The Weekly Fare . . . October 21, 2004

How Good Things Happen

Bee stings that's how . . . At least in the case of Penny Wigglesworth.

It seems a bee came along one day (much in the way bees do when you least expect them) and for reasons known only to the bee and God above stung dear Penny right on the finger.

"Ouch," she said, "that's rather annoying . . ."

And it was annoying - but she didn't feel it for very long, because a few moments later Penny lay unconscious on the ground in anaphylactic shock, the victim of a life threatening allergic reaction. According to the doctors that managed to revive her she came within a whisker of passing into the great beyond.

But you didn't have to tell Penny that - because her "near death" experience (or near-life as the case may be) had brought her to three very important conclusions:

1. There is no reason to fear death.

2. Life is short and can pass from you at any moment.

3. It should be spent helping others in need.

Penny wasn't altogether sure where to start, so she picked the thing that seemed to make the most sense to her - helping terminally ill patients and those who love them. After completing a ten-week program with a local Hospice organization, Penny was introduced to 16-year-old Seth Bailey who had been fighting leukemia since the age of three. Seth had been given only four months to live and he had given up hope. He told Penny that while he appreciated her visits he really didn't have much more to live for. Maybe they could just watch TV together.

Penny wasn't buying it. She had to find a way to give meaning to the precious time Seth had left. She finally convinced him to help her come up with a way that they could both "make a real difference in the lives of others." After a few days of scheming and dreaming they set upon the idea of gifting teddy bears to children who were getting ready to face the same challenges as Seth.

Two weeks later they opened a company in Penny's home. The business plan was simple - with Seth as Vice President they would take otherwise plain-Jane teddy bears and suit them up with handmade sweaters knitted by volunteers. They would also attach a special message to a tag on their wrist and complete the transformation from ordinary to extraordinary by slipping a penny into each breast pocket sewn into the bear's sweaters.

The words on the penny?

"In God We Trust."

Voila - the "Penny Bear Company" was formed. But would it work? Would they be able to help comfort a few children with their little basement project?

I had dinner with Penny a couple of weeks ago by way of an invitation from my mom. Their story in itself is rather amazing. Mom first met Penny while traveling in Hawaii on vacation over thirty years ago. It was one of those instant friendships that took off from the start. But alas, Mom lived here in Roanoke and Penny lived in Boston and it was a sad goodbye when they parted - both, of course, realizing that the odds were small that they would ever see each other again.

Almost ten years later Mom was making a phone call to a company to see if they would be interested in purchasing a line of gift bags that she and several friends were marketing. She was hoping the candy maker would purchase their product, but after all it was a "cold call."

"Good morning . . . Harbor Sweets," the cheerful voice answered.

"Yes, this is Nancy Revercomb calling, I was wondering if I could speak to the person in charge of . . ." There was a bit of giggling on the other end of the line.

"Hi Nancy!" said the voice.

"Hello??" Mom responded.

"It's Penny! How have you been!!?"

Mom was floored. Indeed what were the odds they would connect again in such a way?

But the Spirit wasn't through with them yet. Some years later Mom and Dad purchased a vacation home in Florida. On their first trip down she met her neighbors across the street and in conversation the woman said, "You know, you really remind me of a friend of mine from Boston that lives up the street several months out of the year . . . I'll have to introduce you one day . . ."

"I only know one person from the Boston area," mother replied.

"Well, I guess you wouldn't know her then," said the woman, "her name is Penny Wigglesworth."

As readers of this column so often remind me, "There are no coincidences."

And neither were the events that led Seth Bailey and Penny together.

Seth amazed his physicians and lived for an additional 14 months - no doubt, in part to the new sense of worth and meaning that Penny had given him in creating what was originally their modest bit of outreach. Penny continues to work with the terminally ill and their families, but she has to divide her time now between those efforts and the ongoing miracle that is "The Penny Bear Company."

For since it's inception in 1995, Penny Bears have found their way into tens of thousands of struggling and grieving hearts - traveling from Florida to Oregon and beyond. From summer camps for critically ill and grieving children to specialized projects launched by The American Cancer Society, more and more bears with pennies in their pockets are winging their way across the U.S., touching the lives of children who need such expressions of love the most. It is an absolutely fabulous ministry.

Over dinner I asked Penny if she ever envisioned such a success. "It's all rather amazing," she responded. "But if I've learned nothing else, I've learned this - God has his plan and no matter what life brings we are to trust it . . . He can work with anything to make good things happen . . . Anything."

Even a silly little bee.

Even a little bear with a penny n the pocket.

Even folks like Seth and her and you and me.

(Want to know more about The Penny Bear Company and how you might get involved? Go to www.pennybear.org or email Roanoke Penny Bear Volunteers at nrev@earthlink.com)