Cora George first learned about Martha & Mary through her church on Bainbridge Island. She believed in caring for children and seniors and found that Martha & Mary mirrored her values. Community service, friends and family, and her faith community were supremely important to Cora, even as she pursued a successful business career.
Through her service and dedication to Martha & Mary, Cora found great satisfaction as a volunteer, trustee, and donor. Her cooperative leadership and business savvy made her an effective Board member, and she enjoyed working in the Martha & Mary gift shop, making friends with residents and staff of the Health and Rehab Center. We were greatly saddened when she passed away in late 2012.
Cora believed deeply in the meaningful difference that Martha & Mary makes in the lives of Kitsap seniors and children. She cared so much that she planned ahead to help us continue this work after she was gone. Cora included Martha & Mary in her estate plans and made us a beneficiary of one of her investments, leaving us a very significant donation.
An extraordinary gift like Cora’s is more than a contribution. It’s an invitation to you and our entire community to join together with Martha & Mary to nurture kids and care for our frail elders.
Arch Wirth moved to Poulsbo in 1986, after retiring from a successful career as a U.S. Forest Service ranger. He and his wife Faye first got to know Martha & Mary after moving his mother-in-law from Idaho to live with them. As her condition declined, they recognized she needed a level of care they could not provide, so she moved to Martha & Mary, where she lived until the end of her life.
About a decade later, Arch and Faye turned to Martha & Mary again, after Faye was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. At the point Arch could no longer care for her at home, she came to Martha & Mary Arch visited her daily, and he was especially appreciative of the nurses and nursing assistants who helped care for her. In honor of that loving care, Arch makes monthly contributions to Martha & Mary. Donors like Arch provide critical support, helping us sustain our commitment to excellent care for all we serve.
Kathy Glick has been a Martha & Mary donor for almost 25 years. She was first introduced to the organization in the late 1970’s through volunteer work in her affiliation with Silverdale Lutheran Church, after she and her late husband Dr. Herb Glick, a Navy doctor, opened a medical practice in Bremerton. For several years during the 1980’s, her mother-in-law Clara Glick was in care at Martha & Mary until her passing at age 95. “Clara received wonderful care, and I have been so appreciative of Martha & Mary and its mission ever since,” stated Kathy, who has also served as a Martha & Mary board member and past board president. A 2014 recipient of Martha & Mary’s Philanthropy Award, she shared with us that “Martha & Mary will always be in her heart.”
The Martha & Mary Auxiliary is a volunteer group who, in addition to volunteering in various ways at Martha & Mary, also participates in fund raising activities. Over the past 20 years, the Auxiliary has supported an amazing variety of equipment, supplies, and projects—all improving the quality of life for those in our care—from a blanket warming machine to book shelves for the Child Care Center, from garden furniture to support for the Children’s summer programs, from portable vital signs carts to a beautiful new commercial grade refrigerator for the Gift Shop, from artwork for the Health and Rehab Center to funding toward the Children’s bus campaign, plus supplies for activities, gardening, the beauty salon equipment, and much, much more. In total, the Auxiliary has contributed more than $50,000 during that time and has given countless hours volunteering in the Martha & Mary in the Gift Shop, visiting residents, helping with Resident Life activities—extending the reach of our staff and helping us better serve our community. Organizations like Martha & Mary rely on support groups like the Martha & Mary Auxiliary. We are deeply grateful for their support and for the way they further our mission of caring.
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