Category Archive

I know you were as riveted as I was to the live television coverage of the Minneapolis bridge collapse. Unbelievable how such a symbol of strength on which we depend every day without a thought of concern for our personal safety could collapse so completely under the duress of flaws virtually invisible to the eye. It’s like the broad shoulders of commerce broke as we ride on them like a child on their daddy’s back. A kid can’t imagine those shoulders would ever be unable to carry us. Yet, the total collapse of a bridge.

How should we respond? Similarly to how we’ve done so in other recent catastrophes. First, we call to check on the whereabouts and safety of those we know and love. In the Minneapolis situation, we have talked with our state executive, Gayle Kvenvold, and other member colleagues and determined that as I’m writing, we know of no member losses of residents or employees connected to those close to us. Some of you have asked if there’s anything we can do for anyone affected. Besides praying for all concerned – known and unknown to us – there is no physical need we as the AAHSA family can meet right now. If needs arise, we will pass them on to you… But remember, prayer is always the least AND the most any of us can do for anybody. So, pray for comfort, safety and recovery.

Secondly, we can learn from the response of the city of Minneapolis’ emergency systems. The people and plans were immediate, effective and smooth. Every community should be as well prepared and rehearsed. A community leader interviewed said that emergency preparedness planning and drills paid off. Lessons learned for cities, facilities and families. As much as we all view fires and emergency preparations as a pain-in-the-neck, the old adage that chance favors the prepared mind has no more dramatic example for us than the Minneapolis situation.

Thirdly, we should admire our every day heroes. Every community has them. One that has captured my attention in the Minneapolis situation bridge collapse is the 15-year old kid who helped save lives of counselors and much younger children from the school bus on its journey from day camp to home. Not just an example of physical preparation, but an example of character preparation. Find ways to identify and recognize your local heroes everyday at the fire station, police department and scout troops for their devotion to our safety, comfort and the betterment of human kind.

Finally, let’s examine our policy priorities. We cannot have a healthy and prosperous nation ignoring our infrastructure — whether those be health, family, education or transportation. One headline said that there are thousands of similar bridges at risk. As we celebrate the golden anniversary of our nation’s interstate highway system, we can’t let politicians fund bridges-to-nowhere while bridges to and from day camps collapse beneath our children. The same can be said the other components of those broad shoulders of American society on which we depend every single day without thinking about it.

But the politicians say that unless they hear from us, they don’t feel much urgency to fund such fundamentally important programs and priorities.

Which gets me back to prayer - for our nation. Let’s not forget to pray that we do the right things for the people who live here as well as those around the world whose lives our leadership priorities impact. Because we are often the architects of bridges for many who are looking for ways out of oppression, poverty and ill health. The world depends on our broad shoulders, like it or not. We have to make sure those shoulders are strong in character, in policy and in the practice of life. We can learn a lot about all of this from our neighbors in Minneapolis – and from a 15–year old kid who knew what to do. And he didn’t hesitate to do it.

Larry

William L. Minnix, Jr., D.Min.
AAHSA President and CEO

Feb. 23, 2007

You may be tired of hearing about Hurricane Katrina. I’m no social scientist, but I believe that “tragedy fatigue” sets in after a while. Even the most sensitive of people become immune to bad news. That’s why celebrity shenanigans fill up so much media space so quickly. “Tragedy fatigue” gets the better of us, and we put bad situations out of our mind through mindless, relatively unimportant diversions like who’s entered rehab or shaved her head or fathered a child.

“Tragedy fatigue” happens when bad news seems so pervasive or a situation so overwhelming or a predicament so hopeless.

What’s the cure for “tragedy fatigue?” People like Leslie Knight, an AAHSA regional vice president, her friend Christina Karamesines and our members in the Gulf States. People who don’t give up and who show up to help.

Recently, Leslie visited our New Orleans members for a week to lend a hand and spread hope. She took Christina Karamesines with her. Christina, who is from Michigan, is a massage therapist and is blind. They stayed at Lambeth House, one of our New Orleans members. A great story there of survival, revival and endurance for Scott Crabtree and the residents, staff, volunteers and board.

Christina set up shop and offered free massages to our members for an entire week. Leslie says Christina has quite the healing touch. One of our leaders, John Tieperman of Chateau de Notre Dame and Wyndhoven Retirement Apartments, had suffered a brain aneurysm last September and has miraculously recovered. Leslie said John “looked like a different person after Christina worked on him.”

Leslie’s meetings surfaced the daily challenges of a mammoth recovery: inadequate medical services, a crazy insurance market, slow and uncoordinated government response, preparation for the next disaster. There are stories like Melanie Baker’s, director of nursing (DON) at Chateau de Notre Dame. She’s serving as DON, charge nurse and occasional certified nursing assistant while her organization struggles to find enough staff to meet needs. She couldn’t even find time to make her own massage appointment! All of this occurs in an atmosphere of not knowing the long-term fate of a great city. Eighteen months after Katrina, there are still blocks and blocks of destroyed homes and businesses.

Yet, in the middle of the tragedy fatigue, there is hope and growth. People like Dennis Adams are finding creative ways to capitalize low-income housing. Karen Contrenchis, the Gulf States executive, still works hard knitting together complex political pieces while living in her FEMA trailer. She, with the help of AAHSA staff, is planning the Gulf States annual meeting. The National Caucus and Center on Black Aged worked with Leslie and AAHSA’s Colleen Bloom to help relocate a nursing home resident closer to her family.

Members are getting creative together on recruitment and retention of employees. AAHSA staff like Barbara Manard continue to escort religious groups to the area to muck out one house at a time. Catholic Charities, Wyndhoven, Volunteers of America, National Church Residences, National Baptist Convention U.S.A., Inc. and St. James Place of Baton Rouge are working on their strategic plans. The Association of Jewish Aging Services will hold its meeting in New Orleans in a few weeks to show their support — just like they did in New York after Sept. 11.

And people like Christina will continue to show up in New Orleans with healing hands to “massage” our friends and colleagues through this difficult time. They remind us that tragedy fatigue is an unacceptable state of affairs.

Thank God that for every Katrina we face in life, there are Christinas to help us hope again.

Larry

William L. Minnix, Jr., D.Min.
AAHSA President and CEO