A terrorist attack struck the New York City area over the weekend when bombs were set off in public places. One of them was detonated in a trashcan near the starting line of the Marine charity 5K race in New Jersey. Thankfully, the race’s start was delayed due to registration issues and possibly spared many of the participants.

Another explosive device went off in the city later on Saturday evening. The fire department said that 29 people were injured by the blast, but none of the injuries sustained were life threatening.

Through the mayhem of the weekend, two homeless men emerged as heroes by saving what could have been multiple other blasts from injuring more people. According to Elizabeth, New Jersey Mayor Christian Bollwage, the two found a bag containing five more devices in a trashcan outside a train station.

They rummaged through its contents, finding wires and a pipe, and ended up contacting the police. Not only did it save people from being injured or even killed, but it also may have played a role in the police capturing the perpetrator on Monday.

There are homeless and less fortunate folks in every community, including Beaufort County. As the two men in New Jersey showed, these people may be downtrodden, but are still members of society. Their struggles do not mean that they do not have something to contribute.

The least one can do is acknowledge such a person on the street and even help out in the smallest way. A kind “hello” or even a few dollars could go a long way in helping these people get by and possibly get back on their feet.

There are also plenty of ways to get involved and help those less fortunate in Beaufort County. Eagle’s Wings in Washington is a food pantry that operates much like a grocery store for those struggling to make ends meet. One can volunteer to help run distribution on Tuesday mornings, and the pantry also needs help on other days of the week.

For other ways to get involved, one can contact local churches for information on food drives and other charitable events.