Guest Blog by Sarah Walker

While striding along on a familiar route on a beautiful sunny day one month ago, I took a fall resulting in some road rash, a sprained ankle and a broken bone in my foot. The treatment has been straight forward – icing, elevation, and protecting my foot with a walking boot. I’m encouraged by my progress as my swelling and pain gradually resolve. My fracture should heal in 6-8 weeks. I am sharing my experience because it is an example of the way that a network of caring people can transform a challenging personal setback into a manageable situation. I am filled with gratitude for the community of friends who offered concern and direct assistance with many small acts of kindness. But each “small” gesture had a huge impact on my well-being. And cumulatively, they made all the difference in the world in my time of need. I was unable to tolerate any weight-bearing or drive the first couple weeks. During that time I accepted help from several friends as follows: rides to the doctor and meetings, bringing me ice packs and crutches, grocery shopping, watering my garden, taking me to visit a friend. My daughter came from Bellingham for a day to do some light chores leaving me with fresh laundry, clean floors, and produce harvested from my garden. By the third week after my fall, I was able to manage most daily activities independently. My friends had supported me through the most acute phase and equipped me to manage my recovery process with reassurance that I could ask for further help as needed. This is the gift of being part of a compassionate and responsive community.

I don’t fully understand the psychology that can make requesting or accepting help so difficult. Ironically I know that most of us readily demonstrate compassion when we are aware that we can be of use. It took a conscious effort for me to accept my vulnerability and to reassure myself that the generosity of my friends was an expression of our mutual care for each other – an important aspect of our connection. My experience reinforced my conviction that the bonds of friendship and community are strengthened through offering and accepting help. This conforms to the strong tradition within our Fellowship community of caring for each other in times of difficulty. Our Covenant statement acknowledges our intentions to love, to share and to serve each other. And I witness spontaneous examples of these acts of kindness and consideration toward each other on a frequent basis in my role as co-chair of QUUF’s Pastoral Care Team.

The Pastoral Care Team is entrusted with the role of paying particular attention to the needs of individuals within our community in collaboration with our minister. Some congregant concerns are disclosed confidentially to individual team members when emotional support or deep listening is needed. In this circumstance, our role is to offer empathy and support as we “walk” alongside someone engaged in a difficult life passage. In other circumstances, the team receives direct appeals for assistance with practical tasks. Perhaps it is not well understood that Pastoral Care Team members do not directly take responsibility for all the needs that come to light at QUUF. But we often serve to clarify the scope of a person’s needs and provide a coordinating role. With the recipient’s permission, we reach out to friends identified by the congregant and/or contact Fellowship members who have signed up on volunteer lists to offer their services (see below). We make every effort to connect people with rides, meals, errands, technology assistance or specific household tasks. And for more complex needs we refer people to community-based agencies and resources.

The Pastoral Care Team is reaching out to all households of our QUUF community this fall. Each member of the team will introduce themself with a card mailed to households located in their residential vicinity. So you can anticipate hearing from a member of the team in the next few weeks. By providing personal contact information, we want to assure you that you are welcome to communicate with us whenever you need to clarify any concerns or make requests regarding any needs that arise. (And of course, you are free to contact any other member of Pastoral Care Team if you prefer.) Our hope is that making personal connections will enhance every person’s sense of belonging to a caring community.

As we recover from the disruptions of the COVID-19 epidemic, we also need to refurbish our volunteer lists. We cannot assume information gathered through our past volunteer surveys accurately reflects someone’s current availability. It is time to renew our intentions. You can sign up to contribute your services by contacting me, Sarah Walker (360-531-3278) or my co-chair Deb Carroll (360-301-2837). You can choose any category that suits you. Rides and meals are the most frequently requested needs, along with errands and household tasks or technology assistance. There are no fixed terms of obligation associated with signing up. You have complete discretion as to your availability for any particular request. It is a given that we all have periods of traveling, hosting guests, or being occupied with other obligations. By rebuilding our volunteer base, there can be a broader distribution of requests and a better likelihood of responding to needs. Join us in caring for this community.

“We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.” ~ Marian Wright Edelman