Without Central Pennsylvania Charities, Where Would We Turn for Help?
Words by Rebecca Hanlon
A Place of Rest Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Pennsylvania
The plastic breathing tube and medical tape to hold it in place didn t stop a smile from spreading across the face of Van Sasala. The photo shows the boy less than 2 years old sitting up in his bed at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center with the arms of his older brother, Lex, wrapped around him. The York County brothers are happiest while with each other, says their mother, Emmy Sasala. But when Van was hospitalized numerous times in his first year of life, the separation caused the most stress on Emmy and Jon Sasala s two boys. Van was born with Down syndrome, and while good health keeps the little boy active and running around with his big brother, something as little as a cold can cause him severe breathing problems and Tracheomalacia, a complication that leaves him struggling for oxygen.
Van s first trip to Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center was in 2013 when he was just 4 months old. While Emmy was able to stay with Van, her husband and older son would drive back and forth from the family s York County home each day. The driving and cost of meals got to be expensive. It was then that a nurse mentioned a resource across the street the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Pennsylvania. For more than 30 years, the local chapter has provided overnight accommodations, hot meals and a place of rest for families. In 2014, more than 900 families spent the night at the Hershey facility.
I knew what Ronald McDonald House was, but I never thought it was something that applied to my family, Emmy says. I don t know why I thought it was for other people. It was actually a service we didn t realize we needed.
While the family didn t check into the house during that hospital visit, repeat visits about three times in the past year left the family exhausted and sometimes emotionally drained. After days in the hospital, Emmy says, she just needed a break. The Ronald McDonald House provided a place for Jon and Lex to stay overnight so they wouldn t have to drive an hour home and back again each day. It also provided a place for Emmy to join them for a hot meal, some fresh air and a moment to play a board game or read a book to Lex. Meeting other families who were going through similar things also provided an informal support group for the Sasala family. While eating a meal together, they often discussed what brought them to the Ronald McDonald House.
A happy, healthy Van, now 2, hasn t had any recent trips to the hospital, but his mother knows where to go now when the family needs the basic comforts and support of a place that feels like home. The experience, not only at the Ronald McDonald House, but also at Penn State Milton S. Hershey, inspired Emmy to make a career change and work as a health educator at the Children s Hospital. Now, she walks other families through the resources available to them when they have to visit with their own children.
I make it a point to make people aware of the Ronald McDonald House and how beneficial it can be, she says. Keeping our family together when Van was in the hospital made such a difference for us. I believe the Ronald McDonald House can provide that for other families, too.
For the Furriest of Friends Humane Society of Harrisburg Area
The toughest of felines often have the softest hearts, says Devon Geduldig of Mechanicsburg. After moving into her apartment and living there for a few months, she decided it was time to take on a roommate a fury feline named Spotts.
The moment she walked into the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area, Geduldig had a connection with the 9-year-old cat. When she brought him home in June, the bond between cat and owner was unbreakable. They spent nights together cuddling on the couch, Saturday afternoons playing with catnip and hours chasing the latest squeaker toy. While Geduldig and Spotts were happy, something seemed to be missing for the furry friend, Geduldig says.
I didn t like the fact that Spotts was alone all day while I was at work, she says. He just seemed like the kind of cat that needed a companion. Geduldig remembered hearing that Spotts had arrived at the Humane Society with a litter mate his sister, Lucky Charms. The two were separated when their previous owner, who had the cats since birth, was diagnosed with cancer and could no longer care for the animals. While Spotts adjusted pretty well to shelter life and was moved to the adoption floor, Lucky Charms was struggling to get used to her new surroundings.
The staff at the Humane Society kept her in the administrative office where she could be socialized and hopefully learn to adjust to her new surroundings. After meeting Lucky Charms in person, Geduldig says, she instantly fell in love with Spotts sibling. It was time for Lucky Charms to come to her new home. Nervous about how the two cats would act after being reunited, Geduldig carried Lucky Charms in her carrier straight to her bathroom where she closed the door and hoped Spotts would let the new arrival take in the feel of her home.
But as soon as Spotts noticed there was a critter hiding behind the bathroom door, he started meowing, sticking his paws under the door and trying sneaky ways of getting to his sister.
He had never acted that way before, Geduldig says. His reaction was so intense, but not aggressive or angry, he just wanted to get to her. When she cracked open the door, Spotts ran to his sister and the two smelled each other before purring, rubbing against each other and later snuggling in a pile of blankets in pure contentment. While Lucky Charms still seemed nervous for a few days, Geduldig says, she followed her brother around and let him show her how things worked in their new home. Not only did the new arrival help Lucky Charms shake off her shelter blues, but Spotts, who was diagnosed with possible stressed-induced diabetes, saw drastic drops in his glucose levels. Geduldig hopes that within a few months, he ll enter remission.
The way I see it, when you re adopting an animal from a shelter, you re saving their life, Geduldig says. Whatever reason they ve been put in there for, they deserve a second chance at having a family and a home. They have so much love to give. I know I gave these cats a home, but what the Humane Society did for me in letting me care for these animals probably made a greater impact on my life.
