"Angels Are Among Us" - II Christmas Story
Today's Christmas story is the second one we've created in recent days of our work at TaxOne.
Heroes often live among us. They are also owners of thriving businesses, whom many enviously begrudge for what they've achieved.
They are often the target of unfair and unpleasant comments, but in reality, they are hardworking people with huge hearts.
While walking my dogs, I stopped by a Polish shop for a few items. A moment after me, an older man entered the shop. He stopped by the door, smiling every time I looked at him. When it was his turn, he began to speak to the shop assistant in a whisper. He wasn't Polish, nor was it a Scottish dialect. Broken English. When he left empty-handed, I asked the shop assistant what he wanted. I wanted to buy him bread and sausage - "maybe he was hungry," I thought. Agnieszka, the kind shop assistant from the Dalkeith store, replied, however, that the man wanted to buy alcohol, and it was still before 10:00 AM (in Scotland, you can't buy alcohol before that time).
He will therefore not become the hero of our next Christmas story…
I felt a festive urge to do good. Surely there are people here who aren't as fortunate as us! I sent a text message to a friend (the hero of our story tomorrow).
"Do you know any families who need help for Christmas?"
"Dawid! Yes! There are tons of them – these stories are very sad, overwhelming."
So she connected me with the Feniks organization. The staff told me what they do daily – including helping people with emotional disorders and suicidal thoughts; they organize individual and group therapies.
All of this resulted in the decision to organize a fundraiser for Feniks – for Christmas crisis support for those in need and their families.
That same day, I called the owner of a chain of Polish shops (including the one in Dalkeith), who is a TaxOne client. Not only did she decide to help Feniks, but it turned out she has been supporting other organizations for years – including the Family Support Center. Joanna is the main hero of this story. December is a very tough month in this business, and Joanna was also opening a new store in Musselburgh, spending long nights arranging goods on shelves. Despite this, from the moment of my call, she inquired daily about the number of families, the children's ages, and the scale of needs, to give as much as she could.
The awaited day came to deliver the packages to the Feniks organization, and I must admit, I was moved by the sight of Asia waiting in her shop with gifts for those in need. We agreed that she would help 12 Polish families. I wondered how big these "packages" for families could be. Maybe a small box with basic products, or a few sweets for the children…? Watch the video I made after loading the car! My car is huge, and I had to fold down the seats to fit everything. The Feniks volunteers couldn't believe their eyes! https://youtu.be/8T05phw_F90
Asia helps many people quietly, never showing off. I've been doing her company's tax returns for 2 years, so I know what she's capable of. She is a person with a heart of gold, deserving of a kind word from each of us for all the help she has given others over the years… Thanks to her, many families will have the Christmas they deserve this year.
Thank you, Asia!
Let's go back to our fundraiser… We managed to collect about 1/3 of the amount we wanted to raise. If every person we helped by providing advice had donated the suggested amount, the goal would have been reached long ago.
We donated a lot of food, toys, and sweets for children… Wow! The next step is a fundraiser for psychological and psychiatric help for victims of domestic violence, young people with suicidal thoughts, and depression. At Feniks, this is called "crisis support." The needs are enormous, and one hour of therapy costs about £50. Sometimes minutes can decide someone's life, so an organization like Feniks needs funds for a psychiatrist, administration, and supervision!
Now you know where the idea for our fundraiser this Christmas came from.
