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July 11, 2014 VOLU M E 1 3 | I SS UE 33
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Dem aims to replace Swalm in Legislature
RIDING ON THE TRAILS
Centennial woman seeking state House seat is longtime party activist By Jennifer Smith
jsmith@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Six members of the Wolpert family take off pedaling on the path at DeKoevend Park that leads to the High Line Canal Trail on July 5. Paul Wolpert said he and his family come to the Centennial park from Highlands Ranch for family bike rides at least once a month because they like to ride the trail. Photo by Tom Munds
Nurse transforms lives on ship Jenica Gammie’s work on the Africa Mercy helps patients from the outside in By Anna Sheffer
Special to Colorado Community Media Off the coast of west Africa, doctors and nurses are making a difference. Aboard the Africa Mercy, part of the organization Mercy Ships, volunteer doctors and nurses perform surgeries on patients who cannot afford health care. And they do it all for free. Jenica Gammie, of Centennial, served as a nurse aboard the Africa Mercy for nine months beginning in August 2013. Gammie first heard about Mercy Ships in elementary school and became interested in the program. “That was just always my end goal for becoming a nurse,” Gammie said. Gammie worked for three years as a nurse before joining the Africa Mercy. She lived on the third floor of the ship, where all the nurses lived and where many of the operations took place. She described it as the shortest commute to work she has ever had. Gammie worked in the A ward, where patients underwent operations as diverse as the removal of fatty tumors, cleft palate reparations and hernia reparations. As an ER nurse by training, Gam-
mie had never worked in a surgery ward before, so the experience was a new one. And for Gammie, that new experience turned out to be transformative. Gammie said she enjoyed working with the patients and giving them new hope for their futures. “It was really cool to have them onboard and show them that they are important and have something to give to this world,” she said. “Many of the patients on the Africa Mercy arrived as shy individuals who had been shunned by their communities, and they left having gained confidence and having healed on the outside as well as the inside.” Alisteria, or Alice, of Uganda, came to the Africa Mercy as it docked off of the coast of the Congo to have severe burns on the right side of her face treated. Alice had three reconstructive surgeries during her time on board, but the emotional transformation she underwent was equally amazing. Gammie said when she first arrived on the ship, Alice would not make eye contact with anyone, but by the end of her time there, she played with Gammie and spent a lot of time around her. Encouraging the patients on the ship was one way in which nursing on the Africa Mercy differs from nursing in the U.S. “Nursing over there is not just giving meds and dressing wounds,” Gammie said. “It’s [also] about showing kids what glitter glue is and making crowns with them.”
Centennial native Jenica Gammie served as a nurse on the Africa Mercy for nine months beginning in August 2013. Here, she is shown with Alisteria, a patient aboard the ship. Courtesy photo Working for the Africa Mercy had its challenges though. Since the ship can only help patients whose medical conditions can be fixed surgically, many people had to be turned away. For Gammie, explaining to potential patients that she could not help them was the hardest part of her work onboard. Gammie is determined to help those she can though. “I’ve come to realize that
it’s a place I will always come back to to help,” she said. Gammie will rejoin the Africa Mercy at the beginning of August and head to Benin for three months. Gammie’s experience with the Africa Mercy has helped her realize how blessed she is to have the opportunities she does, and that everyone has worth. “Everyone matters,” she said. “It’s something I’ve always known, but it really hit home.”
Nancy Cronk knows she’s got some lost time to make up for, but she’s hoping she can reclaim Spencer Swalm’s House District 37 seat for the Democrats. Marlo Alston was the original name in play for the Democrats, but she dropped out due to a family emergency. “Everybody kind of looked at me and said, `We need somebody with a wide network who can throw their hat in today,’ and then they just stared at me,” she said to explain her sudden appearance on the ballot. Cronk will face off against local businessman and Republican nominee Jack Tate, also a Centennial resident, in the Nov. 4 general election. The winner will replace the termlimited Swalm and represent the district that is primarily made up of east Centennial. S h e ’ s been active with the party and in the community for years, serving as precinct chair and volunteering in Democrat Nancy Cronk is running for House District her kids’ 37, the seat being vacated by term-limited Republican schools in Spencer Swalm. Photo by Jennifer Smith the Cherry Creek School District. She’s currently serving her second term on the elected board of the Cunningham Fire District. She and her husband, Dr. Saul Greenhut, have lived in their Centennial home near Smoky Hill Road and Orchard Avenue for 20 years, and their kids are all now in college. “It’s my community, it’s my home, and think I can make good decisions based on knowing what families here want,” she said. Her first priority is safety, she said, especially in light of her home’s proximity to several recent south-metro tragedies, including the shootings at Arapahoe High School and the Aurora theater. “You can’t even talk about excellent schools and how much our jobs are paying if our houses are burning down,” she said. “Floods, wildfires, shootings — these things take money, and these things have to be funded first.” Next up are supporting teachers and funding for education. “We have to bring teachers to the table, and we have to listen to them,” she said. “They are the experts in education, and I’m personally offended when somebody who is not an educator tries to run the school system.” She also wants to focus on small business. “We need a level playing field to compete with larger business,” she said. “We need to encourage nontraditional business owners, like women and minorities, to set up shop in Arapahoe County.” Her social views generally concur with traditional Democratic values, but with a slightly nontraditional twist. Raised a Christian, she converted to Judaism as a young adult. Understanding the plight of other couples that couldn’t marry in a church or synagogue, she became an ordained interfaith officiant and today performs ceremonies for all sorts of diverse couples, including civil unions for those of the same-sex variety. “I care about compassion and justice and equality,” she said. “I’m not so concerned about a label.”