If you’re able, please consider the following:
1. Check in (telephone, text, email) with friends, neighbors, relatives, and acquaintances. Especially the elderly and those who may have some chronic illness.
2. Find out if they have any new illness symptoms (fever, a new cough, flu-or cold-like symptoms), or if they’re in a home quarantine. Find out if they need medical help; if so, let the authorities in your area know.
3. If they’re not ill, just chat with them. A little friendly conversation can help with the isolation, the anxiety, and the stress.
4. Offer to help them with any chores. Or shopping. Or meal preparation.
5. Find out if they’re in a financial bind and require some necessities. Individually, you may not be able to provide the financial assistance that they need; but you may be able to point them to some resources in your community that can help them. Or band together with some people you know and pool resources to provide a bit of help.
6. Consider any service industry folks you personally know that may not have work for a while: barbers/hair stylists, servers/waitstaff, etc. Maybe make a freezable casserole or some meal for one of them and his/her family.
7. Support your local full-time musicians. For many, music is their primary/only source of income. If they have CDs, buy as many as you can afford (even if it’s only one and even if you don’t like their music) and use them as gifts down the road. Some musicians that you personally know may resort to selling their instruments and equipment at pennies on the dollar just to make ends meet; try to dissuade them and think creatively of alternatives.
8. Get a group of folks together to do all of the above. Doing so will broaden the reach, as well as strengthen the sense of community.
And it needs to be said once again, keep yourselves healthy.
-Wash your hands frequently.
-Avoid travel.
-Practice social distancing.
-Be responsible. Don’t go out if you are ill.
-And if you think you need help, reach out to someone.
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