Brian Thompson had one plan for the day: pick up his father and drive somewhere with no destination in particular, just time together. That plan folded the moment a post crossed his feed.
A senior living facility in Gary, Indiana was in the middle of a power outage. A hundred residents were inside. Another group had already brought food, and a generator had restored some power, but a call with the complex director turned up something else: wipes, deodorant, toothpaste, can openers. Small things nobody thinks about until they run out.
Brian called his dad to explain the change of plans. His father didn't hesitate. Seniors need help sometimes, he said, and if nobody asks, nobody finds out. Go take care of that business.
- A power outage at a 100-resident senior facility in Gary, Indiana left basic essentials in short supply.
- Wipes, deodorant, toothpaste, can openers and battery-powered lighting were the gaps left behind.
- Brian Thompson and the BNEW4LIFE crew made a supply run from Dollar General and Family Dollar to the facility the same day.
- BNEW4LIFE teaches Tai Chi Gong classes weekly on Chicago's South Side, and this log tracks what the group does outside of class.
Sitting Still Before Moving Fast
Before he made a single call, Brian sat down for a few minutes. It's a habit from the Tai Chi Gong classes he teaches every week at BNEW4LIFE, and he used it the same way that afternoon before he did anything else. Within minutes he was on the phone with the BNEW crew.
The crew, a small group of regulars who show up when Brian needs hands, answered fast. Terry and Coach Carolyn were among the first to say yes. Brian then got the facility's complex director on the phone, and she told him what her residents needed most.
"If we don't, then who will?" — the question that started the drive to Gary
What a Crisis Actually Needs
The list wasn't dramatic: deodorant, toothpaste, wipes, can openers, battery-powered lights that don't need an outlet. Nobody notices these things until they run out.
For a hundred residents, a stretch without power gets in the way of daily routines: showering, brushing teeth, staying clean and cool. Those are needs nobody flags until someone asks the right question, which is what the director did when Brian called.
Supplies staged and ready for the drive to Gary.
Back to the Classroom
Driving to Gary, Brian found himself thinking back to September 2020, when he lost a full-time job with no plan for what came next. That turned into the start of the work he does now, teaching Tai Chi Gong classes and showing up when a moment like this calls for it.
Nobody involved in the supply run is looking for credit. The point, Brian told the team, was to get it done and do it again the next time someone needs it.
BNEW4LIFE holds Tai Chi classes for Chicago seniors and adults every week. This is the first entry in a log that will track what the group does beyond the classroom.