Can You Help: Your Chance to Pay It Forward

I know that I closed yesterday's post by saying that I would not be online much for the next couple weeks in order to attend to what I feel I am called to during this season.  But, this morning, something I read called me to share.

While my children are happily playing together in our safe home after a decent night's sleep, a bloggie-friend of mine is facing another day of just getting by, minute-to-minute.  Knowing this tugs at my heart, prompting me to offer what I can.

That's why I am borrowing some time from my kids to jump online.  For not only can I extend some concrete aid, but I can also offer my time through this post.  I ask you offer yours back by reading on and responding however you feel called to do so.

 

Your Chance to Pay It Forward to a Family in Need

Can you spare a prayer this Christmas season? How about an ornament?  Or a few dollars?  A gift card?  A small gift?  A postcard? A dog biscuit?

Here's your chance to pay it forward!

Regular readers may recognize the name Danette as the generous woman who offers her time and talent over at Help! S-O-S for Parents, the site that sponsored the Pajaggle review our family recently enjoyed putting together and the one with the B-O-B events each month in which we participate.  And, even if you don't recognize the name, you can likely recognize a mom in need.

It has come to my attention that Danette is one of those moms right now.  I had been wondering why she has not been posting at S-O-S lately and had even sent a brief email to inquire.  Then, yesterday my friend Tiffani let me know the bare bones of what is going on with Danette.  Today, she has published a piece at OJTA about it.  The call for help begins:

"Sometimes life has a way of punching you in the gut and knocking the wind right out of you. You think you have lived through some challenging issues until, bam, out of the blue, one of your worst parental nightmares sends you breathlessly into a tail spin. All you can do is live one hour at a time, one minute at a time as you wipe the continuous stream of tears and attempt with little bit of emotional energy you have left to wade through the process to get back to a new sense of normal.

Danette Schott , publisher of S-O-S Research is living in that very tail spin and has been since two days after Thanksgiving when life gave her a serious punch in the gut. She has been in the midst of a family crisis leaving her living minute by minute, attempting to navigate unchartered waters, trying desperately to achieve a new sense of normal for her family...."

Read on for details about how you can help.

I would to see a HUGE response to Tiffani's call.  

Act with Speed and Sensitivity

As a blogger, a parent, a mother of a child with special needs or all of these, I am sure you can relate as well as I can to Danette's desire to make it through difficult times with dignity, as well as a look of delight in her children's eyes this holiday season.  We can help make that happen.  

We can respond quickly to Tiffani's call to help Danette through commenting with encouraging words at Tiffani's post, sending prayers or sending concrete messages, gift cards or monetary donations to:

S-O-S Research

PO Box 5172

San Jose, CA 95150

We can also extend an invitation to friends and family to do so.  In other words, we can let the call for help go viral, but do so quietly.  We can share Tiffani's post through word-of-mouth and our own social media outlets with a caveat to consider Danette's need for support as well as sensitivity.

Whether with this situation or with another you are familiar with, I encourage you to be a bearer of J.O.Y this season, that is Just Offering Yourself, however you can as you can.