While waiting at a red light late this afternoon, I got out of the car and gave $20 to a homeless man sitting in the median on Sublett Road at the intersection of U.S. 287 in southwest Arlington not far from our home. A bit later after getting an oil change, I drove past him again and decided to park at a nearby convenience store, walk over and talk with him.
I learned that Greg is 61 years old (a year younger than me) and recently lost his trailer home to fire. He’s living in a tent and the main thing he needs is a phone to help him make calls to try to get a job and get back on his feet. I told Greg we can’t really help him financially, but if he’s able to get a phone, he can call me and I can give him rides or other help he might need. I could see the goodness in Greg’s heart, because he instantly said he had wanted a way to reach me so he could repay me for my kindness, whether it was raking leaves or doing anything he could.
As we continued visiting, I gave Greg the last $10 in my wallet and told him that at the church I attend, The Welcome Table Christian Church just a few miles from that location, we have a Little Red Pantry outside that we keep stocked with food for those who need it. I also gave Greg a #dammkind card I’d printed so he would know the genesis of this act of kindness.
#dammkind is a campaign started by my friend and former newspaper colleague Tyra Damm some years ago after the passing at age 40 of her amazing husband Steve, whom I also knew through Tyra, from glioblastoma (brain cancer) in October 2009. Today, November 4, Steve would have turned 55. The campaign calls for folks to celebrate Steve’s memory by performing an act of kindness each year on his birthday.
I know Steve, whose two remarkable children have grown up to be a college graduate and one who’s a college freshman, is moved each year in heaven by the outpouring of kindness on his behalf. If you’re able to reach out in some way in Steve’s honor this weekend and would like to print and share the card above with the person or people you help, that would be awesome. Thank you on behalf of the Damm family. 
A Life of Words 