BRATTLEBORO — One hundred and fifty guests gathered on Saturday evening for the Lawton Hall 100th Anniversary celebration at the Brattleboro Retreat.
The sold-out event offered attendees the opportunity to learn more about the Retreat's programs for mental illness and addiction, while supporting the launch of the 178-year old hospital's Endowment Fund. From this event, the Retreat raised more than $80,000 to be directed to its newly-established endowment.
The gala, hosted by Brattleboro Retreat trustee Bette Abrams, began with hors d'oeuvres on the Retreat's front lawn with music by the Alki Steriopoulos Trio, before moving inside for a formal dinner provided by Vermont Country Caterers in Lawton Hall. The historic gymnasium, which still is used for recreation, was transformed into a grand dining room where guests ate dinner, heard presentations, and were entertained.
As a part of the celebration, the Brattleboro Retreat presented former board member Larry Cassidy with the Anna Marsh Award for advocacy on behalf of those suffering with mental illness and/or addiction. In addition to his work with the Brattleboro Retreat, Cassidy also has served on the board of trustees for several community-based organizations.
Retreat President and CEO Rob Simpson presented the award and recognized the three recent Anna Marsh Award honorees: actor Ken Howard; former board chair Julie Peterson, who was in attendance; and state Sen. Robert Gannett, last year's honoree.
According to Simpson, “Larry was able to bridge the gap between Vermont sensibility and the complexity of modern health care. As the Retreat underwent a significant transformation, Larry advocated strongly for us to make several significant changes, because he understood that the Retreat's success would mirror our patients' success. His perspective brought business smarts, but it was always with an eye to patient care at its heart.”
In an acceptance speech that balanced humor with occasionally painful observations on society's treatment of those with mental illness, Cassidy accepted the award on behalf of Brattleboro Retreat employees.
“From the administration to the maintenance staff, nurses and clinicians to mental health workers and the leadership, the Retreat employees have developed a cohesive language,” he said. “It's a language of caring. And, so it is on behalf of these employees that I accept this award and honor the Retreat employees for their dedication to caring for those with mental illness and addiction,” said Cassidy.
Reflections on Anna Marsh
Cassidy also reflected on the Retreat today from the perspective of Anna Marsh, the woman whose charitable gift founded the hospital 178 years ago. “I've been thinking about Anna Marsh recently,” he said, “and wondering about if she came back to see the Brattleboro Retreat today, what would her response be?”
“First, she might ask: why, in the richest country in the world, do we have the highest incarceration rate, that is due much in part to incarcerating those suffering from mental illness? She might remind us that we all-directly or indirectly-we've all had an encounter with mental illness. Yet, the stigmatization of mental illness remains,” Cassidy continued.
Despite the societal stigma of mental illness, Cassidy noted that Anna Marsh would admire the Retreat's care today. “Anna Marsh would be so proud. She would be smiling down at the Retreat for its ability to navigate the tricky waters of mental health industry, while staying true to her mission for the past 178 years. She would be so proud of this endowment effort that will allow the Retreat to carry forward her mission for another hundred years,” Cassidy continued.
“She would remind us, that even with all the advances in mental health care in pharmaceuticals, technology and alternative therapies, never to discount the two most effective antidotes to mental illness, the two essential human elements of the human psyche... love and compassion.”
Later in the evening, a member of the Retreat's executive staff, Kirk Woodring, presented the hospital with a $10,000 gift to establish a memorial fund for his brother, Kyle Woodring.
Kyle Woodring, a drummer and musician who performed and toured with bands on a national basis, died in 2009, as a result of suicide after a lifelong struggle with depression. The $10,000 gift reflected donations made by friends, family, and fans in Kyle's memory.
Kirk Woodring reflected on his brother's struggle, noting that “ultimately, Kyle's depression was a terminal illness.” He continued, “There are few things in life more painful than knowing that the right treatment at the right time and in the right place could have saved the life of someone who you love so much.”
Woodring said that in establishing The Kyle Woodring Memorial Fund he hopes those struggling with mental illnesses are able to access the care “essential to getting people through those difficult periods when the diseases of mental illness and addictions dictate the course of a person's life.” Woodring noted that the Retreat's treatment programs help ensure that diagnoses of depression, bi-polar disorder, or alcohol dependence “isn't a terminal diagnosis.”
Simpson announced that the endowment fund is well on its way to the $100,000 year-end fundraising goal. Donors who make gifts of $1,000 or more to the Brattleboro Retreat by the end of 2012 will be recognized as inaugural donors of the endowment fund. Efforts to launch the endowment fund were underwritten with a $25,000 challenge grant earlier this year from the Thomas Thompson Trust to help build fundraising capacity at the Retreat.