Welcome to “Paying it Forward,” a monthly interview series made possible by Piedmont Health. In this series, we hear from the folks at Piedmont about the importance of community health centers – and why they chose a career in community health.
September is National PACE Month, so this month’s installment of Paying It Forward focuses on Piedmont’s PACE program, with locations in Pittsboro and Burlington and over 250 participants. One of those participants is Alter Mae Hatley of Sanford, who joined Aaron along with Piedmont recreational therapist Olivia Castleberry.
“I have been part of PACE for almost 12 years now,” says Castleberry. “I always had a passion for serving the older adult community, I discovered that in high school, and that’s something that I decided to roll with into my career.”
PACE stands for Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly: its goal is to enable seniors to “age in place” and maintain their independence in their own homes, even when they might ordinarily require nursing-home care. Castleberry is part of an 11-person team that also includes physical and occupational therapists, dieticians, nurses, and transportation providers, among others.
“That is our mission: to ensure that our participants are able to maintain and sustain their independence, and even get some level of independence back,” Castleberry says.
That has absolutely been the case for Alter Mae Hatley, who was an award-winning gospel radio DJ in Sanford before being sidelined in 2002 by a stroke that initially robbed her of her ability to speak or walk.
“When I had the stroke, they told me I wouldn’t walk anymore, I wouldn’t talk anymore, (and) I wouldn’t be able to stay alone by myself anymore,” Hatley remembers. “And for two years I did that: I stayed at home, couldn’t go nowhere, couldn’t talk…
“(Then PACE) came out and talked to me – and I was reluctant at first, because the doctor had told me that I would never do these things again. (But) I said, ‘Well, it won’t hurt me to go there and try it.’ I went to PACE for two days, three days – and (at first) I said, ‘Oh no, this is not for me.’ But then I went back and they assigned this man to me, Kevin, (who) took me under his thumb – and next thing I know, I was kicking my legs. I was mumbling words. And the next thing you know, I could stay by myself again.”
Alter Mae Hatley was wheelchair-bound for five years – but now, more than 20 years after her stroke, she’s walking, talking, and even singing. She’s active again in her church, and she even launched a choir at PACE.
“I just thank God for PACE, and I thank God for the people that work there, the aides, the manager, all of them,” she says. “They don’t know how much I really appreciate them, because if it hadn’t been for PACE, I may not be here today.”
97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live.
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‘I Just Thank God For PACE’: ‘Paying It Forward’ with Piedmont Health’s Olivia Castleberry and Alter Mae Hatley Chapelboro.com.
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