‘I Can Live in Dignity’: An Elderly Woman and Young Mothers Are Among the Grateful.

By Mike Sherry, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Jun. 25–Six years ago, Kansas City Power & Light Co. employees made a pact with Flo Goodson after finishing a volunteer paint job at her Kansas City home.

The elderly Goodson said she wouldn’t do anything crazy — like pass away — if the employees would promise to come back when her house on East 24th Street was peeling again.

The time for another paint job came Saturday, and both parties upheld their end of the bargain.

“They kept their promise,” Goodson noted, “and I’m still here.”

A longtime widow who has lived in the home for nearly three decades, Goodson will turn 100 in October.

The nearly 60 KCP&L employees and their family members — who were putting on a fresh layer of white paint and sprucing up the trim with a burgundy coat — were just a platoon in an army of volunteers that blanketed the metropolitan area through the 12th annual Day of Caring.

Projects included building a deck and ramp at a Blue Springs early childhood center and holding a “senior prom” at an Olathe nursing home.

Another site was the Jamison Memorial Temple at Linwood and Benton boulevards, where members of the Black Federal Employees Council helped put on a celebration picnic for teen mothers who recently graduated from high school or earned their GED.

It’s more than just a service project, said Katherine Cole, chairwoman of the council.

The federal workers are role models for the teen mothers, she said, and the cookout can even serve as a networking avenue to help the young women find jobs.

“The mentorship is really important for them,” agreed Rachel Williamson, director of the child-care programs at the temple, which cared for the children of some of the teen mothers as they were continuing their education.

Williamson was also thankful for the manpower provided by the council, saying temple staff and volunteers might not even be able to hold the picnic without the help.

Among the celebrators at the picnic was Andrea Townsend, 18, who graduated a month ago from Paseo High School.

There with family members, including her 2-year-old son, Julian, Townsend said it was nice that people were volunteering at the picnic. “That shows they really care.”

That same spirit prevailed at Goodson’s house.

Contributing money to the United Way is one thing, said KCP&L executive Bill Herdegen, a co-chairman of this year’s Day of Caring.

But giving by working provides a “deeper sense of community” he said.

And, he said, it builds camaraderie among employees and “really creates a sense of spirit” within the ranks.

For Goodson, it was an overwhelming gesture.

“I don’t have the words in my vocabulary to express the appreciation I have for these people,” she said.

Through their work, she said, “I can live in dignity and be proud of my house.”

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To reach Mike Sherry, call (816) 234-7806 or send e-mail to msherry@kcstar.com.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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