Monthly Archives: September 2016

When a generation gap is no gap at all

For many people, the idea of having a 7-year-old child and a grandchild at the same time, even if the grandchild is quite young, may seem out of the ordinary.

But that is where God’s will has taken us.

My wife, Shirley, and I have two adult children, Leigh Anne and Ken—and two younger children, Savannah, 9 and Autumn, 7, both of whom joined our family through adoption. Our family grew in size when Leigh Anne and TJ were married last year and blessed us with our first grandchild, Maeve, this year.

Shirley and I were empty-nesters. We never thought our path in life would change in the direction it did. But, in the fall of 2007, God presented us with the blessing of becoming parents again.

Savannah, at the time less than 3 months old, needed someone to provide love and protection. God placed this challenge and blessing upon our hearts, and we began a journey that encompassed every emotion you can imagine.

In the spring of 2009, Savannah’s two-month old infant sister, Autumn, was in the same situation. We knew again we were being led, and so doubled our blessings by deciding to rear the two sisters together.

Amazingly, we have no “generation gap” our family! Both our 30-plus-year-old children love and adore their younger siblings—and those strong bonds flow the other direction as well. Our son, who lives in Japan, just had his annual two-week visit with us and we had the opportunity to spend time with his Japanese girlfriend. On their last day in the U.S., instead of sightseeing, both said they wanted to spend their day with his sisters.

Leigh Anne is program director with a county CASA office. CASA stands for Court-Appointed Special Advocates for Children. She has been especially supportive as we followed this path. She, along with the wonderfully dedicated staff members of Diakon Adoption & Foster Care, have continually raised our awareness of children in distress and in need of fostering, of CASA volunteer support, and how best to navigate the sometimes-convoluted path to adoption. In fact, the three sisters adore one another and can’t wait for their next sleepover weekend.

Though fostering and adopting can take a long time, a great deal of effort and certainly patience—plus a mountain of paperwork—we encourage others to take the plunge because providing a safe haven for a child at risk is an incredible experience with indescribable rewards.

Diakon has been especially important in our forever family as program staff stepped forward to provide support and acted at times as intermediaries. They were instrumental in refocusing county services on the best interests of the child. In fact, Diakon was our “ace in the hole” when things looked bleakest, and we can never express just what that meant to us.

And when Diakon learns of similar situations, their dedicated family advocates are always there to help create forever families.

Our lives have been enriched with the gift of two daughters, and we pray that our story encourages each of you to support Diakon as it continues efforts to expand to serve more children and youths at risk.

Moreover, please pray for the forever families who have made a life-changing commitment to a child in need. Pray for the children not yet out of the chaos of neglect, waiting for a foster family to give them love and safety. And pray for those who are considering stepping up, that their “pros/cons” list makes their path clear for them.

Diakon stands on the wall for children at risk.

It is for this that we pray for expansion of Diakon’s resources to provide the foundation and support for forever families. Can you help equip this vital program for its mission? Foster, adopt, volunteer, or give in support—it all makes a tangible difference in the lives of waiting children and youths.

Kenneth G. Mertz, II
Chief Investment Officer at Emerald Advisers, Inc.
Diakon Adoption & Foster Care parent

Editor’s Note: Ken is participating in the Chef Challenge at the 2016 Dining with Diakon event to raise money for Diakon Adoption & Foster Care. You can click here for more information.

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Remembering Dr. Haas … rather, Harold

In a long-ago article in T-LSA Now, I wrote, upon the retirement of the Rev. Dr. Harold Haas, that I could never bring myself to call him Harold.

That may have been because of my age (I was half the age I am today when I wrote that article), but it also stemmed from my respect for Dr. Haas (see, even now, I write Dr. Haas). He was simply a man, I told him and wrote about him, who engendered respect.

At the conclusion of that article, in light of his wishes, however, I wished “Harold” a happy retirement.

Unfortunately, another transition has occurred and I learned this week that Dr. Haas passed away in August at the age of 98. He had moved to New England some years ago to be near children and grandchildren; his wife, Evelyn, passed away two decades ago.

If Dr. Haas’ name is unfamiliar to you, that’s understandable, given the passage of time. Yet I believe it’s important you know who he was.

Harold Haas served as president of Tressler-Lutheran Service Associates (the T-LSA reference in the publication I mentioned) from 1977 through 1985, the year he retired and was succeeded by the Rev. Dr.Thomas Hurlocker. As president of Tressler Lutheran Services (as T-LSA eventually became), Tom Hurlocker would work alongside the Rev. Dr. Daun McKee, president of Lutheran Services Northeast, to fashion Diakon in 2000.

Dr. Haas came to Tressler in a period of uncertainty, the social ministry organization having rapidly expanded in the early 1970s without the necessary financial and administrative infrastructure. He spent the next near-decade not only successfully putting all the organizational ducks in a row, but also overseeing expansion and programmatic growth in a number of areas including refugee services, senior living communities and youth programs.

Formerly a parish pastor, professor and dean at Wagner College, Staten Island (where he had once been held hostage by students during racial unrest) and executive within the national Lutheran church, Dr. Haas, at Tressler, jokingly called himself a “consummate bureaucrat” because he knew his mission there was to make certain all of the processes, procedures and funding necessary to undergird a successful organization were in place and functioning efficiently.

(I purposely used the word undergird because, having joined Tressler a year after Dr. Haas following a brief period in journalism, I found the academic word “undergird” unfamiliar and grating. He and I good-naturedly sparred about its use on occasion and he would chuckle that when I edited his columns I took out all his “weasel words”—his tongue-in-cheek reference to phrases selected for bureaucratic use.)

