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FEBRUARY 2026
When you think about the things that connect people, food is one of the most powerful tools in our toolbox. Most of us have something going on in our lives at all times that creates stress, from relationship struggles and money problems to those recovering from serious injuries. When all else fails to improve our mood or flip our mindset, food often prevails. There’s simply nothing more healing than a delicious home-cooked meal, especially when it’s made by someone who cares. Over the years, we’ve helped countless members of our community after suffering a traumatic injury due to someone else’s negligence or poor actions. These situations can be challenging even for the most motivated and optimistic people. Their life can change within a matter of moments. Days spent at work quickly turn into hours in the waiting room of a doctor’s office, and it can be difficult to get out of the house and see friends, even when they extend invitations to dinner or get-togethers at their home. Before long, isolation becomes a normal part of life. If you know someone facing this situation, one of the best things you can do to perk them up or provide some comfort is to cook them a meal. Ideally, you’ll share a dish together in an effort to ensure nobody eats alone, but this isn’t always possible after a serious injury. Depending on the severity, they may not be able to enjoy some of their meals or might not want to sit with someone. You may think that dropping off food is counterproductive, but at the end of the day, you’re showing that you care. And that can make all the difference in the world. When people know they have people who care about them and have a level of social support, they often recover faster. I want to share simple recipe ideas that can help improve the mood of anyone going through a difficult situation. The Drive-Thru Dinner Drop The only ingredients you need for this dish are a caring friend, a disposable pan of lasagna (or another favorite dish), and zero expectations that the other person hosts. The friend sends a text that they are dropping food off at a set Why Sharing Food Strengthens Hearts and Communities MORE THAN A MEAL
time. The other person simply answers the door whenever they are ready and enjoys the thought that someone made an effort to connect and care for them. The Picnic Pal-Around Maybe you want to get the person out of the house, but they aren’t ready for a restaurant or dinner party yet. In that case, all you need to do is pick up (or make) one of their favorite dishes before heading to their house. Then, you find a nice spot outside to enjoy a meal and company. When we envision recipes, we often imagine long lists of ingredients and directions that have to be carefully followed. However, we can develop our own recipes for connection that provide others with a good meal and company! The idea behind no one eats alone extends beyond personal injury cases. We can find ways to connect with our community and share our love for one another through food. One thing our office did recently that you can re-create with friends and family is to host a soup potluck. Encourage everyone to bring their favorite soup (or other necessary items if they aren’t up for cooking), and set up a way for everyone to share. You can even get everyone their own muffin trays so they can have a flight of different kinds of soup! While you can do this with other types of dishes, soup is special because it’s relatively easy to make, considered a comfort food, and brings people together. Whether you’re recovering from an injury or fighting off the winter blues, sharing a good meal with good company will fill your heart and soul with warmth!
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A Revolution of Residential Design LEVITTOWN AND THE RISE OF SUBURBIA
In 1947, a stretch of potato fields on Long Island started growing something new. Instead of potatoes, the land was transformed into thousands of identical houses, each built in just a few days. The development was called Levittown. To the families moving in, it must have felt like a miracle. To those watching from afar, it looked like the future. Before Levittown, the suburbs were mainly for the wealthy. Places like Shaker Heights in Ohio and Riverside in Illinois offered quiet streets away from the pollution and overcrowding of the city, but working families couldn’t afford to live there. Levittown was different. The developers, Levitt & Sons, treated home construction like an assembly line, and crews efficiently knocked out house after house. At their peak, they finished dozens of homes a day. Housing was in high demand at the time. With veterans returning home from World War II and the baby boom beginning, cities were running out of space. A Levittown home sold for around $8,000, which was within reach of families using GI Bill loans. The single-story houses came with stoves, televisions,
and a small yard for barbecues. It wasn’t luxury, but it gave the families who moved there a chance to live their version of the American dream. Soon, the development became its own world. Swimming pools, baseball fields, and shopping centers became places where families ran into neighbors on Saturday mornings, which felt new and full of possibility. But that possibility wasn’t a reality for everyone. Racist sales policies barred Black families from buying homes, even when they qualified for loans. The suburb also reinforced older ideas about gender. Women who had worked during the war felt pressure to return to domestic life, stay home, and care for the kids while their husbands commuted to work. For all its promise, it was still a product of its time. Even so, Levittown launched a new style of living that transformed the landscape of American life. Other developers copied the model, and before long, new neighborhoods stretched toward the horizon. Rows of identical houses became symbols of stability, and the dream of a better life moved to the city’s edges.
USE IT TO LIFT SOMEONE OUT OF ISOLATION TODAY Connection Is a Superpower
much of their time by themselves, whether they’re attending church, cooking in the comfort of their own home, or looking for something fun to do on a Friday night. Since February hosts National No One Eats Alone Day, it’s the perfect time to open your heart and home to those who need a little more care and connection. While No One Eats Alone Day is focused on meals, I think we could expand it beyond that to everyday situations that we’ve all experienced. There have been many instances where someone came and joined me while I was sitting alone, which made me feel welcome. This is something that seems to be all too common in churches. When you see someone sitting alone at church, it’s often an older person who recently lost a spouse, someone going through a divorce, or even a young adult trying to navigate new situations without a support system. Sitting and connecting with them will bring more joy and appreciation than you could ever imagine.
Networking events are another location where people often feel isolated and alone, even when they’re in a room full of people. If you see someone sitting alone at these events, befriend them and make them feel included. If you’re uncomfortable talking with strangers, find someone who feels the same way and ask them about themselves or their work. From there, your group of two can find someone else who feels the same way. Before long, you have an entire crew of people who are grateful that you made the first step. Nearly every day, we get an opportunity to extend a helping hand or friendly voice to someone in need. Give it a try. You may just make a new friend or become someone’s hero!
As humans, we’re wired for connection. When we can get together with others, enjoy a good meal, and share stories from our personal lives, we feel better. There’s an instant improvement in our mood, and feelings of depression, isolation, and anxiety start to melt away. However, many Americans do not have access to a group that makes them feel like they belong. They spend
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Have a Laugh!
The Secret to Great Conversations?
ASK, LISTEN, AND DITCH THE FEAR
For many Americans, there is nothing more intimidating and nerve-wracking than starting up a conversation with someone you don’t know. They worry that people will look at them like they’re weird or respond aggressively. However, this is a very unnecessary concern. Most people are open to conversing with strangers and sharing in some small talk. By pushing past your fear and finding your confidence, you could make new friends and open yourself up to new experiences. As plenty of introverts would tell you, simply overcoming the initial fear or nervousness won’t always be enough to have a full-on conversation with someone you don’t know. After initial pleasantries, the conversation can fall into a solemn silence, as neither person knows where to take the conversation next. This can lead to awkward situations if you’re trying to take advantage of National No One Eats Alone Day. Thankfully, the only thing you need to push past the barriers is some tried-and-true conversation starters. One of the best ways to start up a conversation is to ask someone a question about themselves. It can be as simple as complimenting their outfit and asking where they got it from. Then, you can ask follow-up questions based on their responses. Most people love to talk about themselves and rarely get a chance to do so. By asking questions about their jobs, hometown, family, interests, and hobbies, you can find ways to connect with someone and establish a relationship. Not everyone is open to talking about themselves with strangers, though. If you feel like you’re speaking with a brick wall, it may be time to change your strategy. Ask about their thoughts on the future or past events. The goal is to find some common ground. Once they mention something that you can relate to, jump on it and carry on the conversation. It doesn’t matter if it’s about your favorite sports team, local news events, or something that’s affecting the world as a whole; when you find ways to connect, you increase your chances of making a real connection.
Ingredients •
12 oz package vanilla wafers
•
16 oz cream cheese, softened
•
3/4 cup white sugar
•
2 large eggs
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1 tsp vanilla extract
•
21 oz can cherry pie filling
Directions 1.
Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. In two 24-cup miniature muffin pans, line each space with a paper liner. 3. Using a food processor or resealable plastic bag, crush vanilla wafers into a fine crumb. 4. Press 1/2 teaspoon of crumbs into each paper liner. 5. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. 6. Fill each miniature muffin liner with this mixture, almost to the top. 7. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes or until the cheesecakes are set. 8. Cool completely in the pan. 9. Top each mini cheesecake with about a teaspoon of cherry pie filling before serving. Enjoy!
Don’t let shyness or nerves prevent you from starting a conversation with someone. You may just meet your next best friend this way!
Inspired by AllRecipes.com
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INSIDE
RECIPES FOR CONNECTION 1
THE BIRTH OF SUBURBAN LIFE
THE EVERYDAY KINDNESS THAT ENDS LONELINESS 2
CLEVER WAYS TO CONNECT WITH STRANGERS
MOUTHWATERING MINI CHEESECAKES 3 MEET THE CANINE HERO THAT WARNS OF SEIZURES 4
THE SERVICE DOG THAT CHANGED A CHILD’S LIFE TRAINED TO PROTECT
The veterans reached out to Canines for Heroes, a Sarasota-based nonprofit founded by Air Force veteran Mark LaFlamme. As a highly decorated Air Force veteran of three combat operations in the Middle East, LaFlamme knew firsthand the challenges of dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); two of his fellow officers succumbed to the pain and took their own lives. As a way of coping with their loss, LaFlamme set out to help others by giving them access to the healing power of trained service dogs. Canines for Heroes has years of experience matching service dogs with individuals in need. So, Mark LaFlamme and his wife, Sandra, matched JJ with Ezra, a dog trained to detect oncoming seizures and provide emotional support. Ezra is a Czech shepherd, a Central European herding breed known for intelligence, alertness, intuitive ability, and loyalty. Service dogs’ sense of smell is more powerful than any machine and can detect changes
instantaneously. They have been likened to a live- in medical alert system. They can also be trained to notice anxiety or discomfort and offer comfort and companionship, interrupting potential panic attacks by calming their human companions. With training by Julie Madison of Top Tier K9, a professional dog-training company, Ezra learned to detect seizures by using his ability to sense subtle changes in scent or behavior. He was also taught to alert JJ and those around him before any visible signs of a seizure appeared, allowing a few crucial moments for JJ to take medications to curtail the seizures and ensure he was in a safe place. Ezra’s presence led to striking improvements. Not only did JJ experience a sharp decline in seizures, but the entire family felt less uncertainty and fearfulness. As the story of JJ and Ezra demonstrates, bonds between animals and humans can yield near-miraculous benefits.
The family of JJ, a preteen troubled by debilitating seizures, was struggling to manage the condition and allay its devastating effect on his learning and well-being. They tried numerous treatments and therapies, but nothing worked well enough to stabilize JJ’s health. Then, JJ’s community stepped up in a way that changed his life forever. Military veterans at Sun Outdoors, an RV community where JJ and his family live in Sarasota, Florida, learned about the difficult situation his family faced and took the initiative to help.
Enter Ezra, the service dog.
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