A Tragic ending that could have been avoided

I have been reading as probably most folks, about the elderly gentleman who froze to death in his apartment becauses "big, bad  energy company who cut off his electricity. The outcry has been loud and anger seething all aimed at the energy company.

 

First of all he was over $1000 in arrears on his account and secondly he was told how to cut the electricity back on should it be cut off. The cut off serves as a warning that if you don't pay your bills you lose your service. Companies are not social service agencies. Their job is to run a business and to make a profit for their stakeholders.  They need money so they can continue to generate new energy efficient ways for all Americans to have a better quality of life.

That said, yes I do feel badly for that poor old gentleman.  But honestly my first thought was not to blame the energy company-they were just doing business-but to ask where all those concerned neighbors were?   They all seemed to know that he was an elderly gentleman, living  by himselft, was 93 years old and had no family.  Many of those interviewed said they often saw him standing at his window looking out.  They said he never left the house.  They said he lived in a nice neighborhool.  So my question is where were the neighbors?  If they did not feel they could check on him when they saw no lights in the house night after night why did they not call 911 or call the social services or the Senior Center.  In other words what has happened to personal responsibilty in this country where neighbors look after neighbors.

Maybe one way we can give back to the community and our neighborhoods is to take it upon ourselves to make a simple call (he had a phone) or ask the mailman or even call someone else to check on him.  Maybe there should be a list somewhere of all of the elderly folks that only a crisis center has so that folks have an easier way to notify an agency that an elderly person might be in danger.  Maybe relatives-even distant- who have an elderly relative might want to make sure that at least one person in their neighborhood is asked to check on them.  If you don't see any lights on in a house for days and you know it is very, very cold (or hot) that no lights in a house where a 93 year old lives by himself and never goes out would be a warning signal.  Maybe we as as a nation should really care more about others?

I hope there will be some good come out of this tragic situation.  Maybe it will create a neighborhood watch, not just for our own safety but the safety of all including the elderly.