By Cindy Adams
You never know what a little kindness will get you. For Gerald Grass, Assistant Director of Nursing at enCircle, it was a rooster! The honor came from Jennifer, a young client in enCircle’s Family Care program. He had been giving her regular diabetes injections, and they had built a sweet friendship over time.
Gerry had been making a three-hour, round trip visit every week for months. The time spent with Jennifer and her dad, Alan, were meaningful. But the distance was becoming unsustainable, and they all knew it. Finding a local contact for the injection made practical sense, but none of them wanted to say goodbye. The bond was undeniable.
On that final visit, as they sat at the family table prepping medication, Alan told Gerry how they had bought some more chickens for their farm and a rooster was accidentally included in the flock. Jennifer sat beside him grinning ear to ear, barely containing herself until she finally blurted out, "And we named him Gerry!"
Gerry was so proud!
But his initial enthusiasm silently resolved into a bit of fear. He was afraid they might actually give him the rooster. They were always so generous in giving him vegetables and eggs from their farm, that it didn’t seem too far-fetched that they may "gift" him his namesake.
"I once worked with an emergency room doctor in Southwest Virginia who was given a goat," Gerry remembered. "Like me, he did house calls and sometimes folks didn't have a lot of money, so they gave him what they could and on one visit, he received a goat."
Gerry said the doctor absolutely loved the goat, even traveled with it, but Gerry most definitely did not want a rooster. Fortunately, he did not find himself in that situation and the rooster remained in the coop with the chickens.
"I had a tense moment but, really, it was the cutest thing," he said. "And very humbling."
Jennifer is exactly why Gerry loves his work. He is one of five nurses in enCircle's Skilled Nursing program who offer medical oversight to people supported in enCircle's Group Homes and Family Care Homes. They provide nursing assessments, medication administration and serve as a liaison with physicians and pharmacies. Their guidance is an important part of the health and well-being of the people served by enCircle. They are sometimes asked to partner with other community agencies to be a medical resource as well. Gerry enjoys spending time with his clients, getting to know them, taking the time to really listen and following up with them. These relationships are important to him.
"People know I will be there for them," Gerry said. "And when you establish that kind of trust, you’ve done something right."
In this case, the small things he did, the questions he asked, the ten extra minutes he took mattered enough for someone to name a rooster after him. His kindness did not go unnoticed.