When he began his work at Tressler, Dr. Haas had four earned degrees including an M.A. and a Ph.D. in sociology. He had been instrumental in the development of the national church’s social services and social statements, having demonstrated his personal commitment to justice as he marched in civil rights demonstrations in the South and testified on behalf of a Black South African in a court in that country.

A former bishop of the national church characterized Dr. Haas as having “great integrity, organizational skills and clarity of vision.” Following his retirement from Tressler, he continued his involvement in the national church, serving as well as interim pastor and then pastor-emeritus of Trinity Lutheran Church in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania.

For his work in guiding Tressler in achieving both efficiency and expansion, Dr. Haas occupies a prominent place among the dozen to two dozen dedicated leaders within Diakon’s near-150-year history who are ultimately responsible for the organization’s position and role today.

In a piece on his retirement, I wrote that Dr. Haas was “an accessible president, a man easily spoken to, a man of genuine charm and humility, one who has filled many occasions with warmth and wit [and one whose] leadership in giving the [organization] stability and ability to grow” positioned it well for the future.

harold-blog

Quite simply, I found him a brilliant but humble leader, a man I counted as a friend despite the difference in our ages.

Perhaps more cogently, a prominent Lutheran theologian described Dr. Haas as having a unique combination of “vision, horse sense, clarity, charity and refreshing candor.”

I last saw Dr. Haas around a decade ago when Diakon dedicated portraits of several past Tressler presidents. It was a pleasure to see him again.

I made sure to greet him as Harold.

By William Swanger
Senior Vice President
Corporate Communications & Public Relations

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Running to invest in future generations

Key to Scott Habecker

Chief Operating and Chief Financial Officer

Diakon

 

My running partner quickly surveyed me.

 

I knew she was probably wondering how she had ended up with this “old guy” as her Girls on the Run “running buddy.” Sensing her skepticism, I attempted to break the ice with a variety of questions about her interests. Eventually, we connected a bit on the topic of music as she shared the names of favorite musicians such as Selena Gomez.

 

But we would soon connect on a different level.

 

As chief operating and financial officer for Diakon, I take every opportunity I can to learn as much as I can about our programs. In the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania, we sponsor a council of Girls on the Run®, a physical activity-based youth-development program for girls in third through eighth grades, with a focus on teaching life skills. Each session ends with a celebratory 5k running event.

 

I attended the 5k to observe the program’s impact and also to thank significant sponsors. I accomplished both of those tasks, but gained so much more, particularly in my role as runny buddy.

 

When I arrived, the Lehigh Valley Parkway was already a sea of faces, participating girls, family members, program coaches, and others preparing for the event. Music blared loudly across the grounds while girls had their hair done, photos were taken and participants were organized and matched with their running buddies, volunteers whose goal is to be cheerleaders and motivators as the 5k progresses.

 

School busses continued to arrive until nearly 40 schools were represented and nearby parking lots overflowed with vehicles. I was amazed at both the scope of the event and its energy level.

 

I was soon introduced to my running partner, an energetic girl by the name of Qiara.

 

Following some pre-race stretching and energy-building exercises, the large crowd of girls and running buddies made their way to the starting line. A countdown commenced and, soon, we were off on the 3.1-mile course. Qiara and I were near the back of the pack, so it took us a while to have space to run. But as soon as we did, Qiara took off!

 

I had been told by her coach that she was quite a runner, a point that was quickly confirmed for me as she nearly sprinted the first mile. I began to wonder if I could possibly sustain the pace she was setting until I finally heard her breaths start to deepen. It was an almost-welcomed sound for me as tried to keep up.

 

Qiara advanced on her goal in a positive manner, also becoming more comfortable with me, chatting as we ran. She periodically asked for brief rests, then would take off again, sprinting as fast as she could go (which, by the way, was much faster than I could go). Eventually, she would slow to allow me to catch up, a cycle that repeated itself through the last half of the race. But the longer we ran, the more we talked and encouraged each other.

 

She was a great partner.

 

The last quarter mile or so, we could hear the large crowd cheering girls on as they crossed the finish line. The crowd was definitely motivational to Qiara, and her desire to finish the run intensified as we ran past the cheering crowd. Qiara finished the race with the same incredible level of energy with which she had begun, leaving me in her dust as I sprinted to keep up those last few strides.

 

I do not recall the time in which we finished the race, but I was told it was her personal best. That said, finishing the race is the only goal in the Girls on the Run event, and Qiara certainly accomplished that mission with great confidence. She had a special energy about her, and I was thrilled that she allowed me to be a part of it with her. Ultimately, she wanted to do better than she had done before and, afterward, she felt good about her run.

 

As someone who finds true inspiration in people who never rest on past accomplishments but are always ready for the next challenge, it’s easy to be motivated by such athletes as those who represented the U.S. and other countries in the recent Olympics. Certainly, they are inspirational but, sometimes, we may find inspiration closer to us. I know I did.

 

Qiara provided great inspiration to me that day. She and her fellow participants displayed great commitment to the goal of making it to the finish line, following weeks of preparatory work. I witnessed unrivaled enthusiasm for the task at hand and walked away with great appreciation for every participant, coach, supportive family member, Diakon employee and volunteer and sponsor that made the event happen.

 

I look forward to returning to the event in years to come, much because of the inspiration Qiara provided that day.

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