URBANNA — I get the strangest ideas for a column in the middle of the night. Titles for stories prick my brain in the wee hours like Hamlet’s infamous slings and arrows.
Last night I started wondering what Urbanna would do if it suddenly received a busload of immigrants that had just crossed over the border into Texas and the governor had sent them north to our town.
That’s not beyond reality. Areas across the country are now receiving busloads of newly arrived people to America that desperately need assistance simply because the border states can no longer handle the problem. It is a humanitarian crisis of the first order as most arrivals have no family here, jobs lined up, money, luggage and speak little or no English. They also may have health issues, are perhaps not vaccinated for COVID-19 or flu and they can arrive cold, tired, hungry and in need of a bath.
So as the clock struck 3 a.m., I started to plan what we residents would do if, say, 50 people arrived here that needed immediate help and had nowhere to go but Urbanna.
First, we would need police service as hungry people need food. Before we pass judgment on this basic human need, think first what we would do if we were starving and had no money. The sheriff has limited manpower as his department covers the entire county but perhaps he could deputize some of Middlesex’s stalwart residents like Bill Hight, Joe Heyman, Eric Faudree or Dan Snead to provide some extra security?
We would need to provide food immediately so perhaps Urbanna Market could donate some of their crispy fried chicken, Something Different deli chicken pot pies or barbecue, and other restaurants in town provide some nutritional sides? But how long could they do this without reimbursement for their food and labor costs?
What bathroom facilities would we have available for so many “visitors”? Could the town marina open up their restrooms? How about showers? Could Middlesex High School be able to open up their locker rooms to provide daily showers? And could the Pearl trolley-style mini bus, which is usually empty on its every 20 minute run to Kent Street, be utilized to provide daily transportation?
Where would they sleep? Would 50 homes in town volunteer to take in, feed and care for one visitor? Food and utility costs have skyrocketed. How could the town ask 50 families, most on fixed income, to take on even one more person?
Then I thought of the churches. Could Urbanna Baptist Church and United Methodist Church each take 25 people, round up sleeping bags and pillows and reserve the first 25 pews in each church for portable beds?
Could the ladies of the Middlesex Woman’s Club form a soup kitchen in the style of the Great Depression years and provide two meals a day? I was thinking of their delicious crab bisque so famous during the Oyster Fest. Could Christ Church put together their tasty ham biscuits and bake homemade chocolate chip cookies they sell each year at the fest? Could the Kiwanians erect their famous tent and serve oysters on the half shell, or the Lions Club do their delicious oyster fritters? Surely Rotary would give cash to help pay expenses?
Would our many watermen donate a portion of their daily catch to help the cause?
Mayor Bill Goldsmith and the Urbanna Town Council might distribute clothing from the thrift shop? Dr. Robusto might set up a medical office in the old town office now empty and give physicals and administer medication for the sick? Would Marshall’s Drug Store be able to supply free drugs? Would Methodist Pastor Bruce provide counseling to those who need it?
Could Fred and Bettie Lee Gaskins provide a fundraising campaign similar to Christmas Friends at the Sentinel?
Could husband, Chip, set up a makeshift law office under a tent in front of Bristow’s store and register the visitors. Help them fill out forms for job applications, licenses, social services benefits, asylum or provide free wills? He would need an interpreter.
By 4 a.m. I realized what I could do. I could immediately start teaching English as a second language. “Buenos dias, amigos,” I would cheerfully welcome my class in my best college Spanish at the Virginia Street Café after the breakfast rush departed and before lunch was served. “Como esta usted?”
I would quickly shift to English. It’s been a long time since college Spanish.
By 4:30 a.m. I finally collapsed into a deep sleep. But not before I realized the challenges would be overwhelming for the Town of Urbanna. Even if we meant well, we surely would fail if only from lack of resources.
My last thought before falling into unconscious bliss free of life’s many conundrums was a pure stab of fear. I imagined before we were able to line up everyone with a job, place to live, and solve the many other problems of relocating … another bus arrived.
© 2023
Note: Mary Wakefield Buxton reports that she will be taking some time off from writing her “One Woman’s Opinion” column.
