This Richland neighborhood is reaching out to keep people out of harm’s way of coronavirus

One Richland neighborhood isn’t letting social distancing keep them from being neighborly.

Laila Krowiak and her neighbor Jerry Tyler put together a campaign and recruited others from the area to go door to door to find who might need help.

“A lot of people have more time than you’re used to. It’s nice. This way they can go out and talk to their neighbors and help them out,” said Krowiak.

“Also more importantly, you’re starting a relationship that will be around for other opportunities,” she said.

Krowiak said they are filling in for relatives who live far away from the north Richland neighborhood that surrounds Jefferson Elementary and stretches north to Washington State University Tri-Cities.

About a dozen block stewards have delivered fliers to the doorsteps of those homes, offering help during the coronavirus outbreak that’s forcing people to stay home and away from each other.

Each of the stewards handed out their name, phone number and email.

Their goal is to help the people most at risk to contracting the novel coronavirus by getting groceries and other necessities from stores and pharmacies.

Krowiak, Pat Holten and block stewards David Harvey and Karen Nelson said the response so far has been good.

“Before we go to the store, we’re hitting up people by email and asking, ‘What do you need?’” she said. “If we’re constantly asking them, they don’t feel like they’re a burden. Nobody likes being a burden.”

So far older people love the idea, and younger people just want to know how they can help.

Feeling isolated

“It’s interesting to me to talk to people who are pretty healthy and pretty young, but also have health conditions that you don’t even know about,” Krowiak said. “Not that it’s any of our business, but you don’t think of them as having that need.”

The closing of schools, restaurants and other social gathering spots has left a lot of people feeling isolated.

Holten plays music at the hospital, nursing homes and restaurants, and now she doesn’t have anything to do.

She has seen the need for people to connect during an impromptu neighborhood driveway concert she was part of on Thursday.

“I can’t do anything. I can’t see anybody. So to be able to pass out fliers, it’s brought excitement to my life. It’s been fun to know that we’re caring about our neighbors,” she said.

“People are feeling so isolated and they’re feeling lonely,” she said. “They’re feeling depressed and a knock on the door that says, ‘We care about you and we’re thinking about you.”

They are hoping other Tri-City neighborhoods will do the same.

Krowiak said the differences between people don’t matter when they’re looking out for each other’s well-being.

While their neighborhood is fairly well connected, Harvey and Nelson have heard of places where neighbors are strangers.

“This might help other neighborhoods think, “Wow. What can we do?’” Nelson said. “It also gives an opportunity for people who are feeling well to help. Everyone is a bit restless.”

This story was originally published March 21, 2020 at 1:40 PM.