A True Partnership
One father’s perspective on Bethesda’s response to COVID-19
One of the most difficult things for parents of children with developmental disabilities is recognizing when your loved one requires more support than you can provide. The decision to find a care provider for your loved one is gut-wrenching, because who could possibly care for your son or daughter as well as you do?
Mike Knezovich knows this anguish as well as any parent.
In 2003, Mike and his spouse Beth Finke came to the difficult decision to find a provider for their son, Gus. Gus was born with a rare genetic condition that left him with severe developmental and physical disabilities. But as Gus became more mobile in his teenage years, Mike and Beth realized that they could no longer give him the support he needed at home. After extensively researching potential providers for Gus, Mike and Beth finally chose Bethesda.
The decision to move Gus to Bethesda was understandably painful for Mike and Beth. Yet when they traveled from Chicago to Gus’s new home Watertown, Wisconsin and met with Bethesda staff, Mike’s mind was almost immediately put at ease. “From the beginning I knew it was the right place for Gus,” Mike recalls. “The staff were incredibly thorough in gathering information about Gus and his background. Their diligence was impressive.”
Although the transition to Bethesda was initially difficult for Gus, he turned a corner within a month and began to thrive in his new home. Since then Mike and Beth have made it a monthly routine to visit Gus at his Bethesda group home in Wisconsin. But like so many others, COVID-19 brought their routine of seeing their son to a screeching halt.
A father’s call to action
In March, Bethesda’s leadership team made the difficult decision to close group homes to all visitors – including parents of the people we support. Bethesda has always been committed to connecting the people we support to their communities, but the COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to keep them out of the community – and out of harm’s way. It was undoubtedly the correct decision, but it is not an easy thing to tell worried parents they cannot see their loved ones. And it is even harder to tell those parents that it may be months before they can see their loved ones again.
To keep parents and guardians informed in real-time, Bethesda’s leadership team held regular town hall meetings over the phone with parents and guardians, many of which were difficult. The despair and frustration in the voices of many parents was palpable.
It was during one of these town halls that Mike Knezovich was inspired to take to his blog and write about how impressed he was with Bethesda’s response to the pandemic and the lengths the organization took to protect the people we support. The following is an excerpt from Mike’s post:
Last week I joined a town hall meeting—audio only, no Zoom. On the call were the CEO of Bethesda Lutheran Communities, Mike Thirtle, as well as other Bethesda executives and staff. I’d talked to Thirtle a few years back when he took over—he made it a point to talk to parents, guardians, and other loved ones early in his tenure. I was deeply impressed. He’s a veteran and has an incredible civilian resume, but beyond qualifications, he was refreshingly transparent, frank, and has remained accessible throughout his time at Bethesda.
That’s how the town hall went—Thirtle and his team were direct and thorough in describing what they were doing to keep the people in their care safe and healthy.
The Bethesda team at the town hall clearly had a firm grasp of the virus and its epidemiology. And they were compassionate and honest. It couldn’t have been easy to tell dozens and dozens of us parents and other loved ones on the phone that the end of this lockdown isn’t really in sight. And that they couldn’t tell us when we will be able to see our people again. Having more testing available would help, but they’re in the same boat the rest of the country is.
It was a difficult call, sobering, but ultimately comforting and inspiring. On a personal level, I was reassured that our son is in good hands. On a broader level, I was deeply impressed by the intelligence, presence, and shear goodness of all these people taking care of other people. I always have been, really, but this test brings my gratitude and admiration to a new level.
Mike, clearly touched by his experience on the town hall meeting, went on to close his blog post with a call-to-action for his readers.
During the call, I learned that Bethesda (and lots of other similar organizations) will not receive any support from any of the current federal coronavirus relief packages. Bethesda also made clear that the virus crisis is hitting its finances hard.
I’m lucky, I’m still working. So it was easy, immediately after the call ended, to hop online and make a donation. Selfishly, I invite you to do the same.
Mike’s selfless call to action to his readers did not go unanswered, as we received multiple donations from individuals who said they were inspired to donate after reading his post.
Mike knew in 2003 that Bethesda was an organization he could trust, one that would care for his son with love and compassion. 18 years later, Mike has never been more grateful to the dedicated staff who care for his son with such diligence, compassion and grace. Today, that trust has only been reinforced. In his words, “Bethesda has always felt like a partner to us.”