Kim Fitzgerald

I don’t know Helen Haines personally, although I’ve had the chance to meet her briefly. What has always struck me is the extraordinary warmth with which people who do know her speak about her. How deeply respected she is, how hard she works, her integrity, and, above all, how much of herself she gives to others and to her community. My own tiny glimpse of that was watching Helen notice someone was cold and insist they take her coat. It was such a small thing, but perhaps that’s why it stayed with me. There is something particularly heartbreaking about seeing something so awful happen to someone who has spent so much of her life giving to others and devoted to public service. Which makes it deeply disappointing to see some trying to turn what has happened to Helen into ammunition for whatever political argument they wanted to make anyway. Surely this is a moment for something better than that. I can’t pretend to know what Helen would want from us right now. But everything I have seen and heard about her suggests kindness, generosity and compassion would be a pretty good place to start. This should be a moment that brings out the very best in all of us.