Then I went to the Salvation Army to see what they were doing. I made an appointment with the Captain. I was amazed at how organized it was and what an excellent organization it is. This was the "Salvation Army." As I made my way through the lines of people, because it was time to give to the needy, I was shocked to see all the babies without diapers. They were actually defecating on themselves and going to the bathroom on their little, raggedy clothes. When I went inside, I said, "Do you have diapers? There are a lot of babies out there that need them?" They said, "No, we don’t, they are too expensive." I said, "What? I will get you diapers." I started to do research on diapers, and they are very expensive, but they are needed. Diaper companies say that these are "leader items" to get people into the stores. The prices that you see that you think are expensive, that is their cost, or so I am told. For such a staple item, the expense was tremendous. On new blankets from the manufacturers, you can get good deals. And a blanket is 20 times bigger than a diaper, but the diapers were more expensive. Anyway, I went ahead and started buying tens of thousands of diapers and had them distributed to different areas.
My cousin, Fred Napoli, asked me to come to the North Center for the Handicapped. He said there are children there, and nearly all of them come from poverty stricken homes. He made arrangements for me to meet Mrs. Jacobson, who is the founder of North Center for the Handicapped. I was not prepared for what I was about to find. All of these children were multiple handicapped, many with feeding tubes. Some just laid flat because they could not hold themselves up and they could not afford special wheelchairs that could support them properly. They had lived for many years just lying flat, horizontally on a pad or a piece of plywood on the floor. I was completely unprepared. Their clothes were torn and worn. I looked at Fred, and asked, "Where are their clothes and wheelchairs?" He said, "Well, they come from families that don’t have very much." I just felt devastated. I sent them on a field trip to go to a store so that everyone could get clothes. They asked me to come back, and we did with food. I looked and the children were smiling. I was surprised. Mrs. Jacobson said to me, "Sal, their minds are intact, they are just trapped in a body that doesn’t work." I looked at this little girl laying flat on the floor and she had a Chicago Bulls sweatshirt on that she had just purchased. Even though she could not talk or communicate, she knew who the Chicago Bulls were. She was about 11 years old and just smiling from ear to ear. I said, "Do you know who the Chicago Bulls are?" And she just smiled even wider. I said, "Boy, you look really good in that bright, red sweatshirt." and that smile got even bigger. I looked at Mrs. Jacobson with tears in my eyes, and she hugged me and thanked me. I said, "What else can I do?" She was a very proud woman so she said, "Nothing Sal, we’re fine." I later found out that they needed a roof, heating, etc…and I provided it for them. I have always been there for them over the past years. For an organization that represented the group with the greatest needs, they would rarely speak up for themselves. Their pride would not let them. I would have to pry out of them what was needed or I would find out from my cousin. Since then, Mrs. Jacobson has passed away. Her son, who was multiply handicapped and her reason for starting the foundation, has also passed away. Her daughter, Deena Jacobson DeNosaquo, has been running it for the last few years—once again, very humbly and with pride. We purchased special computers and programs for them, and the children love them. I continued to help.
I feel we have a very heartwarming, true story….a continuing story that I hope you do find of interest and find it in your heart to help. For many years, I have always turned down publicity of any kind. I have been approached many, many times. It is nice to see the interest that is out there, but I never wanted any of this exposure until I found out that this kind of exposure brings about positive change. Thank you for your interests and your concern. There are a lot of interesting things here. A lot of good people involved. I will continue my vow to God to help our fellow creations of God who are suffering from poverty. Thank you for your time, sharing and caring.
Health and Happiness to You and Yours.
God Bless,
Sal Dimiceli, Sr.
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