.
My cousin has faced her share of challenges in
life; most recently, the loss of her husband and father. She watched her mother
fight a long battle with cancer and watched helplessly as her only child died
within his first year of life. She
is creative, smart and talented. She cares about others.
In her quiet way she is making a difference. She chooses to look at the world in a
positive light. Peggy Sparks Zubry Rappa (Margaret L. Sparks, when she paints) is a quiet hero in our midst.
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Robin has dedicated her life to find a way to spay
and neuter as many cats as possible.
She has taken sick and abandoned cats into her home. She nurses them back to health. She finds homes for as many as she can.
Buoncuore recruits foster families to temporarily
house cats until adoptions can be arranged.
Ten years ago, after rescuing a newborn kitten she
named Maddie, Buoncuore created Maddie & Friends, Inc. a non-profit
organization.
To Buoncuore, Maddie represented the tragedy of the
thousands of unwanted kittens born annually to unsprayed cats. Many of the unloved cats end up in
shelters where up to 80 percent are euthanized.
Maddie & Friends offers spay and neuter clinics
to reduce the number of unwanted and abandoned cats. Before the non-profit became a reality, Buoncuore and her
husband used personal funds to spay or neuter many cats in local feral colonies
near their Quinton home.
Buoncuore is passionate when educating and
encouraging others about the importance of spay and neuter as a humane way to
reduce abused and abandoned animals.
Maddie & Friends is an all-volunteer
organization. No one is paid.
Funds are raised through donations, fundraising and grants.
Buoncuore wouldn’t consider what she does as
special. In fact she gives credit
to the dedicated volunteers and friends who faithfully support the
organization. Robin Buoncuore is a quiet hero in our midst.
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Dan Galey had a dream. He and his wife, Nancy, realized how hard it was for parents
of a child diagnosed with autism to find the support, resources and knowledge
they needed to help their children.
Galey shared his dream with others. He planned and strategized. From the
vision a grant was written and awarded. With the support of friends and
volunteers, the dream became reality in 2008 when the Salem County Center for
Autism opened in Pennsville.
The dream began with a grassroots effort. As individuals came together the dream
for a center became more organized.
The center would be able to bridge gaps for
services not available from other agencies. It would provide current information on legal
services, healthcare professionals, schools and programs. The Center would offer workshops
and socialization events for parents and children.
Galey was aware of how difficult it could be to
navigate State, private and healthcare organizations.
He, and a team of dedicated supporters, created the
SCCA to work as an alliance that would be staffed with qualified and
experienced individuals. Finally
they could provide a one-stop approach to therapies and treatments for Autism
Spectrum Disorder.
Recently the SCCA moved to its new home at the old
Kurland Pharmacy site. The larger
facility will allow for expansion of services.
Like Sparks and Buoncuore, Galey does not take
credit for leading the way, for making a difference.
Dan Galey is a quiet hero in our midst.
Look around… quiet heroes are everywhere. They are creating community gardens,
delivering meals to homebound seniors or working with troubled youth. They are nurses, social workers and law
enforcement officers. How many
quiet heroes do you know?
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