"Being unwanted,unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat."  Mother Teresa
 
Joe with LN-4 helper hand
On Friday February 13th the Alba family (Ivan, Elena, Isabel and Lily) worked with the La Mesa Sunrise Rotary Club to make "Stone Soup", our famous chili, and serve up dinner with Urban Street Angels (www.urbanstreetangels.org) in Ocean Beach, San Diego.  When they arrived, Elena noticed that one of our diners was missing a hand.  He wore a long-sleeved button down shirt and his left sleeve dangled empty.  "Psst- Ivan- talk to him; see if he wants a hand."  Ivan approached the man and started talking to him.  He asked if he could see his residual arm.  Then, it all began.
 
This past Fall Ivan and Elena had been at the 5340 Rotary District Conference in Palm Springs where the LN-4 (www.ln-4.org) prosthetic hand project had trained a roomful of Rotarians.  They were interested in finding out about possible projects for their upcoming Year of Rotary Service world tour (www.albaworldtour.wordpress.com) and learned how LN-4 provided free prosthetics in third world countries.  They left with a hand and a pile of literature hoping to find a use for their new knowledge.
 
 
After seeing Joe's residual arm, Ivan could tell that there was enough limb to hold the LN-4 prosthetic.  Ivan explained about the helper hand.  The Albas offered to meet Joe the next day to see if the hand would work for him.  "He may not show up," Elena warned.  "I know, but at least we can say we tried." Ivan replied.
 
They finished the evening tired and satisfied with their work; grateful for the chance to help people in our own community.  The next morning they arrived at OB at the arranged time.  Joe showed up right on time and they took him to a local restaurant for breakfast.  They spent about an hour with him, watching videos about the hand and fitting the prosthetic to his arm.  Joe had been working as an electrician and had been electrocuted while working on a transformer on the job.  The fall to the ground saved his life, however his left hand was amputated halfway up his forearm.  He said that he had used a robotic hand but that it was painful to use and not very utilitarian.
 
Joe and Ivan
Joe was honest with Ivan and Elena: "I'm used to being without my hand, I'm not sure how useful the helper hand will be."  By the end of the training session, though, he was starting to realize the potential.  He said that he could hold things while he used his dominant hand for tasks requiring dexterity. He even started to talk about modifying the hand for construction work.  They all laughed about making a "super hand" with interchangeable parts: a magnet, a hook, a nail holder.
 
The evening and morning spent with Joe did wonderful things for both the Alba family and Joe.  The young, homeless man was given a second hot meal with a family that really wanted to talk to him, listen to him, and show that they cared about him.  He was able to take away a useful hand distributed internationally by Rotarians.
 
Hopefully, he was able to improve his situation because of this experience.  And what about the Albas?  They walked away with much, much more.  They were reminded that when Rotarians far and near join together, they make amazing things happen.  The four of them were reminded that nourishing the spirit can be so much more rewarding than feeding the belly.  They reignited the compelling feelings that every member of Rotary feels when they follow the motto: Service Above Self.