Heartwarming stories in 2022 that inspired and uplifted Buffalo – Buffalo News

The racially motivated mass shooting on May 14 at Tops Markets cast a cloud of sadness over 2022. So savoring the feel-good stories of the past year means even more especially the ones involving family members of shooting victims and survivors.

They gave to the community amid their grieving, becoming shining lights in the days, weeks and months since that dark day in May. And others inspired the community as well.

These are their stories of preserving memories, spreading antiracism through education, overcoming obstacles and finding the joy of a surprise.

Mark Talley in front of the Friends of the Night People kitchen: The organization is one of many partnering with Talley for a food and clothing distribution on Thanksgiving morning.

Thanksgiving meals for those in need

Mark Talley has fond memories of his mother, Geraldine Talley, especially during the Thanksgivings of his childhood. She spent countless hours in the kitchen preparing turkey and dressing, the centerpieces of the extended family's meal, but also a slew of Southern favorites like collard greens, cornbread and sweet potatoes. She'd sometimes let her son sneak a snack before the full-on meal.

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After losing his mother, Geraldine "Gerri" Talley in the May 14 Tops massacre, Mark Talley has turned his grief into a determined force for good, writes Sean Kirst.

Geraldine Talley was one of the 10 killed on May 14. Amid the grief, her son Mark quietly chose to pass on the gifts given to his family after the shooting in the same way his mother provided for him.

Through Friends of Night People and roughly 10 other organizations that volunteered, Talley gave away hundreds of Thanksgiving meals to Buffalo families in need.

Im just trying to help as many people as I can, he said, and it just coincides that my mothers favorite holiday was Thanksgiving.

Zeneta Everhart addresses reporters regarding a book drive she started with her son, Zaire Goodman,in Tonawanda on July 1, 2022.

Collecting thousands of antiracist books

After the racist mass shooting at Tops Markets on Jefferson Avenue on May 14, Zeneta Everhart and her son, Zaire Goodman, who was wounded in the attack, started a book drive. Their goal was to collect children's books that address racism, as well as Black history and culture. They started a wish list on Amazon and have collected about 10,000 books.

Tops employee Zaire Goodman survived the May 14 shooting, suffering bullet wounds to his back and neck. In response to an attack fueled by hatred, he and his mother, Zeneta Everhart, organized a drive to collect children's books with antiracist messages or that celebrated Black history and figures. Their call went out through an Amazon wish list.

Mother and son were overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from across the country. On July 1, Everhart estimated they'd received about 10,000 books filling an SUV, minivan and most of a box truckthat were eventually delivered to Villa Maria College for local distribution.

"This project is about letting people know that it's real. It's real. Racism is real," Everhart said. "It's time that we start talking about it, and it's time that we start educating our children about it. The reason for the terrorist attack in my community was racism. My son, along with 10 other Black people were targeted because of their skin color. In this country. It's ridiculous. It makes no sense ... And for me, it starts with kids and education."

Maria Ahmed, 3, wears her cap for photographs during a graduation celebration for participants in the ParentChild+ program at the Jericho Road Community Health Center on May 26, 2022.

A happy graduation day for tykes

It was graduation day for the children and parents of ParentChild+, a free, early education program run by Jericho Road Community Health Center. "Our focus is on building a strong foundation between the parent and the child, and their relationship, and then that the child gains a strong foundation academically so when they enter the school, they're at equal ground," said Melissa Christian, the program coordinator for ParentChild+.

The graduates were shorter and more easily distracted than those departing college or high school, but the small ParentChild+ graduation ceremony in the West Side in May was more adorable among the bursts of excitement.

Jericho Road's free early education program, in which a teacher visits the home of a participating family twice a week from October through May for two years, strives to prepare young children from refugee and disadvantaged families for kindergarten.

The intention is also to better connect parents with their children, encouraging adults to read to them and continue educating at home. The climb is already steep for Buffalo's English language learners, but ParentChild+ plants the seeds of learning and facilitates family.

Lauren Walier observes as Dr. Liz Egloff, physical therapist and clinic director, works with Emily Klima, 15, on hip and trunk stability and glute strength at First Step Physical Therapy in Cheektowaga.

