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American Made

IN MEMORY

Ronald McDonald House ribbon-cutters pay tribute
to the project's "guiding spirit and inspiration."

LISA FEIN
Special to the Jewish News

T

he driving force behind the
new Ronald McDonald
House in Lansing was hon-
ored posthumously when
the temporary lodge for seriously ill
kids and their families was dedicated
this summer.
The late Dr. Bernard Kay, a local
pediatrician who was a founding board
member, was fondly remembered at the
July ribbon-cutting for the Ronald
McDonald House of Mid-Michigan in
Lansing. He died from colon cancer at
age 66 in 1999, the day before ground
for the house was broken.
"Dr. Kay was the guiding spirit
and inspiration behind the project
from the time of its inception," said
Theda Rudd at the dedication. She
owns five McDonald's restaurants in
the Lansing area and serves as an
executive committee member of the
Ronald McDonald House's board of
directors.
The community-owned house, a
"home away from home," is the 206th
Ronald McDonald house worldwide. It
can accommodate up to eight families

whose seriously ill children are being
treated at a nearby hospital or clinic.
The house required five years of
planning, $1.5 million in fund-raising
and a year of construction. Its location
at 121 Holmes, corner of Michigan
Avenue, is on land donated by
Sparrow Health System. Some 80 vol-
unteers provide assistance to the resi-
dent house manager of the facility,
which is open year-round.

Volunteer Pay

Since opening, the occupancy rate at
the house has been 95 percent.
Families are asked to make donations
ranging from $5 to $20 per day, but
no one is turned away with a legitil
mate inability to pay.
Judith Kay of Okemos, a volunteer
on the project's design committee, said
her late husband had enjoyed working
with people to rally support for
Ronald McDonald House. "They ded-
icated one of the bedrooms in his
memory and I got to decorate it" in
colors of cream, green, purple and red,
she said. "The ceiling border is of dif-
ferent color leaves, and the bottom
border has a picket fence and flowers.
The room has not been empty since

Dr. Kay treats a youngster at the
Ronald McDonald House in 1996

Career Moves

Dr. Kay, a Detroit native, was a grad-
uate of the University of Detroit who
earned his medical degree at the
College of Osteopathic Medicine in
Des Moines, Iowa.
From 1960 to 1974, he was on
staff at Garden City Hospital in
Westland. Dr. Kay founded MSU's
Pediatrics of Osteopathic
Department in 1974.
.
In Lansing, Dr. Kay served on the
Sparrow Hospital Executive Board
and was on staff at Ingham Medical
Center. He and 11 group partners
set up five pediatric department clin-
ics in the Lansing area.
Dr. Kay was survived by his
wife, Judith; mother Bessie of
Southfield; six children, sons Mark,
Jeffrey, Randy and Kevan and
daughters Theresa Krejci and Lisa;
and seven grandchildren.

the house opened in July," she added.
The facility "was a labor of love for
so many people," Kay said.
"Volunteers spent 8-15 hours a day
working on the project. He would
have been very proud."
It was Dr. Kay who brought in
Rebecca Reagan, now the house's public
relations director, volunteer coordinator
and director. Reagan, a Michigan State
University Department of Pediatrics
administrative assistant, was Dr. Kay's
colleague for 15 years.
"MSU donated me to the project
because they saw the need for me to
work on it full-time," Reagan said. "I
am currently working two full time
jobs — at MSU and at the house. My
various positions at the house are
strictly volunteer."
Reagan described Dr. Kay as very
devoted — and a kind and dedicated
pediatrician. "He interacted well with
children, patients and others in the com-
munity," she said. "He saw the need on
a daily basis for ill children. He was a
remarkable man. It was very difficult for
all involved with the house project to
not be able to have Dr. Kay see his
dream come to reality." ❑

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