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 22 January, 2005 |
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It Is Our Knitting The Main Street WIRE normally sticks close to home, largely ignoring events in City, State, and Nation unless they have a direct impact on readers, 99.9% of whom are Roosevelt Island residents. That's why, given the limited space made possible by the level of advertising support available, we tend to decline the many offers we get for regular "columns" - on women's issues, knitting, computers, cooking, diet, collecting, cars, movie and theater reviews, and so on. T he rule of thumb - If it could appear in a magazine or could be published in a New York newspaper of more general circulation, that's where it should appear. They have more space. And given the way the City's major media ignore news of considerable importance to Roosevelt Islanders, it's clear The WIRE's mission is best defined as "close to home - Roosevelt Island-specific." But since December 26, there's been an off-Island tragedy that has commanded the attention of residents - the tsunami. Islanders have opened their hearts and their wallets to extend a hand to organizations attempting to restore some health and order to devastated shoreline communities thousands of miles away. One of those organizations is based here. It is Orphans International, founded by Eastwood resident Jim Luce, run on a near-zero overhead basis out of his apartment with local support groups on the ground in Indonesia and elsewhere. Luce is a brilliantly successful fundraiser whose very good idea has been embraced in the countries where he's chosen, one by one, to establish small-home environments for orphans. The idea is to raise "citizens of the world" in a non-denominational child-oriented environment - four children to a home, with houseparents who can provide the attention needed by devastated young lives. Now, Sumatra. And in a 60-house Sumatra setting, Roosevelt Island House. The WIRE has told the OI story before, and we have the latest in a front-page story in this issue. In the coming weeks, there will be a number of fundraising events for OI here and in the City as Islanders and others pitch in to have some direct personal impact on the misfortunes of the hardest hit victims of this disaster. Even so, it's hard to wait, and contributions are needed on a continuing basis. On page 8 you'll find information on how to contribute now, and on the OI website (oiww.org) you'll find other news and additional information about contributing. This Island has a heart. Orphans International provides a way to extend its compassion around the world. DL
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