ABOUT THE FOUNDER

The Beginnings of Also Cherished

I am a follower of Christ, a professional nurse with a doctoral degree in education and several years of experience in various areas of nursing, including education, administration, case management, and direct patient care. My approach to life changed as I observed the aging of my parents and later while working on my doctoral study that involved collecting data from nurses about their attitudes and perceptions toward the nursing practice area focused on care of older persons. I became more acutely aware of the vulnerability of the aged. I started to choose nursing practice areas that involved care for older people.

I realized, firsthand, how painful it is to be treated as one who lacks value when that became my experience, so I kept thinking about the Bible verse, “Let no one despise your youth …” (1 Timothy 4: 12 NKJV). I thought about the meaning of despise, and it dawned on me that the young are not the only ones likely to be despised, but everyone should be cherished, and no one should be despised or treated with disdain.

Also Cherished was born to provide paid services and a ministry to cherish the vulnerable, marginalized, and underserved. I’ve learned to cherish myself and I want to cherish others and help each person to learn to cherish others too. Whether someone is a young person, an older person, an unhoused person, a person with ill health, a struggling student, or whatever the situation may be, I just want everyone to feel that they are also cherished.  I want to help people to learn to cherish themselves and to cherish others, regardless of the circumstances, as a possible contribution to a peaceful earth.