Depew teen hopes to walk again

I definitely feel a lot more mobile leaving than when I'm coming in, Emily Klima, 15, said. And I definitely feel like I've gotten stronger every time I leave here.

An innovative approach to physical therapy has given hope to people suffering from the neurological disorder cerebral palsy. Thanks to the efforts of expat Lauren Walier, the Atlanta-based founder of Make Lemon Aide Foundation for CP, her "second home" now has more access to the treatment program.

First Step Physical Therapy in Cheektowaga has helped individuals like 15-year-old Emily Klima of Depew navigate the crippling neurological disorder through the Symptom Recovery Model, which essentially retrains the body's muscles, joints and tendons to become more flexible and less spastic.

Through the stretching-heavy program, Klima has progressed from a walker to forearm crutches and she aims to walk without any assistance at her high school graduation in 2025.

Bills safety Jordan Poyer received a letter Tuesday morning from East Aurora Middle School student Logan Neri. After getting the letter, Poyer filmed a video message for Neri. He then decided to do one better. He showed up at his school to surprise him and provided tickets for Sunday's game.

Jordan Poyer makes pupil's day

Logan Neri, a sixth-grader at East Aurora Middle School, wanted Buffalo Bills safety Jordan Poyer to know he was as important to the local football team as Josh Allen, the star quarterback. When Poyer could not attend an assembly at East Aurora earlier this year due to injury, Neri with the encouragement and slight editing of English teacher Courtney Vitello typed a thorough note to the Buffalo defensive back.

Buffalo Bills safety Jordan Poyer shows off an autographed jersey he gave to Logan Neri, 12, at East Aurora Middle School in East Aurora on Dec. 6, 2022.

When Poyer surprised Neri in school on Dec. 6, the sixth-grader was thrilled, leaping into his favorite player's arms before engaging in conversation. The exchange will be a lifelong memory for Neri, and it brought his English teacher to tears.

First the forfeits, then championship

Lewis J. Bennett School of Innovative Technology's football team could have quit after Section VI representatives determined the Buffalo public school had to forfeit six regular-season games due to a clerical error that caused the Tigers to use an ineligible player.

The Tigers roared back from 0-6 to capture the New York State Class A championship in early December in Syracuse,defeating Newburgh Free Academy 42-8in the title game. Coach Steve McDuffie beamed with pride about how his team handled the setback.

Bennett High School football players and their coach, Steve McDuffie, lower right, celebrate their state championship with a celebration on the steps of Buffalo City Hall, Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022.

"After all of the adversity that they went through and to come back and fight back game after game and fight and keep believing in each other, its an unbelievable feeling. I think all of the adversity that we had through Section VI brought us together and made us a tight-knit family," McDuffie said after the state title game. "If we look back at this 20, 30 years from now, we'll always be special, because I predict we'll be the only state champion that's 7-6."

It's the first championship by a Buffalo public school since 2015.

Staff and trustees with the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York react to the announcement that philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has provided $9 million toward their efforts to improve health and racial equity in the Buffalo-Niagara and Syracuse regions. They are, front from left, Brenda McDuffie, a board trustee, board Chair Cheryl Smith Fisher, foundation President Nora OBrien-Suric, Diane Oyler, vice president for programs, and trustee Cindy Rich.

Joy of a surprise $9 million donation

MacKenzie Scott, the philanthropist who with then-husband Jeff Bezos founded Amazon, left the chair of the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York "gobsmacked."

Staff and trustees of an upstate New York health foundation erupted in jubilation Thursday when they learned that MacKenzie Scott bestowed $9 million on the organization to help them address its work with racial and health inequities.

In late October, Health Foundation President Nora Obrien-Suric was finally able to reveal a secret to trustees and employees that she had held for more than a month: Scott was donating $9 million to help the foundation's work to reduce racial and health inequities in the Buffalo Niagara and Syracuse regions.

Obrien-Suric was bowled over when she learned of Scott's giving.

I fell off my chair, OBrien-Suric said. I was stuttering, incoherent. I said, Is this the reaction that you usually get? Scott said, Oh, yeah, everybody reacts this way.

Ben Tsujimoto can be reached at btsujimoto@buffnews.com, at (716) 849-6927 or on Twitter at @Tsuj10.

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Heartwarming stories in 2022 that inspired and uplifted Buffalo - Buffalo News