It Mikayla Gounard’s Birthday but she is Giving It All Away to a Homeless Man!
CHANGE THE WORLD, IN A SMALL WAY, FOR THE
BETTER
Mikayla Gounard’s 12th
birthday was just a few days away. She had an idea – a drive-by birthday
fundraiser for Sean Currey. Who is Sean Curry? And why would a 12 year
old have a fund raiser for him?
It is a long story, but a very inspiring and heartwarming
one.
On December 10, 2020, Mikayla’s grandmother Evelyn Topper
who lives in Mill Valley, bought some items at the Kamson Coffee Shop in San
Rafael, California. After paying for them she tucked her wallet into her coat pocket
and walked to her car. But she forgot to zip up the pocket.
Sometime afterwards, Sean Currey, a 57 year old man
who has been homeless for about five years and lives in his car walked towards
the dumpster. An article in the Washington Post says Sean has
been having a particularly difficult time - he was hospitalized with pneumonia
at the beginning of the pandemic, is now “doing handyman stuff where I can, but
it’s hard not having a home base. Not having shelter is not a good feeling at
all.”
He was about to do what he does most days – he rummages through
dumpsters outside shopping plazas and grocery stores to find food and discarded
items.
That day, however, was different. Sean found a wallet in
the dumpster. A wallet thick with several Credit cards.
Did he think about using one of the Credit Cards? Yes,
for just a fleeting moment, he thought about using the cards.
“Anybody in the position of being homeless
and cold and tired and hungry, if they found a credit card they’re going to
think about it. But whether you are going to act on it is two different things.”
he said.
“I would rather be cold and hungry and know
that I did the right thing.” he added.
But let us go back to Evelyn Topper. The 80 year-old
woman is in her home about six miles away from where she shopped. She is
frantic, trying to locate her wallet with the numerous credit cards, her driver’s
license, and health-care cards. “She was distraught.” the article said.
Then during all the anxiety and panic, a strange number
comes up on her phone. Warily she answers. It is a male voice asking, “Is this
Evelyn Topper?”
After a brief conversation she drives to a nearby parking
lot where she meets Sean. It is the parking lot where he sleeps in his
old Chevy Tahoe.
That day, unknown to Sean, was also the first night of Hannukah
and Evelyn Topper is Jewish. Hannukah is a Jewish festival that
commemorates the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the
second temple in the second century BCE. It is also known as the Festival of
Lights.
Sean’s act of kindness had a special meaning for Evelyn. “It’s
a physical thing for me to get this (the wallet) but it’s the act itself,” she
said.
On Mikayla’s birthday, she and her mother raised $475 for
him. “People are still calling and writing, wanting to see how else they can
help.”
The following day mother and daughter met Sean at a
parking lot and gave him the money they had collected on Mikayla’s birthday. (Donations
are still coming in for Sean.)
That meeting has morphed into a friendship for Sean with
the whole family. Vanessa Topper, Mikayla’s mother has started a GoFundMe
page set up for Currey. In an article on PEOPLE.com (Human Interest) Vanessa
said,” This is not about charity. It is about compassion the highest form of LOVE.”
The whole experience has been “touching and refreshing”
for Sean. He did a simple honest act, not expecting any financial reward and it
has created new friendships and new experiences for him.
He has been uplifted to realize that his honest deed has moved
others to do good deeds also.
“I believe I have a good heart and if I keep doing the
right thing more people will too, and it will change the world in a small way for
the better.”
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