Thank you. Those two words are so simple; they really do not seem adequate. I have been searching for a way to put into words how Bert and I feel about my place of employment, some way for all the people and there are so many people to know how each one of them have played such an important part in this crazy journey. Maybe pride is a better word; it describes how I feel about the people and the place that I work.
ALS is such an exhausting journey, it’s physical, emotional, and it is all consuming. ALS is overwhelming, it’s scary and it’s best if you have an army on your side to fight it, armies are hard to come by and the journey of ALS is not for the faint of heart. Bert and I had an army from the beginning of this journey and it just kept growing.
The day we went to Johns Hopkins to receive the official diagnosis, after a year of tests and doctor appointments, I sat in that office holding a prayer stone that my boss had given to me, she had held onto it herself in a time of need and she had handed it over to me, I held it when we were told Bert had ALS and I have been holding onto it ever since.
I left that doctor’s office and texted work…they were all waiting, praying, hoping that it was something else. My co-workers mourned for me, with me and with my family. I didn't go to work the rest of that week. Bert and I had to wrap our heads around two to five years, what the hell were we going to do…
When I returned to work that first day after ALS was officially part of our lives I was nervous. ALS has a way of taking up a little part of your brain all the time. I was scared to leave Bert home alone, I didn't know if I could function. My co-workers filled in the gaps with ease, they didn't pry, they were respectful of my privacy and feelings, yet let me know that they cared. And so the journey began…
My co-workers signed on for this journey of ALS, they supported, they listened, they cried, they spread awareness, and they fed my family for the last year. They believed with us, they prayed, and they stuck by my family’s side. When there was a fundraiser they participated…every employee came to work in an ALS t-shirt in support of Bert and my family, when we participated in the Fiesta 5k they raised money for research, basin after basin of ice was dumped over heads for the Ice Bucket Challenge, they wore bracelets, and cooked…boy did they cook; three meals a week for the better part of a year-desserts included. They filled in when we traveled to UMass for the drug trial and clinic appointments; they stayed up to date on all the latest research and ALS news. They asked how Bert was, they worried with me, they cared about my children, they came to visit, they took care of me the way they take care of their patients everyday. The support extended outside our building, it came from other locations and all departments.
And when the time came that I needed to change paths and move into a different position within the company, they supported me; they helped me make the difficult transition after almost five years in my building to a new role. Bert and I talk all the time about what their support means to us, he just could not understand that people who didn't even know him could care so much about him. I feel blessed, and proud to be a part of the team at Manor Care. I feel pride that my co-workers take care of patients everyday the way they have taken care of me and my family.
Even now as I train for my new role, I am supported. ALS is a heavy burden but Bert and I feel motivated, we feel like if ALS can be defeated it’s our army who can see us through to victory. Thank You doesn't seem like enough, but from the bottom of our hearts we thank you.
ALS is such an exhausting journey, it’s physical, emotional, and it is all consuming. ALS is overwhelming, it’s scary and it’s best if you have an army on your side to fight it, armies are hard to come by and the journey of ALS is not for the faint of heart. Bert and I had an army from the beginning of this journey and it just kept growing.
The day we went to Johns Hopkins to receive the official diagnosis, after a year of tests and doctor appointments, I sat in that office holding a prayer stone that my boss had given to me, she had held onto it herself in a time of need and she had handed it over to me, I held it when we were told Bert had ALS and I have been holding onto it ever since.
I left that doctor’s office and texted work…they were all waiting, praying, hoping that it was something else. My co-workers mourned for me, with me and with my family. I didn't go to work the rest of that week. Bert and I had to wrap our heads around two to five years, what the hell were we going to do…
When I returned to work that first day after ALS was officially part of our lives I was nervous. ALS has a way of taking up a little part of your brain all the time. I was scared to leave Bert home alone, I didn't know if I could function. My co-workers filled in the gaps with ease, they didn't pry, they were respectful of my privacy and feelings, yet let me know that they cared. And so the journey began…
My co-workers signed on for this journey of ALS, they supported, they listened, they cried, they spread awareness, and they fed my family for the last year. They believed with us, they prayed, and they stuck by my family’s side. When there was a fundraiser they participated…every employee came to work in an ALS t-shirt in support of Bert and my family, when we participated in the Fiesta 5k they raised money for research, basin after basin of ice was dumped over heads for the Ice Bucket Challenge, they wore bracelets, and cooked…boy did they cook; three meals a week for the better part of a year-desserts included. They filled in when we traveled to UMass for the drug trial and clinic appointments; they stayed up to date on all the latest research and ALS news. They asked how Bert was, they worried with me, they cared about my children, they came to visit, they took care of me the way they take care of their patients everyday. The support extended outside our building, it came from other locations and all departments.
And when the time came that I needed to change paths and move into a different position within the company, they supported me; they helped me make the difficult transition after almost five years in my building to a new role. Bert and I talk all the time about what their support means to us, he just could not understand that people who didn't even know him could care so much about him. I feel blessed, and proud to be a part of the team at Manor Care. I feel pride that my co-workers take care of patients everyday the way they have taken care of me and my family.
Even now as I train for my new role, I am supported. ALS is a heavy burden but Bert and I feel motivated, we feel like if ALS can be defeated it’s our army who can see us through to victory. Thank You doesn't seem like enough, but from the bottom of our hearts we thank you.
