This has been a year of heroes. The events of September 11 and following thrust many people immediately into the role of hero. Life's circumstances may require a heroic response in an immediate situation. But I’ve been considering the difference between a hero and a role model. A hero may be made in a moment, through one heroic act. A role model does heroic things over a long period of time and often quietly and with no recognition. We need to look carefully at our heroes before we choose our role models.

We often look to the sports world for heroes. We can learn about teamwork from sports, but we need to be careful about calling individual athletes "heroes." As I write this, the Celtics are involved in the playoffs with the New Jersey Nets. Kenyon Martin is one of the Nets' best players. He also leads the league in "flagrant foul points." Kenyon has been suspended for seven games this season and has forfeited a total of $ 347,057 in salary and fines. In the 82 game season, he'll still earn more than $ 3.4 million. Consider this, his lost salary and fines – less than 1/10 of his salary - is more than enough to operate all of the ministries of QCC for 1½ years. With just over $225,000, QCC provided over 15,000 hot meals through the feeding program and distributed morethan 18 tons of food, making over 1200 emergency food deliveries. Kenyon may be a great athlete who provides heroic effort on occasion but he's certainly not yet proven to be a model to emulate.

What kind of person should we choose as heroes and role models? QCC lost several

heroes of compassion this past year; Mary Hinkley, Cathy MacEachern, John Stark and Grace Wagner to name four.

Mary and John had previously been recognized as QCC Volunteers of the Year. Grace coordinated the efforts of Quincy Point Congregational Church in their work in the Meal-a-Month program. Mary raised funds, solicited donations of food, clothing and other items and kept many Quincy businesspersons and politicians aware of the work of QCC. John and Cathy volunteered at the Faith Covenant Meal. With each one’s passing, there was little fanfare. Families and friends gathered to celebrate a life well lived and a brief obituary appeared in the paper. But, our community was much poorer with each loss. These people were heroes who should be looked to as role models.

Cathy worked for years as a nurse. Cathy never married and her extended family wondered why she was never around for holidays. They discovered that throughout the years she had volunteered for weekend and holiday duty to allow the other nurses to be with their families for those times. Her family told me of many other examples of her love for others that we never knew about because Cathy served quietly and wanted no recognition. She lived a life of compassionate care and service before she ever joined us to serve food to the homeless.

John Stark and his wife raised a family and quietly demonstrated their compassion in how they cared for others. Space doesn't permit me to tell of their many kindnesses but John's compassion continued in retirement as he spent many years caring diligently for his ill wife before her passing. When he was past 80, Esther Sanger challenged and encouraged him to join her in service to others. It had been the hallmark of his life and he cheerfully stepped in to help with the most basic of chores. John joined the Faith Covenant Meal and scrubbed our pots and pans daily for over 10 years! He did many fix-it jobs and provided regular morale

lifts to the kitchen crew. About a year ago, John told us, "This program provides me the opportunity to fulfill the command of Jesus to feed the hungry – I feel a deep need to help the poor. As one of seven children, I lived through the depression era and I know what it is like to be in need. This work gives me something to live for."

These people were my friends, heroes, and are still my role models. If I ever retire, I want to use my retirement as productively and effectively as they did.

If I could more closely reflect their kindness, compassion, humility and service each day than I did the day before, I’d also find that I was becoming more like Christ – my ultimate goal. Choose carefully who you want to be like. Expose your children to people like John and Cathy, Grace and Mary. They are true heroes – unsung, but certainly worthy of the label "hero," and more importantly, "role model."

The terrible events of September 11 have brought to the minds of us all the reality that no one, really, knows how long he or she will live, except God alone. And, if we are wise, we turn again to God in trust and recommit our wills to Him. As a poet said long years ago, "In His will is our peace."

What, then, in the light of these realities, ought we to do with our possessions, be they great or small? No doubt we see afresh that all we have is gifts from God, and we seek to serve Him and make our gifts to Him in support of His work on earth. One important way we can do this is to give, as Jesus taught, to the neediest among us, assured by the words of Jesus that such gifts are indeed, gifts to Him. It is in the context of this understanding that many supporters of the Quincy Crisis Center make their gifts, large and small, to support its needed ministries.

The question "Will your will be done?" first of all means, "Will God’s will be done?" On another level, it asks of us whether intentions for the good use of our possessions will be done after our lives are over. No doubt there are many possible modes of planned giving to be sure that our best intentions will be carried out with our possessions. Primary among them, of course, is a current valid will.   Please remember Quincy Crisis Center in your will.

Introducing  Ron Dubois, Board Vice President

A simple idea with great potential to help the needy occurred to Elaine Tuttle of Quincy about two years ago. She decided that she would use grocery store coupons and similar store promotions to provide free food that she could donate to Quincy Crisis Center. Ms. Tuttle began using coupons from grocery stores such as Stop and Shop which feature the promotion "Buy one, get one free," so that the free items can be donated to the needy through QCC. She started doing this kind of giving occasionally, but more recently has been doing it on a regular basis.

Ms. Tuttle also discovered another way to give using store promotions. Supermarkets and also large chain drugstores such as CVS provide cards which, when used, make it possible for the customer to see the amount of money saved at the bottom of the receipt. This amount, she believes, represents quite a sum which she also uses to provide donations both of needed foodstuffs and also other items a family can use. She also looks out for specials, such as soups and vegetables that could be given to the QCC Food for Families program.

Elaine Tuttle believes very strongly that anyone, including people who do not have a great deal of money to give, can give in this manner at no cost to themselves. She would encourage others to give in these ways, saying that it is really very easy to do and that if several people would join her regularly, the cupboard would never be bare in the QCC food pantry.

The pantry has been serving 25% more people than were served one year ago (a 68% increase over two years). Even with the very successful Letter Carrier Food Drive, Food for Families still needs your help. Certain items were received in small quantities and the growing demand means that more food will still be needed throughout the summer. Specific items needed include canned vegetables (esp. corn, peas and green beans), spaghetti sauce, mayonnaise, jelly or Fluff, and ketchup. Supplies like toilet tissue, toothpaste, and diapers are also needed.