With an already full schedule and the overwhelming desire to always be busy and try new things, Maggie’s biggest challenge is prioritization and time management. In the classic movie North by Northwest, the two main characters have the following exchange…
Roger Thornhill: “How does a girl like you get to be a girl like you?”
Eve Kendall: “Lucky, I guess.”
In certainly a much different context – and in real life, not in a movie script – one could ask the same question of Maggie. In Maggie’s case, while luck may play a small role, she has the additional gift of a warm and caring personality, not to mention lots and lots of energy and enthusiasm as well as her award winning smile.
Maggie came to Passavant Memorial Homes Family of Services (PMHFOS) in 2000 and was immediately recognized as a friendly spirit with an “eager to participate” attitude. About the same time, she began to work at an Arby’s restaurant that is close to the community residential home in which she lives. Now working every Tuesday through Friday, she is soon ready to celebrate her 15th anniversary of sharing that award-winning smile as she greets the customers, while working alongside fellow employees. Her day job at Arby’s translates well for PMHFOS as she is our “go-to girl” when it comes to having our mobile ice cream freezer cart out and about at local community events. No one sells more ice cream than Maggie!
For most folks, weekly church attendance, a daily work schedule, and a sideline job during the ice cream season would be enough, but for Maggie, there’s also going to monthly Exceptional Adventure dances, attending Red Hat Society events (Maggie wears a Pink Hat because of her age), and shopping, shopping, and then shopping some more. Also, Maggie is a very active member of the Board of Directors of Life Enrichment Trust, which is one of PMHFOS’s entities.
Always the ambassador for PMHFOS, Maggie was the 2014 on-field representative when we were again a Presenting Sponsor for the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Disability Awareness Celebration at PNC Park. By the way, if you are wondering if Maggie is ever at home… she is. There, you may find her helping out with the shared housekeeping responsibilities and in her spare time, “jamming” (dancing), or texting or talking on her cell phone. As we wrapped up our interview, we asked if there was anything else she thought she would like to do. Maggie’s answer: “Get out more often.”
