Two years ago, shortly after my return to North Carolina and Poyner Spruill, my phone rang. It was my friend Dr. Keren Brown Wilson of Portland, Oregon. Keren is a former client, a former president of the Assisted Living Association of America, and the first woman CEO to take an assisted living company to Wall Street. She did this not with fancy buildings and slick marketing, but with facilities aimed at providing quality assisted living to Medicaid-eligible residents. In short, she’s one tough cookie. But she’s also the CEO of a foundation named for her mother, Jessie F. Richardson, which focuses on charitable work for seniors around the world.

"I need you to come to Nicaragua with me," Keren said, "and we leave in two weeks." After my usual protests about work and family obligations, Keren said, "Hmmm, I see. We leave in two weeks; I’ll meet you in Miami."

When we arrived in Jinotepe, Nicaragua, we headed for the Hogare de Ancionas, where, as you know from prior Shorts articles, we found 60 homeless, indigent seniors "living" in a ramshackle building, sleeping six to a room and in the hallways on donated cots. The roof was unattached, wiring was exposed, there was no working kitchen, no potable water, and it was just about as bad as you could possibly imagine. "We have to fix this," Keren said.

Much of the next chapter of this story you already know from prior articles. I came back, and my firm helped sponsor a great fund-raiser featuring the paintings of Nicaraguan artist Pablo Beteta, who donated his work and time, came to North Carolina for a week and spent most of that time autographing his work for anyone who would donate to the center. We raised enough money to help renovate the existing center and double its size with a brand-spanking-new addition. I promised to return to Nicaragua when the work was finished.

In February 2009, I got the call. "It’s finished," Keren said. "Pack your bags." The rest of this story I’ll show you in the pictures of the renovated center and the dedication on May 17. Many, many of you have contributed to this great cause and have asked for pictures, so here they are.

But, first, I have to thank each and every employee of Poyner Spruill, clients and friends of our firm, and members of the North Carolina long term care industry who donated thousands of dollars, many pounds of medical supplies, and lots of good wishes.

Our work together didn’t end when our fund-raiser was over. Months later, Keren called again "we need wheelchairs, walkers, therapy equipment, and whatever else you can round up. I have a truck meeting you in North Carolina in 10 days. Be there." That’s my Keren.

We put out a call for help. Right away, Su Johnson and Rhonda Durr of Care Matters Consulting said, "We’ll get what you need." Within days, I got the call from Rhonda – "Meet me at the Presbyterian Home of Hawfields and bring a truck. Max Kernodle and his staff have everything you need." And they did. They gave us enough walkers, wheelchairs, toileting and mobility-assistance devices for every resident of the center.

So, on May 17, I attended the dedication of the beautiful new center. Everywhere I looked I saw the generosity and kindness of my friends from North Carolina — wheelchairs, the new building addition (beautiful), three tanks of potable water, and the full-time doctor who’s been hired for the center’s residents. I met the part-time pharmacist who now helps the center and watched as over half the staff received awards for completing a 40-hour course in senior health care, much like our CNA course here in the U.S.

I also saw the residents, looking healthy, well-fed and dressed to the nines for the big day, local dignitaries, family members, volunteers, and about 350 other people who showed up for the all-day dedication and celebration, complete with local dancers and singers, the local press, and lots of food and hugs. The Nicaraguans are warm, loving and grateful people, and we were treated like rock stars all day. We also met 12 local teenagers from at-risk families who attend a local school where part of their curriculum is working at the center with the seniors and learning skills that will provide them with a future, away from the streets. They were hugging us all day.

In these pictures, you’ll see a beautiful stucco plaque full of names — the donors to the new center. When I helped Keren unveil it, I wept to see nearly half the names on the plaque are colleagues here at Poyner Spruill or members of the North Carolina long term care community. And you’ll see the beautiful memorial they created in memory of my late father (I really cried when I saw that one), a direct result of your generosity and kindness and a gift for which my family and I will be forever grateful to all those who helped out.

The party may be over, but we’ll keep supporting the Center. In fact, two other similar centers are being developed in Nicaragua now, with Jinotepe as the model. And you guys just keep on answering the call for help. Two days after my return from Jinotepe in May, Keren called again. "We’re holding the first health fair in Nicaragua in three weeks," she said, "and we desperately need diabetic testing supplies for 450 people." I called my good friend Gerald Cox, owner of Autumn Corporation, and asked if I could buy the supplies at a discount. "No," he said, "but I’ll give them to you." And he did — enough diabetic testing meters, strips and lancets for the entire health fair, and he refused to even let me pay for the shipping. Thanks to Gerald and all the Autumn Corporation folks for that great gift.

I once read that "of all the things that are cherished, none can surpass the memory of a love between the needy and the fulfiller." The people of Jinotepe, Nicaragua asked me many times when I was down there to tell them about you, their anonymous donors. They told me the memorials they built at the center are not "brag places," but a reminder to the center’s seniors and the people of Nicaragua that they are not forgotten. I think that says it all. Thanks again to each of you who made this dream a reality. I think the happy faces you see in these photos prove it was worth it!
- Ken

p.s. To view more photos and a pdf of the newsletter, please click here.