 |
MAKING GOOD INVESTMENTS: FOR FAMILY AND FUTURE
Vern and Marilyn Brose, of Shamokin Dam, grew up in a time when jobs were scarce, funds tight and the future unsure. “We both came from humble beginnings,” Marilyn says. “We were born in the middle of the Great Depression.”
As children, they understood what it meant to have little, and what it means to share. With the Depression as a backdrop, the Brose’s structured their lives and careers around family and community.
“Vern is a good money manager,” Marilyn says. “At age 10, even our daughter understood the terms ‘cash flow,’ ‘fixed expenditures’ and how to budget her allowance for Sunday school donations,” she adds with an appreciative laugh. “She’s still a good money manager today.” With a master’s degree in agricultural economics, Vern became an agricultural extension educator, working one-on-one with families and farmers in four states. With a bachelor’s degree in nursing, Marilyn rose to positions within two states’ departments of health. Locally, she also worked as a special education teacher and college instructor.
GIVING WISELY
Now retired, their devotion to the greater community shows no sign of waning. One can hear a smile when they talk about favorite charities, including their church, local libraries in Sunbury and Selinsgrove, and two museums, the Packwood House up the river in Lewisburg and the Antique Auto Club of America museum in Hershey, 60 miles from their home.
Though the Brose’s are obviously generous with their time, talents and financial gifts, only a few other non-profits – like Geisinger Health System – pass this couple’s tests. Both in their 70s, they use Internet resources as well as their own life experiences to inform their giving decisions.
“The charities all sound like great causes until we research them and see that for some, a minimal amount actually goes to the charity,” Vern says. “We’ve lived here for more than 40 years, and we can see what Geisinger does in Pennsylvania,” he adds.
The couple not only praises Geisinger’s hands-on care, but also the hospital’s focus on making care readily available. “When we lived in South Dakota, the nearest hospital was just about two hours away,” Marilyn says. “We’re blessed with good healthcare at Geisinger, and to think they’re only 15 miles away.”
UNEXPECTED BENEFITS
Marilyn recalls several times when their physicians scheduled examinations, referrals and testing for them via e-mail, requiring them to do little more than show up for appointments.
Geisinger’s computer networking also makes it possible for the Brose’s to monitor important health issues themselves.
“I e-mail a request for blood work, go to a lab two miles away, and that evening, I can check on-line for my results,” Marilyn says of a recent cholesterol followup. “They even share our records online with our other specialists.
“The services available are phenomenal,” she says. “We’re totally Geisinger now.”
