By HATTIE HOGETERP
Aldergrove Star
Last Friday, I attended the memorial service for Terry Summers, a mom in our community who passed away all too soon. St. Dunstan’s Church was full, every one there to honour a remarkable woman.
But this is not meant to be a eulogy for Terry. That job was done lovingly and well by her son, Kyle. Rather I want to talk about Terry as she epitomized so many parents in our community who go above and beyond, for all the children in the community. Her son called her a “community mom” and the term fits.
Everyone who works with volunteers knows there are one or two people on your phone list who you call when you’re desperate, and who will be there for you. Terry was one of those people. If I needed someone to sit on a committee, or attend a meeting, or volunteer to supervise a group of boys, Terry was the go-to person. She rarely said, “no.”
There are people, who when they see something that feels wrong, don’t hesitate to try to do something about it. Terry was one of those people. When Terry saw suspicious things going on at Aldergrove Elementary behind her house, she didn’t turn a blind eye, but went into action, contacting the police, the school district and the municipality. Yes, she was concerned about her house and property, but mainly she was concerned about the youngsters involved, and the danger their activities might be putting them in.
There are people whose strong sense of justice motivates them to take action when they see injustice. Terry was one of those people. She became an advocate in the DPAC Advocacy Project and was part of the Restorative Action Team at the high school. Helping and supporting those who needed it. Both of these initiatives required significant training and time. Training which she took very seriously and time she freely gave.
There are those people whose involvement with children extends far beyond their own children, to their children’s school and to the entire community. Terry was one of those people. I knew her through her school activities, but she would often talk to me about her work as a bowling coach, about the training courses she was taking, about what she had learned, and how she was applying her new knowledge to all her dealings with children.
There are many “Community Moms and Dads” in our town, men and women who give unstintingly of their time and resources. They are the people standing in the rain at the soccer field, getting up in the pre-dawn dark for a hockey practice, sewing dancing and skating costumes in the wee hours of the night, supervising the sale of chocolate bars and bottle drives, picking up all those kids who need a ride, helping out in the classroom, organizing fun nights and fund-raisers, setting up bicycle rodeos and safety fairs, coaching all kinds of teams with care and patience, teaching fair play and good conduct, chipping trees with the Scouts, running youth groups, organizing parades and community events, opening up their homes to neighbourhood children who otherwise would go home to an empty house… the list goes on and on. The list is endless. Much of what these “Community Moms and Dads” do goes largely unnoticed, but what they contribute to the community and its children is beyond measure.
Remembering Terry Summers, listening to all the things she has done, and the impact she has had, made me think of how important people like Terry are to our community. The number of people who came to pay tribute to Terry shows that we do value the contributions “Community Moms and Dads” make.
Thank you, to all of you “Community Moms and Dads.” We couldn’t do it without you!