Thrill of the Ride Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Susquehanna Valley
Behind the wheel of a car, Justin Nicarry gets a rush of adrenaline. The wheel in his hands, his foot hovering over the pedal and his hand on the gear stick, the Northern Lebanon High School senior forgets about the cancer that racks his bones.
I just like the feeling of going fast, he says from the hospital, where he s receiving one of his last chemotherapy treatments now that his health care providers believe he s beaten the Ewing s sarcoma a rare cancer that is found in and around the bones. I was never into racing as much as I was into the idea of just going as fast as I could. The freedom Justin found through speed was one that the Make-A-Wish Foundation, of which the local chapter covers Philadelphia, Northern Delaware and the Susquehanna Valley, hoped to help the young man find again. His adventure started in September, when Make-A-Wish arranged for Justin to meet stock-car driver Bobby Gerhart at Mahoning Valley Speedway. While Justin thought he was just going to watch the race, he had no idea that he d be ending the night driving around the track, says his dad, Joel Nicarry.
When an announcer approached Justin and his family in the box, they were invited to the center of the track where Justin was given a racing uniform. Gerhart then invited the 18-year-old to drive a few laps around the track.
The whole event was just a treat for everyone, Joel says. I can t think of too many teenage boys who would turn down an offer like that. But the real wish Justin had was to do something only a select few have the chance to accomplish to participate in the three-day program at the Bobby Ore School of Stunt Driving in Florida. Led by retired Marine and former Florida State Trooper, Bobby Ore runs the program that has taught CIA and FBI operatives exactly how to drive like the stunt doubles in famous movies. Ore even drove the famous orange Dodge Charger known as the General Lee as it crashed through the side of a barn in the 2005 film, Dukes of Hazzard.
The Nicarry family flew to Florida in October for Justin s big-wish experience, but after one day on the course, Justin s health declined. Driving more than an hour north of where they were staying to a hospital where Justin could get help, the family knew that Justin wasn t up to seeing his wish come completely true. When Ore heard about what happened, he jumped in his truck and drove to the hospital where Justin was getting treatments and delivered the coveted T-shirt that people only receive upon completion of the program and after performing Ore s required sideways sliding trick.
We had to promise that if we didn t come back and finish that Justin would send the T-shirt back, his dad says. But Justin is a little too proud of that T-shirt to let it go. Even with plans to finish the driving course out of the question, Make-A-Wish made sure the Nicarry family was set up with comfortable accommodations and able to spend a day on the Daytona Beach boardwalk until Justin was healthy enough to come home.
With plans to return to the stunt school in either June or September, Justin hopes he can soon wear his T-shirt knowing he fully completed the program.
We re lucky that we believe Justin will be in good health after he finishes these final chemo treatments, Joel says. So many other families who participate in Make-A-Wish don t have that kind of hope. That truly is the last big thing they get to do as a family. Through our experience, we have nothing but gratitude for what Make-A-Wish does for families. It s nice to see that people who don t know us care about us.
Keep Out the Cold Habitat for Humanity of the Greater Harrisburg Area
If you stood next to the windows in George Wormley s Harrisburg home, you used to be able to feel the breeze creep through the cracks. While unseasonably warm temperatures in early winter meant the old windows didn t cause too many problems, the Navy veteran knew colder weather was on its way. But it wasn t just the windows that needed attention, he says. The stairs to the basement were unsafe, the gutters needed to be replaced and several other jobs adding up to about $10,000 in materials alone called out for repair. Already working two jobs, Wormley knew his family couldn t afford to get the work done on their own. But he wasn t sure where to turn for help.
After several weeks of research, Wormley says, he found several willing hands that were ready to pick up the tools and bring the family some comfort. Wormley qualified for help as part of Habitat for Humanity of the Greater Harrisburg Area s Veteran Repair Corps program. To receive help through the program, candidates must have received an honorable or general discharge, must be a homeowner or living with a homeowner, be a resident of Dauphin County, have an income at or below 60 percent of the area median income and must present a need that could include safety, accessibility or energy efficiency. For six weeks, Wormley worked alongside volunteers from Habitat for Humanity who helped make his home safe, comfortable and more affordable to live in thanks to better heat protection, he says.
The military always had my back, says Wormley, who served from 2000 to 2009. When several of the people who came to my home were retired military members, it just touched my heart. These were my brothers and sisters. They were still looking out for me.
For the nine years that Wormley gave to his country, he says, he felt that Habitat for Humanity gave back to him through its service. In addition to swapping military stories with volunteers, Wormley learned tips on how to keep up with home repairs to help retain the value of his home. Some of the volunteers even took the time during morning coffee breaks or Wormley s generous homemade lunch hours to show him how to do things on his own.
They told me to take honor in the things I have, Wormley says. And sometimes to remember that there s no shame in the things I don t have.
When the work was finished, the relationships didn t end, Wormley says. A bit of a foodie, Wormley invites the same volunteers back to his home for pig roasts and fish fries. He never expected those kinds of relationships to come out of the experience.
The generosity of the community can surprise you, he says. I didn t know if I would ever get around to making those home repairs or being able to afford those repairs. I consider the people who helped us to be my friends. The warmer house is nice, but the warmth they brought to my heart means so much more.