P— is a sweet, quiet refugee from Southeast Asia, he is a sophomore at Bishop Maginn High School. This evening, Principal Mike Tolan and Sue Silverstein contacted me, asking for help for P, I know him well, he is a dear person.

This week, he caught a cold – fever, coughing, sneezing. He came to school but was sent home.

He got sick and under state health rules, any student with those symptoms is required to get a Covoid-19 test before he or she can return to school.  P loves Bishop Maginn, he hates missing a day.

His family – already suffering from the effects of the pandemic (lost jobs) – took him to an urgent care facility in Albany.

The facility should have told them there were cheaper options, but didn’t. These families always do what they are told, they never challenge authority or rules. Where they come from, that can be dangerous.

They haven’t gotten the results yet, but there are no infections in his family. P needs to pay to get his results back.

P’s parents didn’t realize they were eligible for tests offered by the New York Health Department at little or no cost, although there is often a long waiting period to take the test and get the results. The University of Albany offers the tests for free.

P’s family was shocked to be charged $175 for the test, and that will take all of their grocery money for the next month.

The parents are frightened and desperate, they have never asked for any kind of help.

I’m sending Mike a check tonight for $200 to cover the cost of the tests. He will receive it Monday or Tuesday. I also want to give the family some money or money or gift cards for groceries for the next couple of months.

These are wonderful, hard-working people – they clean the floors in hospitals and hotels –  and they are really up against it. The pandemic has hit the refugee families hard, and their benefits are running out.

Despite the madness raging in the outside world, these families are nothing but grateful to be in America and are especially grateful for the help we have been giving them during this hard time.

For me, these small acts of kindness offer hope,  redemption, and peace.

This boy loves school and needs to be in school. The family is in a rough neighborhood, he is often harassed there, and there are lots of drugs.

If you care to help, you can send a donation to me via Paypal, [email protected]  or by check, Jon Katz, Refugee Fund, P.O. Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

If you prefer, you can also buy gift cards directly from Price Chopper at any price, and please send them to me, Jon Katz, 2502 State Route 22, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. If you prefer, you send me a donation directly and I will purchase the cards.

You can also purchase gift cards in any amount at Wal-Mart, or send money directly to me, [email protected].

Thanks for your help. I won’t rest until P is back in school and there are groceries in the family refrigerator.

___

P.S. The photo is a self-portrait, taken in the men’s room of a nearby gym where I worked out today, part of my cardio-rehab.