Leading Teens Helped Woman Deal With Pain

Rheumatoid arthritis hurt Betty Mills so much that she couldn’t do much more than sit.

But she didn’t sit just anywhere. She planted herself in an office at Kootenai Medical Center and told kids in candy-striped uniforms how to help patients and hospital workers.

“I wanted a purpose. I wanted to contribute,” she says. “I made a deal with my maker: I can deal with the pain if I can just function.”

She functioned so well that, in 18 years, she quadrupled the hospital’s teen volunteer program and incorporated her young troops into nearly every hospital operation.

“There isn’t a day I haven’t had pain,” she says, without a trace of self-pity. “I’m just so thrilled to be able to do this.”

The odds were against Betty from her first day on the job. At 25, she was diagnosed with a lifelong disease that shuts down the adrenal glands. At 32, she saw her 13-year-old son killed on his bike. At 39, she was crippled with rheumatoid arthritis.

But now, at 58, she strides through the hospital’s creamy corridors with as much exuberance as any of her young volunteers. Her miracle is a mixture of willpower, humor and the right company.

“I could sit at home and hurt,” she says. “But why would I want to?”

Right after her arthritis diagnosis, Betty took a class to learn how to help herself. Part of the advice was to keep busy. She asked KMC if she could read to the blind, but the hospital’s social worker suggested Betty take on the summer teen program.

Betty had worked with teens at her dad’s Coeur d’Alene burger barn. She figured she could sit and tell the 50 teen volunteers at the hospital what to do.

The teens were sharp, motivated and interested. Betty liked them and respected their capabilities. She absorbed their energy, felt better and took on more duties.

Some days, she came to work in braces, on her neck, elbows, knees - whatever joints wouldn’t work. Her crew learned to ignore the supports because Betty did.

Every year, more teens applied for the volunteer jobs and Betty allowed the program to grow. She “hired” the kids who dressed professionally for the interview and could look her in the eye.

“I want kids who speak up,” she says. “No shruggers or grunters.”

The teens became such valuable workers that every department wanted them. A few years ago, Betty expanded the program to include 200 kids, some year-round.

This year, life grew too hectic for Betty. Her mother and aunt need her attention. Stress quickly endangers her health, so Betty will leave her teen volunteers this fall to care for her family.

She’ll still work part time in the hospital’s print shop, which will make the separation from her teens a little less painful.

“They can still stop by and hug me,” she says, smiling at the three aproned girls working in her office. “Someone will take over. I know there are more people out there who love kids as much as I do.”

Be seated

Most homes have more chairs than any other piece of furniture - and most are pretty boring. But the East Bonner County Library can change that at its Take A Seat auction at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, at Sandpoint’s Panida Theater.

Forty well-known Northwest artists have done everything imaginable to a variety of chairs and have donated them to the auction. Some chairs are functional; others are purely art. All are unique.

The $10 admission will buy you gourmet coffee, wine, hors d’oeuvres and desserts as well as gawking and bidding privileges. Tickets are available at the door. Call 263-2293 for details.

Which Panhandle library is your favorite? Spell out your reasons for Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814; send a fax to 765-7149; call 765-7128; or e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo