Need inspiration to help others? Look no further than Gina Spence

FRIDAY, OCT. 12: Oftentimes we draw conclusions about a person’s emotional and mental state based on what we see, and we treat them accordingly.

What we don’t see is the ‘stuff’ that lies underneath, whether positive or negative. 

We just don’t have the ability to see the things that would give us full picture and increase the depth of understanding about another person.

Such is the case with my guest on Tuesday night’s radio show, Gina Spence.  She has been a community activist for decades.

Hers is a household name and it’s synonymous with giving.

We see her, we hear her voice daily on the radio airwaves, and we are embraced by her enthusiasm, her love, and, most importantly, her unwavering dedication to God. 

Gina has become the backbone of support to hundreds of people, both locally and overseas.

Her three beautiful, spirited daughters were also in studio and each of them shared their life story, growing up with mom, and they expressed the challenges they faced as mom spent so much of her time helping others.

In assisting others in crisis, which ranged from needing a place to lay one’s head to needing food, to making attempts to commit suicide, to consoling families torn by tragedy, Gina’s family was also going through challenges of their own, including a physically abusive marriage which had an impact on the girls and a murder of a daughter’s husband which also shook the island’s core.

Through all their hardships they dug deeper to rely on God for their own support and comfort and today, they walk in the spirit of forgiveness and peace. This is unthinkable for most of us.

I received a lot of feedback, including comments from those who tuned in and cried. 

You see, we never know how another person’s story can have an impact on us unless we hear it.

And who would have thought that the effervescent Gina, as we know her, would have had such underlying ‘stuff’ going on with all she continues to do for our community as soon as she sees a need?

She and her daughters know that naysayers will be forever present.

But as I expressed on Tuesday evening’s show, I encounter people so often who use a lot of energy moaning, complaining, finger pointing, blaming, and the like — people who have a whole lot to say about how things should operate, yet, in the whole scheme of things, do very little to nothing at all to use that energy to activate change in the things with which they are dissatisfied.

Inspiration

They do little to nothing to reach out to others.  Gina’s daughter Edwina clearly expressed similar sentiments of what she “throws back” at people who say negative things to her about her mom.

As humans, we have got to do better.

Gina’s story is certainly one of inspiration and hope and I know God is certainly not done with her yet!

I invite you to tune in to Generations on Tuesday, October 16, to hear from others who have taken the time to give of themselves for other worthy causes as I have in studio participants of The Bermuda Sloop Foundation.

Hear on Tuesday evening from some of the adults and young people who gave three weeks of their time this summer to voyage down to Haiti on board The Spirit of Bermuda in support of Philip Rego’s Feed My Lambs orphanage and ministry.

There are powerful moral characteristics to be learned, especially for our youth. Hear how your young person can become involved in this charity.

Shawnette Somner is a Sun columnist and host of the radio show, Generations, which now airs on Tuesday evenings on Mix106 FM from 7:30pm to 9pm. E-mail:
[email protected]