Calling All Hands: Holly Curry Needs Our Help

Small world ...

How many times have you discussed a name around town and said that exact phrase?

Let’s try it out.

Close out this window if you don’t know someone around town with the last name “Curry.”

I'll wait.

Waiting.

Still here?

I figured you would be.

I'll get to my point: I got a touching e-mail the other day detailing the plight of a young mother struggling with a sickness that popped up from virtually nowhere. She’s been hospitalized for more than a month. She turns in for the night in that hospital bed every day, with her infant daughter sleeping an hour away.

In fact, she hasn’t seen her daughter in a month.

Hospital bills are mounting. Stuck in an intensive care unit, this mother is unable to earn any income for her family. The bills at home are becoming enough to drown a giant.

Holly Curry needs our help.

The e-mail would have grabbed my attention without the name.

But when I read it was Holly Curry involved, I felt compelled to inform people about the situation.

I barely knew Holly, other than a face in the halls, when we both went to Havre de Grace High School. My wife shared a trip to Europe with Holly during high school. Many more shared even greater experiences.

Lots of people in this city know Holly. I, for one, know her relatives better than I do her. Still, there's a connection.

The depth of the closeness in our community will be on display Sunday night at . From 5 p.m. until close, a dollar from every beverage sold at the bar will be donated to Holly’s family.

A complimentary buffet will be held in the bar and lounge, and local businesses are donating items for raffle. If you’d like to make a donation, but can’t attend Sunday night, stop by anytime in the coming days. Any donations will be appreciated.

My wife’s jaw dropped as I read the e-mail Wednesday morning. She hadn’t kept in touch with Holly over the years, but as soon as I told her about Sunday night, she said with not a hint of doubt in her voice: “We’re going.”

I hope, after reading this, many of you have the same feeling.

A simple blood clot that forced a visit to Harford Memorial Hospital Jan. 13 has led Holly down a terrifying path. Fevers. Infections. Surgeries. More surgeries. The removal of a portion of her small intestine.

Holly is currently on a feeding tube and ventilator.

A Facebook page has been created. A donation site has been set up, too.

Horrible stories like Holly’s plague communities around the world every day. But there’s a spirit about Havre de Grace that puts Holly in better hands than those folks in other places.

That sense of volunteerism, giving, togetherness and involvement that makes Havre de Grace such a wonderful place to live and raise a family—it needs to shine through this weekend.

Whether you know Holly, or one of her family members, or you have no connections whatsoever, stop out to Tidewater Grille Sunday night.

You never know when you might be the one in need of a lending hand.

We’re going.

Are you?