NOTHING IS FOREVER

Or so they say…

The photo above, for those who don’t know her, is of a young lady by the name of Cindy Magness.  She’s a nurse, a health care professional and a lady with a vision and a heart the size of the lower peninsula.  She also has an uncommon love for our community and worked diligently to merge those facets into a program to provide much needed and very affordable health care services to our community, especially our youth.  

Beginning in 2016 Cindy set her shoulder to the wheel – so to speak – and marshalled an array of services, volunteers, donors and funding to establish the Concord School Linked Health Center which was primarily targeted at serving our school children.  The idea was to provide sports physicals, vaccinations, non-urgent care, some counselling services and, after the parents had opted-in to the program, a method of getting quick treatment for children who become ill during the school day, thus reducing the need for parents to take time off of work to transport them to their family doctor.  

It was a great idea, one of the most potentially beneficial to grace this township during my tenure.

Cindy really put her heart into this clinic, and she did her level best to make it go.  No one at the clinic ever earned a nickel for their efforts.  She staffed it with volunteers, sought grant money for vaccinations and medicines and worked tirelessly, day in and day out for 5 long years to make this a viable part of our community.   Personally, I’ve never seen the sheer tenacity and dedication to a cause she demonstrated year after year.  Again, personally, I could not have done it.  Like they say, all good things must come to an end, and one can only commit so much time, effort and resources to a project that just didn’t provide the required returns.

Last month, after a sustained and almost superhuman effort, she finally rolled up the carpets and struck her tent, bringing to a close a remarkable story.  When something like this happens, especially in a small community with limited resources and few businesses, you can’t help but feel a profound sense of loss.  I know I do.  I always get a lump in my throat every time a small business is forced to close their doors, because I know the sacrifices required to open them and keep them running.  

So when I found about the impending closure I decided that the least I could do – on behalf of Concord Township and myself – was pen a note to express our deepest gratitude to this young lady who tried so hard to bring this clinic into our community.  You will be sorely missed, Cindy, and I will forever be obliged for your uncommon efforts on our behalf.  Be Well, young lady, and God Bless you and yours!

Appreciatively,

Al Cavasin,

Supervisor