PTAs Today
by Jennifer Layng, PTA
Legacy of Caring
Honoring an inspirational classmate.
Kerri Foland, PTA, was a classmate of mine in the physical therapist assistant program at Mt Hood Community College in Gresham, Oregon. She began her PTA career at Cascade Physical Therapy in March 2009 and called it her dream job. She loved serving others as a PTA. Her supervisors and co-workers returned the compliment, calling Kerri a dream employee—completely dedicated and embodying integrity. She was wife and mother of two who knew she was making a positive difference in the world. Her light shined very bright.
But Kerri’s flame was extinguished far too soon. She’d been diagnosed with cancer while we were in school, and in January 2010 it returned and spread to her intestines. She lost her battle with the disease on April 23 of that year. She was only 40 years old.
That’s very far from the end of Kerri’s story, however. She lives on not only through her family and friends, but as the face and heart of Kerri Foland Scholarship at Mt Hood Community College. This is a tribute to Kerri’s joy in her work that I felt called to establish, even though she and I frankly hadn’t even known each other well. Kerri’s compassion, determination, strength, and courage inspired me to do things and take actions I wouldn’t have thought a shy person like me could successfully take on.
Although I appreciate the opportunity to tell you about Kerri, the real reason I’m writing this column is to encourage every PTA and physical therapist (PT) who’s reading this piece to step up and to act upon his or her instincts and urges when it comes to helping others—whether the result is a scholarship, a community service, or securing the funds to expand a patient program. You never truly know your capabilities until you try. I’m proof of that! I wasn’t a public speaker, fundraiser, event organizer, or endowment authority a little over a year ago, but I’m all those things now.
On-the-Job Training
Kerri and I were classmates, but really no more than that. We were more acquaintances than friends, but she had a spark to her that was contagious, and when she found out she had cancer and had her first surgery, I visited her in the hospital. From that point on I followed her ups and downs. During her final fight, I spent many nights reading family members’ posts about her condition on the Web site CaringBridge.org. Tears rolled down my face as I prayed for her somehow to recover.
While that wasn’t to be, I did feel as if God put it in my heart to do something positive in Kerri’s memory. In fact, Kerri planned her own memorial service, and she chose for it the popular song “I Want to Leave a Legacy.” It clearly had been her hope that she would be remembered in a way that would help others. I felt that a scholarship in her name was the way to go, because financial assistance would help students who shared Kerri’s dream of serving patients and clients as a PTA.
Still, it took me about a year to get going and commit to what I knew would be a big undertaking with a huge learning curve. This effort was certain to push me far outside my comfort zone. Eventually, though, my passion for Kerri’s legacy overcame my preference for keeping a low profile. This was about Kerri, after all, not me.
The initial goal I set was to raise $10,000. I had a table last year at the Oregon Physical Therapy Association’s annual conference, from which I distributed flyers about the scholarship and encouraged people to donate at the Kerri Foland Scholarship link at www.mhcc.edu. While I was there, Chris Murphy, the new OPTA president, asked me to promote the scholarship at the association’s business meeting. This was public speaking in front of about 300 people! I started out feeling very nervous, but my excitement about the cause I was promoting quickly won out. My self-consciousness faded. I even found myself cracking a few jokes. My few remaining doubts about whether I was up to the task ahead of me vanished that day.
I also wrote an article about the scholarship for the OPTA newsletter, even though I had no experience writing anything for publication. Somehow the words just flowed. I wrote, as well, a speech that was delivered to the Mt Hood Community College Foundation. I also was interviewed for an article about the scholarship that was published by the Oregonian, the largest-circulation newspaper in the state.
Since last February I’ve learned an awful lot about fundraising and event promotion. I’ve done a great deal of Web research, and got some great tips from a friend who had established a scholarship in the memory of a friend of his.
My biggest project to date on behalf of the scholarship was the first annual Kerri Foland Scholarship Craft Fair, which was held at Mt Hood Community College last October. I’ve already noted that Kerri and I weren’tclose during her lifetime. Well, I never even met Kerri’s mother until 8 months after Kerri’s death. That’s a little hard for me to believe now, because we bonded so quickly over Kerri. Anyway, what I learned about Kerri from her family was just how much she’d done for other people, and that one of her favorite things to do was to give family and friends lovingly crafted handmade gifts. That was why honoring her and raising money for the scholarship through a craft fair seemed like the perfect thing to do.
Which isn’t to say it was easy! I did a lot of reading online about how to best organize such an event. I promoted the craft fair in newspapers, online, through flyers and via word of mouth. I placed ads on Craigslist to find vendors, and ended up with 2 dozen tables displaying wonderful handmade items ranging from pottery and paintings to stained glass, jewelry, candles, and cards. The vendors’ table fees went to the scholarship, and private donations were accepted, as well. I paid the insurance and cleaning fees out of my own pocket, and cleared nearly $2,000 for the scholarship in a matter of hours. It was a tremendous feeling! I learned what worked and what didn’t work, and I know that next year’s craft fair will be even more successful.
Jump Right In
As of mid-December 2011 the scholarship fund stood at nearly $6,300, with a holiday boost anticipated to raise that total even higher by year’s end. But the most exciting news is that the total doesn’t even count $1,000 that already was removed from the pool to distribute to the very first recipient of the Kerri Foland Scholarship!
The scholarship is awarded to second-year PTA students at Mt Hood in the amount of $1,000—$500 each for fall and winter term. The criteria are financial need and community involvement. The initial recipient, Andrew Lopez, was thrilled not only to receive the financial assistance, but also to honor Kerri Foland by continuing her legacy of service.
“I want a career in which I’m out there as a licensed PTA making a contribution to the world and making it a better place,” Andrew told me. “And I’m so happy to know that I’ll be honoring Kerri Foland in doing that.”
Given that I’ve surprised even myself by managing to raise nearly $7,500 in a year’s time, I’ve revised upward my fundraising goal for the scholarship. The new goal is $25,000, because once that number is reached the scholarship will become endowed—and thus positioned to continue helping PTA students indefinitely. When we reach $25,000 (and I do mean “when,” not “if”!), I’ll see how much interest accrues from that amount, and reassess as necessary. What I’d really love to do is make this the first of more Kerri Foland Scholarship programs that will spread to other schools.
When all of this started, I had no idea it would have such an impact. On my own life, too! I am so energized by this project. It’s been a true labor of love that has transformed how I see myself and what I’m capable of accomplishing. So, the thought I’d like to leave you with is this: When in doubt, get involved anyway. When you have a chance to help others and improve your community, seize it. When nervousness sets in, believe! I like to think I’m leaving a positive legacy, too. So can you. Don’t put it off!
Jennifer Layng, PTA, is employed at Providence Portland Medical Center in Portland, Oregon.
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