Kate Stoddard
By BERNADETTE LAURITZEN
Los Alamos
There was a saying in a training I attended by the Boomerang Project: “You get back what you give.” It is an unspoken philosophy of many people who do good deeds wherever and whenever they find the need. There’s a person I know who lives this motto. Her name is Kate Stoddard.
Stoddard and her family are the very definition of the kind of giving that runs deep in our community. Their contagious and constant character, attitude, and kindness know no bounds. If it could be bottled, it would fetch a fortune, and recently that boomerang of love circled back and enveloped the family in a giant embrace.
“I don’t even know where to begin.” Stoddard said. “The words ‘thank you’ seem so insignificant compared to the gratitude I wish to express to the community. I believe this is more of a love story than a thank you.”
What her family didn’t realize was that the recent outpouring of love was something her friends and the community needed to do for themselves, too. Yes, people wanted to help a young family, but they needed something to do to help themselves feel less helpless. Lending a hand became a friend who was able to travel from Colorado to help care for the children for several days. A bake sale and pantry drive grew out of the same desire to offset one setback after another.
“Los Alamos has always been a special place that provided me so many opportunities as I was growing up that I made a decision many years ago that I would find a way to serve my community through my profession and through my personal life,” Stoddard said. “I know that I have been incredibly privileged and because of that, I have a responsibility to serve others.”
At the end of August, Stoddard became very ill and lost a great deal of independence while her husband was on a business trip. She has been hospitalized for the last month, and the community rallied around her and her family. She calls everyone her support team, and that team rallied for Team Stoddard. She said it provided so much support and an outpouring of love that they are still overwhelmed.
Her neighbors and friends leapt into action to provide yard care and child care. The list of contributions and people to thank is so long, it may take her weeks to send thank you notes. The consistent texts, phone calls, letters, cards, and more have been filled with encouragement and motivation. She believes it will propel her through the next stages. She has only recently been well enough to transfer to a rehabilitation facility where she will work to regain her strength.
She misses her extended work family at the Los Alamos Police Department. She knows that Team UNM-LA is helping her husband Neil, as he navigates work, becoming a full-time, single parent and caring for his wife as a caregiver while being super dad for two young girls. She also thanks the Los Alamos Public Schools staff who have been a constant source and presence for the children.
“I have never felt so much love,” Stoddard said. “We have a remarkable community, and as soon as I am able to return, please expect to see me and my family returning the love tenfold.”