Community:  Juniper Village at Lebanon

Submitted by: Jon Davies

Department:  Leadership Team

Nominees: Joan-Marie Norman, Tanya Flemming, Paul Malgapo

Recently, a long time friend of mine (Ricky Wildesin) suffered a fatal heart attack. He lived in one of the apartments on the Lebanon Campus. My wife and I found our friend in pretty bad shape. Paul, our Director of Wellness was on campus and when we called, he responded immediately. It was clear to all that Rick had passed. I was very upset at the loss of my friend… I think Paul recognized this and stayed with me through the afternoon while the EMT’s , the Coroner, and Funeral Home took care of the remains. Upon hearing what had happen, Tanya Flemming, our Connections Director and Joan-Marie, our Executive Director also responded.  Tanya offered comfort to my wife and I. Also physically checked on me through out the day. Joan-Marie took over my responsibilities for the remainder of the weekend giving me time to take care of myself. She also advised and offered guidance through the maze of confusion of that day and the week to follow.

My wife and I could see that the response of these three people was genuine. They could feel our heartache. It made me / us proud to be part of the Lebanon team.

Although heartbroken at the loss of my friend, I took comfort in the fact that these people would stop what ever they were doing that Saturday afternoon and genuinely care for my and my wife’s well being. Again, they made me feel like part of a family. each one was willing to carry my burden for a little while so that I could collect myself.

By submitting this… I am offering my feedback to them. All to often these kinds of things go overlooked or are viewed as part of the job. They clearly went above and beyond. I’m not sure if this is the right outlet for this story but there actions touched me deeply. I have told this story often about the wonderful staff at Juniper Lebanon and will repeat it when ever the occasion allows.