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Featuring… Phyllis Cashin This is Phyllis Cashin in about 1935 when she was attending Ss. Peter & Paul School where the Sisters of St. Joseph,TOSF were teaching. For as long as she can remember, Ohio has been her home, first Garfield Heights, then Independence. She was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1927, but she was only four months old when her family moved. It was in Ohio that she went to school, got married, and raised her three children. Her family has now expanded to include eight grandchildren. While Phyllis has her primary family,“The sisters are my second family,” she says. She has been at Marymount Congregational Home for 27 years, providing nursing care services in
Kathy Hill South Bend, Indiana
Clare Hall and supportive care in the congregational home. Phyllis enrolled in the LPN (Licensed Practical Nursing) program at Marymount Hospital in 1975 when it became necessary for her to be employed. While in the program, she began to work at Clare Hall, the nursing care facility for the infirm sisters in Garfield Heights, Ohio. It was work she loved. “I’m a ‘hands-on’ kind of person. I
The associate relationship is a firming and affirming experience. I relish the time spent with others who share dedication to Franciscan ideals, and I enjoy the companionship along the Gospel road home.
love the bedside care and the interaction with each sister,” Phyllis explains. Phyllis has a natural tenderness and a real insight into human beings. She understands the stress that people can experience when they are sick and she has the ability to ease both body and spirit. No task is too small; every relationship is a treasure. “It’s like taking care of my mother,” is the way she explains her relationship to each sister in her care. Phyllis is a spry 76 years old. “If you want me to serve your people,” she prays, “give me the strength.” God has done just that. Phyllis continues to provide those services for the sisters that make life happy and healthy. She accompanies them to the doctor, regulates medications for them, sees to it that they are safely bathed, and any other service that will support them in their need. She manages a staff of seven people in order to provide 24-hour coverage. Phyllis is in intimate association with the sisters, and it is no wonder that she, in turn, is loved and prayed for. “Life is good,” she says,“and
Suzanne M. Horvath Warrensville Heights, Ohio
I am so grateful!”
I
’m a hands-on kind of person… I love the bedside care and the interaction with each sister.
I have always admired the sisters, how they served others and God. The SSJ-TOSFs follow a Franciscan style of life and I have always been attracted to living out that charism. It is an honor and a privilege to be included in the lives of these holy women.