DEAR READERS: Many of you responded to Juanita Baker's suggestion that I ask my readers to share unselfish acts of kindness they have experienced. Read on:
DEAR ABBY: When my husband suffered a stroke last year, I needed an extension on the sidewalk next to our home to accommodate his wheelchair. An acquaintance of ours did cement work, so I asked if he'd take the job.
He came in the evenings and worked late, so I know his wife had to delay meals. When he finished, I asked for the bill. He said, "No charge. Maybe you can do a good turn for someone else."
I just stood there and cried. -- DORIS OAKBERG, SACRAMENTO
DEAR ABBY: When Dr. Larry Vancil suffered a cerebral hemorrhage that put him in a coma for weeks and out of his practice for five months, many of his good friends in the dental profession jumped in at a moment's notice and kept his practice going.
These dentists gave up their days off and rearranged their schedules to go to Dr. Vancil's office to treat his patients. What a tremendous loving act of kindness by many! -- CATHY WAYMIRE, FORTVILLE, IND.
DEAR ABBY: Forty years ago, I was a poor student working my way through U.C.-Berkeley. I didn't have enough money to pay my laboratory fees for the courses I wanted to take. Myrtle Mayer, a counselor for young adults in a community church, loaned me the money I needed to stay in school. I kept track of the amount, and when I got a job, I tried to repay Mrs. Mayer. She said, "I didn't miss it ... pass it on."
That has been my motto ever since. "Passing it on" is the best way to repay a kindness. -- ADINA WIENS ROBINSON, TIBURON, CALIF.
DEAR ABBY: When my husband was discharged from the hospital in Newnan, Ga., after surgery, I drove to the front door to pick him up. An aide had wheeled him outside to meet me.
A young man sitting in front of the building called my attention to the flat tire on my car. I had never changed a tire in my life, and my husband was in no condition to change it.
The young man said, "I'll change it for you." As I chatted with him, I learned that he had just visited his father, who was terminally ill. In spite of his own problems, he took time to help a stranger in distress. God bless him! -- CAROL LANDAICHE, PEACHTREE CITY, GA.
DEAR READERS: I plan to share more acts of kindness in the future. Watch this space.