FORT THOMAS, Ky. – It’s really very interesting how this all played out. It is clear to me now, that this was orchestrated by a higher power.
At the beginning of the year, I had been feeling such a void in my life but wasn’t sure why. Life is good - I am a busy mother of three wonderful children, great husband, nice house, but there is something not quite being fulfilled. A friend of mine approached me and asked if I was interested in joining the Charities Guild of Northern Kentucky. Not having been in a group like this before, I wasn’t sure it was the right fit. I was used to more of a one-on-one basis working with seniors and hospice patients.
I went to my first meeting, met the women and joined immediately. I felt such comfort in this group of women who come together to do their part in giving back to the community. This is my first year with the Charities Guild of Northern Kentucky.
On the evening of March 9, the members of the CGNKY met to listen to the representatives of the four charities from which we were choosing one to be the 2009 Fort Thomas Tour of Homes beneficiary. Each one of the charities was providing important services needed in our community.
In reading my notes prior to the meeting, there was one charity that sounded strangely familiar. Could this have been something my mother had worked with? I had remembered shortly after my mother lost her fight with lung cancer in June of 1993, we were invited to a grand opening of a center in Bellevue, where she was being honored. Because the grief was so fresh, I wasn’t focused on what she had done for the center, instead, I was focused on life without my mother. Having been on so many different committees and boards, I didn’t realize the importance of her work there. My mother was an extremely humble person. It wasn’t until her death, that I knew the extent of what she did and how many people she touched.
I went on-line to research the Northern Kentucky Children’s Advocacy Center to see if I could find any connection to my mother. I could not find anything linking my mother to the center. But on March 9, when Vicki Henderson, someone I had never seen before, walked in to speak with us regarding the NKCAC, I had an overwhelming experience. She had handed us a brochure on the Advocacy Center. On the back was the address – it was located in Bellevue, Ky.
I knew, at that moment, that I could not let her walk away that night without speaking to her. I ran outside after her and asked if she happened to know Rita Bardo. She informed me that not only did she know and work with her that the Advocacy Center was one of her dreams – that she helped start the center. We walked back into the meeting together and informed the ladies of the Guild what just happened. It was one of the most amazing moments of my life – it was clear that God was at work here. The Charities Guild chose the Northern Kentucky Children’s Advocacy Center to be the recipient of the 2009 Home Tour.
Because of the growing need for the services provided from the NKCAC, a new facility was built and opened in Boone County. Once again, my family members and this time, my own children attended the grand opening. It was an amazing ceremony honoring those whose hard work and dedication to the cause made the Advocacy Center what it is today. Many nice words were said in honor of my mother. It was truly a blessing to be a part of.
It is my honor to be part of an incredible organization that focuses on helping such centers as the NKCAC whom continue to provide services to those children who have experienced abuse or who have witnessed violent crimes.
Rita Kinsella Bardo had been the director of Social Services at St. Luke Hospital until 1993 and a Ft. Thomas city council member for 10 years. She was a member of the American Dietetic Association, National Task Force Planning and Steering Committee for the Aging, and National Organization of Human Services. She was a board member of the Northern Kentucky Mental Health/Mental Retardation Committee, Kentucky White House Conference on Aging, Northern Kentucky Community Action Committee and Advisory Board for Senior Citizens of the Diocese of Covington. She was the district supervisor of Home Aid Service in Northern Kentucky. In 1988, Mrs. Bardo was named Outstanding Woman of Northern Kentucky.
–Michelle Bracken
