Gerald Ford was President of the United States. The Pittsburgh Steelers had won the still-new championship styled “the Super Bowl” and the Cincinnati “Big Red Machine” would claim baseball’s biggest prize in the fall.
And Lucille Mclaughlin, still in high school, started what would turn into a career of service for Pendleton Manor.
Colleagues, family, friends, and patients gathered into the activities room, already decorated in festive style with banners and golden balloons.
Stephanie Hilling, executive director, stepped to the podium, saying, “There are truly no words big enough, dedication, loyalty, compassion, and wisdom.” She called McLaughlin, who is still going strong into the foreseeable future with her duties at Pendleton Manor, “a constant source of strength and knowledge. The impact you have made will continue for generations to come.”
McLaughlin started as a high school volunteer, coming from home economics class to volunteer even before the original facility was completed. During the years, she developed a reputation for diligent and precise work, caring, and also never missing a day of work. That built on her school attendance record that saw not a single day missed from kindergarten to her senior year.
Stephanie Hartman, when she spoke, also cited McLaughlin as one of the best sources of knowledge and information, saying, “Nine out of 10 times, she knows the answer, or who to talk to, or how to find the answer.” Also Hartman spoke of that special devotion to the work that comes from love of the job, saying, “Not only is she here, but she kept her love of being here.”
Kathy Propst called McLaughlin “not like a friend, but family.” She described the progression of her work, which expanded considerably over time. Early on, McLaughlin worked as a certified nursing assistant, caring for patients’ most fundamental needs. By the 1990s, her role had expanded into billing. Later, she also took on the tasks of a home health aid, phlebotomist, and other areas.
Susan Warner followed and expressed that “we certainly appreciate what she’s done for us, so dedicated.”
After the kind words and before moving to the table of hors d’oeuvres and punch, McLaughlin opened gifts from her long-time friends and colleagues, including a decorative wall-hanging that evoked an “ooh that is nice!”
The roots of her dedication ran deep. As she described, “I grew up in a home where my grandmother lived with us” and how that fostered the habits and values that she carried with her into work. She described how she was involved with a school program that brought her to the Manor “the first year I was here. Then I was hired and I have been here ever since.”
“I love the residents,” she shared, expressing how much she enjoyed hearing “nice stories of what they did in the past.” McLaughlin described one couple who lived together in the home, the wife having lost her sight.
The lady would, from time to time, ask, “When you have time, I have a letter today. Would you read it to me?” And every so often came the request, “Do you have time to write a letter today?”
For McLaughlin, those little moments of help and caring, whether stopping to write a letter or helping someone look their best before leaving their room to join a social function, or a thousand other tasks that helped residents enjoy their lives there a little more, those acts of kindness served as her motivation and inspiration for 50 years and more of dedicated service.
