Making The Holidays Special

Well we have entered the holiday season here on Marco Island and are prepared to shift into overdrive as the weeks progress until December 25. All of this tends to bring forth memories going back 56 years ago for me when the year was 1966. Today it brings back the memories of my dad entering an almost 12-month battle with cancer and the valiant fight he and my mom battled together over those 12 months which began just after the Thanksgiving of 1965 and would conclude just short of the Thanksgiving Holiday in 1966. 

I refer to it as a battle they “both fought,” for those that have witnessed similar situations understand that a family fights these battles as a team. At 16 years of age I’ve had the opportunity to view that upfront and personally and over the years I’ve grown to understand the important meaning of the words found in most wedding vows, especially those that state “In sickness and in health.”

When I think of my dad my first thoughts go to the valiant fight he put up during that year and how my mother stood by his side throughout it. I believe witnessing that provided me with the understanding that we should never give up in adversity, no matter what the challenges that face us. It also provided me with the understanding that we should always be so thankful for the privilege of having a partner in life who will stand with us during the darkest of times.

I think this time of year makes these holidays all the more important to me as I have been able to witness the importance of family and friends in a much clearer light. During his illness, the community came together to assist in so many ways I cannot begin to name.

However, one of the most important memories I have is driving into our yard after the funeral, the day before Thanksgiving in 1966, and seeing the abundance of love left in shopping bags on the porch of our modest home. You see, my dad had no insurance in those days as he was self-employed as a barber in his own shop. He relied upon the majority of hospitalization through the Veterans Administration, as he was a member of what became known as the “Greatest Generation,” having been in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

The events and outpouring of support between Thanksgiving and the Christmas holidays would teach me a great lesson about the importance of community, and I will take that lesson with me to the grave and do all that I can to continue to pass that lesson on by example in any way that I can. 

Our small New Hampshire community provided my sister, brother and I with a great strength from those lessons taught during those early years in our lives.

I explain all of this not for pity or sympathy, for I am a much stronger person for having walked in these shoes. Stronger because I’ve had these lessons ingrained in my DNA over my 73 years. An understanding I’m not sure I would comprehend as well had I not experienced it the way I did.

This is a special time of year as the strength of the community I now call home is demonstrated every day here on Marco Island. Organizations such as the Sunrise and Noontime Rotary Clubs, the Marco Woman’s Club, Al’s Pals, the Our Daily Bread Food Pantry, the Island Club Charitable Foundation, Christmas Island Style, Kiwanis Club, Lions Club, The Shriners Club, the Newcomers, Just Friends and the wonderful men of the F-Troop who quietly go about their philanthropic giving. Couple these with all of our wonderful places of worship and their affiliated agencies, in addition to the “quiet” acts of kindness demonstrated by members of the Marco Island Police and Fire/Rescue Personnel as they come across those in need, and you begin to discover rich traditions.

The business family on Marco Island is also an extraordinary group of generous individuals who enable those charitable organizations to reach out and help those in need throughout the year and especially during this special holiday season.

I’ve been fortunate in my life to have had a single parent that held it together for three kids who can honestly say we were never cold or hungry after the passing of our dad and we grew up in a kind and nurturing community similar to Marco Island. Maybe that is part of the reason I find such an affinity to my newly adopted home over the last 36 years.

We can be proud of this community and the commitment demonstrated by those that call it home. If you’ve never been part of any of these wonderful organizations I’ve mentioned here, take a moment to ask yourself why and give some thought to being part of the solution by giving of your time and talent which will improve the lives of so many.