An overflow of gems

by Melanie Jongsma, Director of Communications

Well, Torchlight is a week away. Our annual celebration of ministry accomplished by the Providence family is a tradition-rich event, as I wrote in an earlier post.

This year our theme is "Gems of Providence," a reference to the beautiful, multi-faceted people who serve and are served as part of this ministry. One of the highlights of the evening will be a couple of short videos that play out this theme.

In the Communications Department, we've been working on these videos for months — brainstorming, scripting, interviewing, taping, editing, reworking, finalizing, and producing. Throughout the process, over and over, the "Gems" theme was confirmed in ways that, unfortunately, most people will never realize.

For example, we taped interviews with half a dozen Providence employees, representing a range of departments, and every single interview was solid gold. I was impressed with not only the skill and expertise of our staff in Nursing, Environmental Services, Spiritual Development, Dining Services, and Life Enrichment, but also with their sincerity, their sense of mission, their humility. I count it an honor to serve with these people.

But the final videos we'll show to the Torchlight crowd next Friday night are only 3 minutes and 5 minutes long — not nearly enough time to display all the gems from all the interviews.

Rather than leave this overflow of gems "on the cutting room floor," we plan to post plenty of video clips to our website over the coming weeks. In the meantime, I want to post one of my favorites here. It's just a minute or two of our interview with Thomas Travaglio, our Environmental Services Director at Providence of Palos Heights. Watching it, I think you'll catch a glimpse of what makes Thomas one of the "Gems of Providence."

What about you? Do you know any "Gems of Providence"? I know there is a treasure trove out there, and each of us sees only a small part of it. Why not share the wealth? Submit a comment below, and let us know which Providence residents, employees, donors, or volunteers have enriched your life!

Getting back on his feet

by Melanie Jongsma, Director of Communications

Earlier this week I posted a blog about a man whose sister wrote us a beautiful letter thanking Providence for "being there for my brother."

Just yesterday I met this man, and his story is truly remarkable.

His name is Paul, and he's only 62 years old. The accident that landed him in nursing care was a fluke — he tripped over a short, concrete step and hit his head. The fall knocked him out. He regained consciousness briefly, and dragged himself to the bathroom, where he passed out again. He lay on the bathroom floor, unconscious, for three days.

Paul lives in a friendly, old neighborhood in Whiting, Indiana, so when his neighbor began to wonder why he hadn't seen Paul for a while, he walked over and knocked on the door. At the sound of the knock, Paul revived enough to make some noise, which his neighbor heard. The neighbor let himself in and found Paul in the bathroom. When he saw Paul's condition, he immediately called 911.

The paramedics who arrived nearly pronounced him dead. Paul had injured his kidneys in the fall and was suffering renal failure, which is often fatal. But they rushed him to the hospital, and he survived surgery, to everyone's surprise!

Paul needed follow-up care upon his release, so he was discharged to a local nursing home. "It was awful," remembers Paul. "It was...," his voice trails off, and he shakes his head, unable to put words to his memories. This nursing home lived up to all the negative perceptions that most people have about nursing care facilities. Paul almost died again.

And then he found Providence.

As his sister wrote in her letter, "Julie at St. Margaret Mercy helped me find Providence Healthcare and Rehabilitation of South Holland (Illinois). In your nursing environment he became well and strong!" Six weeks later Paul was strong enough to move to Holland Home, our retirement community on the same campus. He depended on a wheelchair when he first arrived, but when I visited him yesterday he was using a walker — and that only intermittently.

"This is a good place," Paul says quietly about Holland Home. Physically, he could probably handle moving back to his home in Whiting any time, but for now he appreciates the security of community living, and having help available at the push of a button. "I'm still afraid of steps," he says. "I have a reaction every time I think about what happened."

It's perfectly understandable. No one likes to think that one missed step can lead to renal failure, surgery, and weeks of rehab.

So for now, Paul is one of the youngest members of the Holland Home family! He walks around the campus every day, building up his strength. He enjoys the meals and fellowship available three times a day in the restaurant-style dining room. His smile is still somewhat tentative, but it's there. Perhaps as peace replaces Paul's traumatic memories, that smile will flash more easily.

It was an honor to meet Paul and hear his story. As Deana Wilson, Community Manager, says, "Paul's story is one example of why I do what I do." I agree. It's an honor to be part of a ministry that offers healing to body, mind, and spirit in the name of Christ.

Paul's story reminds me of a Bible verse we like to quote around here:

You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit. (Job 10:12)

Amen — I love seeing that Providence at work!