A Sweet Delivery: Down for Doughnuts
They say doing good feels good. And it’s true.
I try to give back in little ways all the time because it’s not so much the big stuff, but a million little things that add up over time. (I stole a tiny piece of that last part from the tv show of the same name.)
A few weeks ago, I saw a Facebook post from Kathy Rummage, someone I’ve been friends with for almost twenty years. She and her son were going to be delivering donuts to raise money for a cause that mattered a lot to them.
I met Kathy when I was a reporter at a television station in Asheville and she was the anchor of the morning and noon newscasts. She is truly one of the kindest, loveliest people I know. The news business can be a tough business and we became fast friends. Kathy also has one of the best “meet cute” love stories I know. Kathy met her future husband when he came on as a guest for her show. At the time, Abe was a chef at the famed Grove Park Inn in Asheville. Kathy and Abe made pecan encrusted trout and stuffed mushrooms together on live television and then they made…a great couple.
After they married, Kathy and Abe moved to Charlotte and when I followed suit a few years later, they were some of the only people I knew in the big city.
I had only been in Charlotte a few months when I had to cover one of the most difficult stories of my career: two police officers were gunned down in the line of duty. I was called to the scene the night they were killed and I had to cover the funerals a week later. It was brutal. I didn’t sleep for days and I was mentally and physically wiped when I finally got a day off.
Kathy called and told me to come up to the lake where she and her husband lived. The chef wanted to make me a homecooked meal – to this day one of the best steaks I’ve ever had. They wanted to take care of me. The two of them put me back together that night and I have never forgotten it.
I was thrilled when Kathy became pregnant with their first child. The first grandchild on Abe’s side of the family – Brodie was loved long before the day he arrived.
When he was born, the doctors immediately knew there was something different. Kathy and Abe were surprised to learn their newborn, Brodie, had Down syndrome. Over the years, they’ve become fierce advocates for Brodie and active in the Down syndrome community. Their goals are simple: awareness and understanding.
So a few weeks ago when I saw Kathy’s Facebook post that she and Brodie, now 9 years-old, would be personally delivering donuts as part of a Covid- inspired pivot to replace the annual Greater Charlotte Buddy Walk, I knew I needed to know more. And the more I learned about the Donate For Doughnuts event, the more I loved the concept. The sweet treats come from Mooresville based Down for Doughnuts- a bakeshop owned by David and Lisa Cooper – who work alongside their adult son, Zach, who also has Down syndrome. The Down Syndrome Association of Greater Charlotte buys the donuts from the Cooper’s shop to sell as part of the fundraiser and people like Kathy and Brodie personally deliver them with the money raised staying right here in the Charlotte community.
David Cooper says this is the biggest order Down for Doughnuts has received since March and it’s going to help them hire more people with disabilities.
Of course, I placed an order. I loved the idea of giving back while also getting a socially distanced visit from two of my favorite people – the donuts were just the icing on the cake.
The only problem? The donuts were so in demand, they’d sold out of slots on the dates that worked for me. I knew I’d be in quarantine the two weeks before Thanksgiving and couldn’t have any visitors. And that’s when the special delivery idea started to take shape. I realized my friend Meg Robertson (yep! the same WF&S coach) lives close to Kathy and Brodie and she definitely needed sweets more than me. Meg is another person I am lucky to have in my life- one of the kindest, most generous and lovely people I know. (Seeing a trend here?) Meg literally helps people for a living. My normally very active, “go-a-mile-a-minute” friend is recovering from a double mastectomy. If anyone deserves a dozen glazed personally delivered donuts, it’s Meg.
When Meg opened her garage door Friday morning, she expected to find a friend there to join her on a walk. Instead, she found two strangers, Kathy and Brodie, with his usual big grin stretched wide across his face.
Of course, Kathy and Meg hit it off right away and started chatting which gave Brodie time to nose around Meg’s garage. He found a fire truck and was immediately entranced. Meg noticed and whispered to Kathy, “That’s our ‘give away’ box. He can have it if you’re ok with that.”
Brodie took home his prize, playing with a bright red firetruck for the rest of the day and well into the night.
Kathy and Brodie made a dozen deliveries that day which meant taking time off from work and taking him out of school. It was important she says because Kathy believes people in the community who don’t typically interact with people with disabilities need to get the chance to spend time with them to see their abilities. To see Brodie’s amazing grin and easy laugh. To see what she calls “his spunk and his spark.”
My friend, Kathy Rummage, also knows it’s also really important that people in the community get to know and love her son— and accept him— because she worries about a time when she and Abe won’t be around.
Kathy says, “People need to expose their kids to others who may be a different race, religion, orientation or may have different abilities. We need people to see that we’re all more alike than we are different. We’re all too focused on what’s different right now. I wish we could focus on the sameness”
This afternoon I got a text from Meg that said, “BEST DELIVERY EVER!”
It’s a picture of her and Brodie. She’s clutching the box of freshly delivered donuts and clearly smiling behind her mask. He’s firmly gripping his new firetruck.
And yet, I’m pretty sure I’m the one who got the most out of this special delivery.
- Michelle
If you’d like to order,there’s one last round of deliveries set for December. (Makes the perfect Christmas gift!) And don’t forget your local police and firemen who might love a special delivery! Get your order in before December 9th. Here’s all the info you need: bit.ly/donatefordoughnuts.
Michelle Boudin is Founder and Chief Storyteller at Embolden Creative and you can see her reporting good news stories on WCNC. In her time away from the station, Michelle is also a freelance writer and regular contributor to People magazine.