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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nAnd then, breast cancer came for more of her family \u2014 one sister, then a second one. When her first sister passed away at 36, she left behind 14- and 15-year-old daughters and 6-year-old twin girls. Although they lived with their father immediately after their mother\u2019s death, one Thanksgiving, they came to visit and never left. Clark was single, worked full time, and enjoyed traveling. Motherhood was not on her radar, yet here she was. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Five years later, the disease took another one of her sisters, who left behind children ages 10, 12, and 15. Clark also took them in as her own. Her house could no longer hold them all, so she purchased a larger home, which soon filled with the children\u2019s teenage friends who found refuge there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark said, \u201cGod made it where I had to raise them. At first, I was angry, but then I had to realize \u2014 wait a minute \u2014 you got a purpose, and I need to know what this purpose is. I would not change it today for anything in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The children are all grown, and family fills her home once again. Destiny House offers in-patient care and services to patients in their homes. From skilled care to hospice care, Clark and her staff treat each person as family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe do 24-hour care. We have med techs, certified nursing assistants, and personal care attendants. We have nurses, physician care, and physical therapists come in,\u201d she explained. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The care goes beyond meeting medical needs. Clark balances care mind, body, and soul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe do activities, games, and exercise. We take them to get ice cream and to the mall if they\u2019re able to get in the car and able to walk. We try to make sure that they have an enjoyable time,\u201d Clark said. \u201cWe know a lot of them feel like they have no life in them. They will decline very quickly, and so that\u2019s the reason why we have to\u00a0keep them going, help them realize that they\u2019re still alive and they have purpose. If they\u2019re still breathing, they have life to give to others. Some of them come with wisdom. Some of them come with such love and show you such patience. Then, some clients are challenging. God allowed them to teach us to have more patience with the challenging times.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clark is often the bridge between a patient and their family, between this world and the next. Dementia and Alzheimer\u2019s lead patients back to their childhood while the family desperately tries to hold them in the present. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe family member remembers that Mom takes care of them, but Mama is now at a place where she remembers her mama taking care of her. We go back to where we were born. Our mind is going back to that childhood \u2014 innocent \u2014 place, and this is the hard thing. Just remember, if she does not remember yesterday, it doesn\u2019t change who she is to you; she\u2019s still your mama. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRemember the memory, but don\u2019t push them into the future, where they can\u2019t go. Let them stay in their past and enjoy the past. Play that role with them, take what you remember of that mom and dad, and hold on to that because that will never leave you. That will always be with you until you go to the time where you are at a dimension when you forget. It\u2019s a circle of life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And when a patient\u2019s time on earth is nearing its end, Clark is there, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She shared, \u201cI always tell the family I\u2019m a Christian. I\u2019m born again. I pray them through. I sing them through.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n At Destiny House, memories blend with present care, creating a nurturing space where life\u2019s purpose endures, even as time fades away. GN<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" SHE PLUNGED her hands into the water, the towering suds transporting her to the old ladder-back chair pulled up to the kitchen sink at her mama\u2019s side. One dish at a time, in no hurry, she washed them, turning them this way and that before carefully dipping them into the waiting clear, clean water. She […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":22609,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/lynchburg-va\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2024\/11\/4-1024x683.png\")
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