Theresa Dolata
Vail Place
15 – 9th Avenue South
Hopkins, MN  55343

December 2009

Dear friends:

It was a miracle that Harry Levine made it to the Vail Place Holiday Party last year . . . but now as I look back on it, it was no mystery . . .

I met Harry about five years ago when I first came to Vail Place.  We instantly became the best of friends, each of us having a quick wit.  And my goodness, how he loved to talk –  but he was a good listener, too.  He and I would banter back and forth – it was like verbal tennis.

At this time of year, I used to call him “Hanukah Harry.”  He was a cute, round, dumpling of a guy with a big smile and a wonderful laugh, and with a warm and engaging personality.  I would tease him by saying, “You are my favorite Jewish person – but don’t tell Jesus.”  He told me that I was his favorite Polish Catholic girl – okay, so maybe I was the only Polish Catholic girl he knew.

When I first came to Vail Place, I didn’t have many friends.  I had just come out of the hospital after being hospitalized for my mental illness.  I had been so depressed and isolated.  I was homeless and jobless.
Vail Place helped me find a place to live and a place to work.  And at Vail Place, I found a welcoming atmosphere and, remarkably, a second family.  I found people who are here for me – we understand each other.  I have more friends now than I’ve ever had, and I am part of something again . . . not just something, but part of a wonderful community.  It has been the key to my recovery.

And at Vail Place, I also found Harry.  He had been coming to Vail Place for a long time.  It was family for him, and he was one of the ‘elders.’  He was loved for his sense of humor and his caring attitude.  Above all, Harry was himself – he was so very much himself that it helped me and others feel comfortable letting the walls down so we could be ourselves and enjoy each other’s company.

Two years ago, Harry almost died.  He had double pneumonia and he ended up in the hospital on a respirator.  This was a real challenge for someone who loves to talk.  For quite a while there, we weren’t sure he would make it.
Vail Place members and staff - family, really - came to see him.  I went to see him every day.  It was  a miracle that he actually got well enough to go to a nursing home and began to recover.  Throughout his illness, Harry couldn’t wait to get back to Vail Place.  And he was determined to attend the annual Holiday Party.  The party had gone on without him the year before when he was in the hospital.  It was the only Holiday Party Harry had ever missed.  There was a long road of recovery ahead.

I wish Harry could have been with us a couple weeks ago for our Vail Place retreat when we talked about recovery.  Vail Place members shared what its like to live with a mental illness and the miraculous importance of Vail Place in our lives.  Members and staff shared their appreciation for the sense of community, the personal relationships, the group experiences we share.

We talked about the relationships at Vail Place that make such a difference in our healing.  The healing is enhanced by our socializing and working together in this safe, supportive, and welcoming environment. 
Speaking of recovery, we’ve all become really uptight about our economy.  We all know that it’s really been rough lately, but conditions have become even harder for Vail Place and its members.  I can give you my perspective as a Vail Place member, and as a Vail Place board member.  I am one of three Vail Place members serving on the board of directors.

Vail Place staff help us find safe and affordable places to live.  But Vail Place is soon to lose $100,000 in housing funds from Hennepin County and the Federal Government.  This means 72 of us will lose our housing support from Vail Place and potentially lose our homes.

Vail Place helps us find employment and provides ongoing support to help us keep our jobs.  But we recently learned that Vail Place will lose $100,000 in vocational funds next July due to changes in funding guidelines.  This means 110 of us may lose our employment support

In the past year, Vail Place has seen a 12-percent increase in the number of people served with no additional increase in staff or resources.  The agency has been very careful with its dollars and has cut its hours to meet budgeted expenses.

What’s the bottom line?  Due to cuts in funding, Vail Place anticipates it will take an additional $220,000 to meet our member needs in the coming year.

Harry would appreciate being a part of this letter today.  Over the years, he had a series of telemarketing jobs, selling a variety of products and services and raising funds for a number of causes.  He could be very charming and persuasive on the phone.  He would appreciate the fact that you, and more and more people like you, have this letter in your hands today.  He would be glad to know that we have a growing number of individual donors who make it possible for Vail Place to do its work and meet the increasing need for its services. 

You may have been on our mailing list for a long time.  Or, you may be a new donor this year, having supported our Tour de Vail event or our annual Dr. Vail Hour breakfast.  You may be a new member of our multi-year giving society with an annual pledge to Vail Place.  You may have been here for a tour, or perhaps you are a volunteer.  Whatever brings this letter to your hands today, we appreciate our relationship with you, and we hope you will appreciate the opportunity to make a much-needed contribution at this challenging time.  Helping hands are vital for Vail Place.
Your year-end gift will help Vail Place meet its annual budget and allow us to be in a stronger financial position to cope with the changes and increased demands of the coming year. 

For instance, a gift of $25 will support a member at Vail Place for a week.  By comparison, it would take over 75 gifts of $25 to pay for just one day of a psychiatric hospital stay.  Supporting the members of Vail Place is a small price to pay compared to the cost of hospitalization and long-term care.  It’s an investment with many happy returns as it helps people with mental illness recover their everyday lives. 

Harry Levine became a big part of my recovery.  I am so pleased to have helped him recover from his illness.  You can do the same thing for others at Vail Place through your giving.

The big day Harry had been longing for finally came.  We were all so excited about his coming to the Holiday Party.  It was all he could talk about on the phone and every time I went to see him.  He was so happy to see his friends and be back with his Vail Place family again.  Harry was ready and waiting at the front door of the nursing home in his wheelchair an hour and a half before the van was scheduled to pick him up. 

Last year’s Holiday Party was a huge, festive gathering at a neighborhood church hall, with the biggest turnout ever.  Harry was delighted to see so many friends and to have had such a good time.  And it was truly a gift to everyone to have him back with us.  Harry talked so much that evening that he couldn’t say another word on the way home.
Harry made his final trip to his Vail Place family on January 6th to celebrate his 68th birthday.  A few weeks later, he died in his sleep.

This was a big loss for Vail Place, but also a time for the community to pull together in remembrance and healing.  Vail Place helped arrange the funeral, and on a bitterly cold and windy January afternoon, a large group of members and staff from Harry’s Vail Place family attended the gravesite ceremony to say a final goodbye.  Later that week we gathered at Vail Place for a memorial service of our own. 

Harry remains a shining example of the power of relationships in the process of recovery.  Relationships can work miracles.  At our Minneapolis facility there is a lamp on the banister at the landing of our main stairway.  Harry helped put it there years ago so people could see their way.  Harry would want to know that the future remains bright for Vail Place and all of us who come here . . . and that there is hope for each person who finds their way to our door and can see their path to recovery.

I am pleased to have the opportunity to share this story and the poem that I read at Harry’s funeral.  In loving memory of Harry, in honor of all of us who live in recovery from mental illness, and in appreciation for everyone who helps make our recovery possible, I wish you light on your path and happy holidays.
Sincerely,

Theresa Dolata

Poet, writer, photographer
Massage therapist
Vail Place member
Board member, Vail Place Board of Directors

PS   Oh, and by the way – I still have a mental illness . . . thanks to Vail Place, and friends like Harry, it no longer has me, and I have my life back.  And I have not been back to the hospital since I started coming here.  There are many more of us on the path to recovering our lives, and we count on our relationships with the members of the larger community for support.  Thank you for helping Vail Place provide the support we need to maintain our mental health, to keep us in our homes and our jobs, and on the path to recovery.

 READ Theresa's poem in Harry's memory.