SALT LAKE CITY — The message from storm-ravaged Puerto Rico came to my good friend Tom Beland. He is a talented artist and respected comic book creator who spent 15 years on the island but now makes his home in Northern California.
Tom's been doing his part to ease the suffering of his friends and family there, an example of one man doing one thing (day after day) to make a difference.
Big-monied celebrities like Puerto Rico tennis star Monica Puig or musician Pitbull generate donations and spur big-ticket help for the island. Folks like Tom play an equally important role, providing one-on-one help and taking to social media to keep the story alive and reach out to others who can help.
In Tom's case, his ex-wife is on the island, as are many of the friends he met while living there who are suffering, some without electricity, some now without homes. A valuable collection of comic books and some of Tom's original artwork for his series of books were lost to floodwater. But that's not what most concerns him.
"It's tough for me to look at streets I used to walk down and people are in kayaks. When I see the buildings, I know the owners, I know the customers," Tom said, welling with emotion as he speaks of it.
The people need help. But what to do?
The island's heat and humidity is oppressive. Tom sent fans that run on batteries.
Phones and electronic devices can't be recharged. Tom sent solar-powered chargers.
More importantly, Tom sends hope, because his friends know they haven't been forgotten.
The message that came to Tom from a friend on the island described the slow process of recovery. I repeat it here with their permission:
"Here we are in what should be called our new routine. We got up at 5 a.m. (a little late under these circumstances, but we've been at it for the past week getting up at 4 a.m. for groceries, ATM machines, gas, etc.) and headed for the ice line. This is incredibly tiring and stressful, but I realized something today. This is around the third time we come to this line. This time we came prepared with umbrellas and chairs (not just us but many others in line too). But not only that, the people working for the ice factory had a more organized system that ensured that 1) People don't cut in line, 2) Those that came early and they counted get their ice. The point of my post is (politics aside) while yes, this is nothing like we are used to and it is stressful and all these uncertainties are frightening, we eventually adapt. The island has a long way to go, but I am hopeful we will pull through."
Long lines are the norm. But even as the island is changed and residents' daily lives are changed, hope comes as new realities are met by help from others. Six hours in a line on a Monday become six hours in a line with a person who is now a friend by Tuesday. One-on-one care and interest brings hope.
As Tom put it: "As long as you’re not the only one, you can get through life. It’s a lifeboat to know that other people are thinking of you,” he said, an apt metaphor for an island battered by wind and water from Hurricane Maria.
Deseret News photojournalist Kristin Murphy and reporter Tad Walch recently returned to the Houston area to document the efforts of those offering a helping hand to those who were impacted by Hurricane Harvey in this season of tragedy.
They met Jeremy and Naomi Brown, a Christian family whose home was completely flooded for the second time in 18 months, this time to the roof.
They also met Randy Aucoin, who makes his home 200 miles away in Baker, Louisiana. Randy lost his home to flooding in 2016 and now lives in a FEMA trailer. He's been working for more than a year to get back into his soon-to-be-finished rebuilt home. But he was willing to put that off a bit longer so he could drive the 200 miles to Houston to help the Browns, a family he didn't know.
They started out as strangers; now they are friends. One-on-one help.
The short documentary Kristin and Tad put together is titled "You feel like you're alone, but you know you're not." That's the same sentiment my friend Tom is hearing expressed out of Puerto Rico. Each of us can be a lifeboat in some small way. Small simple acts and small (or large) donations make a difference.
Puerto Rico can be helped by donations through Monica Puig's group called YouCaring, or the American Red Cross at redcross.org.
Tom and I became friends about 30 years ago when he worked in the art department and I was a young editor at a newspaper. I tapped him for illustrations and watched as he launched a career that would have him do original acclaimed books, write "Spider-Man" and "Fantastic Four" stories, and most recently launch his own successful book called "Chicacabra," which he beautifully wrote and illustrated.
I've called him Tom Bold for decades, eschewing his real last name "Beland" ever since a business card mixup put "Bold" in place of his real name. But I also call him that because secretly, I think Tom wishes he could be a superhero, cut in the figure of Spider-Man, your friendly neighborhood hero.
When I see his passion and help for Puerto Rico, I think he finally got his wish: Tom Bold, superhero.