Letter to the Editor

Kindness makes the best impression

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

To the Editor:

My wife and I were passing through your fair city about 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 27, when my car began to malfunction. It lost power rapidly and started emitting a "squeal" from under the hood. This was a very disheartening sound as we still had about 250 miles before we would be home. We were able to limp into a convenience store named, I think, Easy Stop, before the engine finally died. The employees there were helpful in trying to find a repair station open but we could find none. Our most immediate problem, however, was not just repair but also how we would get home that day.

Since we could not get a repair on Saturday or Sunday, we started trying to find a rental agency to get a replacement car. Alas, there was only Enterprise and it was closed. We were ultimately advised our only chance for a rental was to get to a major airport, but we didn't even have a way to do that. There simply were no rentals in Poplar Bluff on Saturday and no other means of transportation home that we could come up with.

As we were now in a semi-panic mode, I contacted your Blackwell Baldwin Ford dealership about having the car towed in for repair when they opened for business on Monday. Of course there were no mechanics on duty on Saturday afternoon but they would be able to get to it next week. AAA came to tow the car, but we still had no way home. After explaining our dilemma to Misty Andrews at Ford, she was able to contact her supervisor who authorized our use of a loaner while our car was in for repair. And so, these people went way "beyond the call of duty" to help total strangers who were really in a bind. Just wanted you to know what kind of people we encountered in Poplar Bluff, both at the Easy Stop convenience store and especially at the Ford dealership.

Your city can be proud of the positive impression such kindness makes on visitors. And you know what? I'll just bet there are a lot of people there like that.

David Gordon

Bowling Green, Ky.