Blazing Forward: Grate Work At Rancho Santa Margarita Target

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, CA — Going to Target is a part of everyday life for many of us in Orange County, but what happens when getting into the store from the parking lot is met with a stumbling block?

Coto De Caza resident Derek Baird never really thought about such things. Then, one day, the sight of a bowed storm grate beside the handicapped accessible parking spaces at the Rancho Santa Margarita Target became his chance to make the world a better place.

Baird recently became a member of a Facebook community trying to do something good every day in honor of Blaze Bernstein. In Jan. 2018, Bernstein was murdered in an Orange County park, a crime motivated by hatred, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

What could have leveled his parents, Gideon and Jeanne Bernstein, has turned into a movement to "Blaze it Forward" and "Do Good For Blaze." The online Facebook community regularly shares those little things people do daily to remember Blaze Bernstein and help to be the light to outshine the darkness of hate, fear, and oppression that led to Blaze's untimely death.

With an aunt limited by MS, confined to her wheelchair, Baird decided to do something. The grate in question was "severely damaged and bowed," he told Patch. One corner of the grate was bowed up, and there was a significant dip in the middle. Baird realized that maybe making a small decision to notify Target of the problem and follow it through to fruition might make a difference.

"I thought of someone with a walker trying to get across it without falling or of my aunt in a wheelchair trying to go over it and not get stuck in the dip," he said. With that thought in mind, spurred on by the "Blaze It Forward" community, Baird decided to do something about it for the good of all.

"I sent a Twitter direct message to Target Rancho Santa Margarita," he said. To Baird's surprise, Target responded immediately and asked for details.

"I told them more (about the damaged grate) and sent them pictures," he told us. That was in September.

From that day, Baird was on a mission to make sure they followed through with fixing the problem.

"Every few days I would send them a direct message, asking for an update," he said. Then, on October 26, a message arrived that the grate was fixed.

"It's reassuring to see a corporation like Target be so responsive to the needs of customers with disabilities, and I appreciate them being willing to take care of this issue in such a timely manner," Baird said. "There are always opportunities around us to be helpful to others if we just take the time to look, listen and then take action to Blaze it Forward."

How will you Do Good For Blaze? Let us know at Patch as we continue to share good with others.

Photos, courtesy Derek Baird