Weekly Hero

During these troubling times I have found myself wanting to do something more. Actually, I’ve always wanted to “do something more” but I’m often not sure what to do and I feel helpless. When Covid19 began to spread across the country I began to notice a lot of people stepping up in different ways, some small, some going above and beyond. I want to use this space to highlight these wonderful people on a weekly basis. This is my way of “doing something more” by highlighting the positive moments and people that are out there making a difference. It is only a small thing I know, but it makes me happy and I hope it will make you happy too. If you know of someone that you think would make a great Weekly Hero please let me know!

Our first Weekly Hero is someone from my own neighborhood that I had never met before but I am so glad to know him now. His name is Payton and he is 6 years old (almost 7).

About a month ago, Mother’s Day to be precise, pinwheels appeared in people’s yards. Nobody knew where these pinwheels came from at first, but some people had their suspicions. Soon people posted images of their pinwheels on the Nextdoor App, wondering who this good samaritan was. Then someone got a photo of Payton with all of his pinwheels and the secret was out! Payton, whose friends call the Mayor of the neighborhood, who helps with the families chickens and ducks, dogs and cats and who wants to be a zookeeper. It all made sense now. But he and his family of helpers (Payton’s grandfather and Mom would drive while he jumped out to place the pinwheels) weren’t finished. They must have emptied the Dollar Stores of all of their pinwheels because they have placed over 700 pinwheels in less then a month! What started as a Mother’s Day surprise turned into a whole community of colorful pinwheels.

I think this is just the sweetest thing to do to help people feel better during tough times. We were so excited to wake up one morning and see a bright red pinwheel on our lawn! I cannot tell you how my heart lifted seeing this silly little pinwheel spinning in the wind. It made me smile. And I think that was what Payton intended. To bring the community together, one pinwheel at a time, and bring a little smile to everyone’s face. Thank you Payton and family!