Arkansas City Presbyterian Manor
Living out ‘response ability’ By Mary Bridges, chaplain NOVEMBER 2021
Memory Care at PMMA® offers family members peace of mind Alzheimer’s disease affects more than six million Americans a year. And while the disease may directly impact those who receive the diagnosis, it is equally devastating for those close to them.
Memory care – continued on page 3
NOTE: Our featured chaplain for November is Mary Bridges, chaplain at Salina Presbyterian Manor. Each month, we share a devotion from one of the chaplains around the PMMA® system in a nod to our faith-based roots in the Presbyterian Church.
My father, Henry, was an eighth-grade graduate and smarter than anyone I have known. He was a lifelong Lutheran. He did not verbalize his faith or quote scripture; he simply lived it, every day. He cared for my grandmother when she lived alone. She was eventually diagnosed with dementia and moved into a nursing home. My father continued to visit her, even though she didn’t recognize him and no longer spoke. My father loved the land. After he retired from active farming, he leased a small amount of land north of Russell on Salt Creek. There he had a huge garden, and he shared his garden produce with everyone. One year, he raised turkeys. That November, he and my mom cleaned and dressed more than 20 turkeys, which my father distributed to family, friends and people he knew were struggling. He reserved one of those turkeys for a man who stopped to help my father change a tire earlier that year. That Thanksgiving season, and every day, my father exercised what the Rev. Richard J. Fairchild calls our, “response ability” that is the result of His goodness.
Resident Hazel Husted with her children from left to right: Scott Husted, Kristy McIntire, Hazel, Kate Stabb and Gertrude the dog.
“Our ancestors in faith — from Sarah
Response ability – continued on page 4
Get the latest on visitation and COVID-19 at our campus at ArkansasCityPresbyterianManor.org/covid-19.
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