Time For Others

Harriett Jacobson

My mother, Harriett Jacobson, is a hero to many. During my early years, she was a stay-at-home mom. She was the Girl Scout leader, the Sunday school helper, and the organizer of our family.

As her children got older, mom went back to college, received a degree in education, and began a career teaching elementary school. She brought such fun to her classes in the form of guitar lessons, and sharing her love of reading. She read to them every day.

Upon retiring six years ago, Harriett began to channel her abundant energy in different directions, becoming involved in Habitat for Humanity, Crosswalk, and the YMCA school for homeless children, to name a few. My mother was a child of the Depression, and never forgot the feeling of being a member of a financially strapped family. She has great empathy for the child who goes to school without school supplies, or new shoes, the child with no Easter Basket, or a family unable to provide the Christmas for their children that they dream of. Harriett brought an awareness of these children to her church in the form of a youth outreach program, raising money throughout the year for boots, shoes and warm socks, and meals at Crosswalk. My mother shops diligently for the best bargains in town. and is known as the “Shoe Lady” in many stores. She provides good, sturdy, new shoes for children and frequently puts my dad to work, waterproofing 40 pairs of new shoes, only to have her come home the next day with a few more that were such a good deal, she just couldn’t pass them up. My mother is a person with a mission - to help as many children and families as she can so that they can move on to better times and have the ability to someday help others as she brought help to them. I am very proud of her.

MEMO: If you would like to nominate someone as an Everyday Hero, write a short essay between 100 and 200 words telling us about your hero and send it to: Everyday Hero, The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210-1615.