Small Town Networking Provides Social and Technical Data

On New Year's Day, my mom had a debilitating stroke. I immediately left Florida and arrived in South Carolina in the late evening. With the temperature dropping from the 70's to 30's, there were many things I wish I had brought with me (warmer clothes topped the list, a thermos full of hot coffee and my computer would have been a great asset). But none of these seemed to matter much. All I cared about was my mom.

There were so many questions and very few answers. My family is small, one brother who has a son and grandson, and I have a few close cousins. Mom is the last of eight children and is the grand matriarch of our family. She has served on many committees, organizations and has always been a community leader. Her best friends include the mayor, the town council members, the sheriff and so many others; as I was soon to find out.

I grew-up in a small town north of Columbia, our state capitol and a big college town. It is an ultra modern hub of medicine, finance, high technology and industry. Life-threatening medical emergencies in Mom's small town are shuttled to Columbia (our small towns do not have the necessary equipment nor personnel to provide intensive emergency care). Communications between the medical staff and patients' family is limited and compromised by distance. They were never there when I was there.

Better than my computer were the people. Anyplace where people could chat, exchange and pass along information was my source of knowledge. I received calls and visits from family, friends, neighbors, church members (all denominations), crime watch members, city officials, bank staffs, beauticians, merchants, landscapers, farmers, and many others.

How amazing that a network of people could provide detailed, reliable information pertaining to Mom's stroke. I heard from people that were familiar with her type of stroke and willing to pass on tried and true remedies and suggestions. I spoke with folks who had appointments with her doctors and were not shy in mentioning my communication difficulties.

Mom came to Florida with me, and I am once again on the computer every day. I learned a valuable lesson from my little home town; increase my circle of friends and deepen my relationships with people in my neighborhood and community.

Computers are great, but when you don't have access to one, make friends.