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Last September, I put myself in a situation where I had to fish or cut bait. I shouted loud and clear that I owed the government some money, and I was going to give it back.
Well, last week I gave it back, and I was really glad I did, for various reasons.
Honesty
Otherwise known as the fear of getting caught. I’ve written the cheque and handed it to a responsible person, and I’ve done my duty by the community and the government.
Stress
Everybody has a list of “shoulda-oughta” things you really mean to get around to. Checking off an item that had been hanging over my head since COVID was a real relief.
Closure
But the most important part of it was my meeting with the manager who had originally overseen the projects that generated the money.
This is how it went:
I was a member of the Surrey Seniors’ Planning Table, an ad hoc organization of civically active volunteers who advocated for seniors and provided services for them. There was no charter, no official organization, but due to the active nature of the members, we were a force in the community. Some of our political members were on first-name basis with the mayor and various council members.
But an organization with no charter cannot access government grants to do projects. So, we worked under the administrative umbrella with DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society, a local NGO that provides services mainly to new immigrants, but also to seniors. When we wanted to get a grant to run a seniors’ drama group or a seniors’ activities website or a storytelling program, we had a knowledgeable agent who guided us through the application process and kept track of expenditures while the project was running.
And signed off on the project when it was all over. We’ll get to that in a moment.
This was a win-win situation for all concerned. It was a crackerjack group of seniors, with lifetimes of experience in many fields. There were never any egos or grandstanding. We each had our individual place in the organization, and we shared the work around. The lucky agent at DIVERSEcity had a serious group of hard workers who, with minimal supervision and no hassles, would turn in a completed project every year or two, done and dusted.
And then COVID hit. The project we were working on was already wrapped up; all new activities stopped. And we were an aging group, with no younger people bringing in new blood. By the time COVID was over, the group had scattered. Some moved away, others were in nursing homes. Our hotshot manager got moved to another branch at the office, and was no longer involved.
And, except for the lighting and sound equipment from the drama group and a box of books from the storytelling sessions, there was nothing left.
I sold the equipment, but I didn’t know who to give the cheque to. Hence my years of quandary. Heaven knows what will happen to the books.
But that wasn’t all. There was an “unfinished business” feeling to it all. I tried to get everyone together for a final lunch, but nobody was available. I didn’t quite realize it, but we had been a tight-knit group, playing a small but important part in each others’ lives.
The Bottom Line
So last week when I met the DIVERSEcity lady for coffee, I suddenly remembered what a great person she was, and how much she had helped us, and what good friends we were. We talked nonstop for an hour in Starbuck’s on what I’m sure was her lunch hour, and when we parted, we agreed that it had been a good meeting for both of us. We needed to remind ourselves that we did a lot of good work and helped a lot of people, and we had a lot to be proud of. It’s wonderful to have someone say those words out loud, even just to each other.
PS: What Goes Around…
And now that I am holding the other end of the stick and receiving the services I once provided, I can’t help but notice how kind and caring the health care people are, and I hope I did as well in the old days.