This blog post was written by Kasey Harding-Wheeler, the director of Integrated Care for Special Populations here at the Community Health Center, Inc.

Friday, March 14^th marked the end of an era at Community Based Services as we said goodbye to our long time office manager, Louise Moschini. Louise has been a part of the CHC family for 19 years, bringing a smile and kind greeting to those visiting 33 Ferry Street for as long as some of our patients can remember. Community Based Services is the home to our HIV drop in program, homeless outreach teams and homeless case managers. The patients who walk through the doors of CBS are often dealing with two and three urgent needs at the same time and for many patients this building is the last resort to try to get help for themselves and their families. Louise has always had a gift for putting people at ease, bringing a smile to their face and reassuring them that we are committed to helping them. Louise was late for her own surprise retirement party as she insisted on completing an intake for a new patient who was in need.

On Friday, Louise’s friends, some brand new and some from her early days with CHC, came to show their love and appreciation for her years of service. Louise said that her best memories of CHC are definitely the people she has met here, the patients and colleagues who have touched her life each day in a special way. As a parting gift the staff at CBS gave Louise a framed quote that summarizes how exceptional she is and how she has touched the lives of so many people over the years.

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”                                                                               ~ Leo Buscaglia

Congratulations to Louise on this momentous occasion. We wish her every happiness in her retirement!