The power of social media continues to do many good things to help others. Though there are plenty of folks out there that still want to disagree with the use of social media you can’t help but be amazed by some of the fascinating stories that you hear. I am not talking about all the bad publicity but the good that comes from people using this as a resource in time of need. Twitter has been used many times to assist people whether it was to get news out or to get help where needed. The following story is an example of just one of the wonderful stories about social media.
A daughter had been missing her mother for more than nine hours after the mother had apparently taken the dogs out for a walk in Belfast. This in itself might not seem like a problem but the mother suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. Anyone caring for a family member with this dreadful disease will understand how quickly the mother could have become lost.
Joanne, who was traveling back from Donegal, felt helpless because she could not get a good phone signal, so she decided to post an appeal on Twitter and Facebook. Her initial tweet was: “This is my mum & she’s gone #missing. Help try & bring her home safe #missing #belfast #plsRT #alzheimers.” After tweeting she request that followers re-tweet as well as share the picture message she had sent. The urgency that the daughter felt in needing to get her mother home in her mind far outweighed the issue of sharing with others that her mother had Alzheimer’s.
The daughter recognized Twitter and Facebook as powerful tools that could help assist her in finding her mother. Hundreds of re-tweets produced results to the delight of the family. Approximately eight miles from the daughter’s home a lady who had seen the tweet was sitting down to watch TV and noticed a woman walk by that seemed a little dazed. She recognized her as the person that was being tweeted about and coaxed her in for tea. The husband contacted the police and daughter of having found the lady.
The daughter and mother would soon reunite again. Something that could have ended very tragically was resolved with the use of Twitter and Facebook. All involved were safe and knew that working together through the use of social media networking sites had averted a tragedy. The husband said that he felt like he was a Twitter widow but the wife felt he could no longer complain of her tweeting!
Social media networking sites can have a tremendous impact on our lives whether it is in personal or business use. Understanding this impact is what makes it a powerful tool when used correctly. We have all heard some of the negative aspects of sites such as Twitter – well now it is time to hear the positive as well. This is only one story about how a social media site helped. How much more have you heard lately?