Thanks to Them
It happens in a flash, an instant. Suddenly lives are changed for the better.
Millions of ordinary Americans, usually with little or no recognition or praise, offer extraordinary time to try to improve their world. But their path to good deeds often starts with halting, quirky steps: a debilitating illness and a prayer. A spanking in a youth center. The speech of a nun. A chance meeting at sea with dolphins.
No matter how they decide to do what they do, however, their efforts can by quietly moving: lonely seniors are no longer neglected; high-risk teen-agers get attention from a self-described former tough; crime victims receive some care and attention that the system never could give.
For all the labor, the hard work of all too many largely goes unsung. On a day of thanksgiving, it’s worth telling some of the tales of kindness.
Here are a few:
William Pirtle
A lawyer in the Los Angeles Juvenile Dependency Court, Pirtle, 40, set up a trust account and took other steps to help the children from families whose lives had been marred by violence. “It was just appalling to me, and I’m not that much of a sentimentalist. I’ve been practicing criminal law for a long time, and I’ve been in the juvenile system for three years now. But this is perhaps the most tragic case I ever had--to actually see your father shoot your mother between the eyes.
“The five Taylor-Davis children range in age from 11 down to 7: Brenda, Kelly, twins Lannette and Annette, and Cindy. They were poor, destitute. The family had been living in a converted motel, one of those horrible places . . . all five of them, with their mother and father, were living in this motel room.
“After the shooting, I knew the potential was there to get help for these kids. Frequently, you see on the news that so-and-so has set up a trust fund. I opened a trust account.
“There were several stories about the family tragedy but the media weren’t really happy with me because I wouldn’t allow the children to be interviewed. I didn’t want to put them on exhibit.
“I got about $1,000, which was too bad; I would like to have gotten more for their future education.
“An 18-year-old half-sister, who is intent on keeping the family together, may eventually become their legal guardian. The sister’s future mother-in-law has taken the children in. It’s a loving home with good, religious people, but very poor.
“The wonderful thing about these kids, besides being cute, is that they are young, they haven’t been screwed up yet, either by having to live on the street or (having to) scrounge around for money. I’ll have to hand it to the mother. I don’t know how she managed to keep that family together, but she did.
“The children are in therapy. They don’t want to see the father, who will soon be tried. . . .
“I try to put everything behind me when I come home from work. Frequently, I’m so exhausted, I’m just a couch potato. But a case like this. . . .
“My involvement with the children will last until jurisdiction in the juvenile court is terminated and that won’t happen until the children are placed with a permanent guardian.
“I really look forward to the day when the sister is ready to take on legal guardianship, and to see how the children have progressed with this young woman.
“There is a lot of sadness in these cases, but there are enough cases with happy results that it really can satisfy the need to feel publicly involved. I know I have that need. Maybe it’s because I’m a child of the ‘60s. I do believe in karma, trying never to hurt anyone, trying never to give in to apathy or indifference . . . doing what love always impels you to do.