West Allegheny to Host Gold Card Club Holiday Breakfast

PERSONAL
By
Erma Dodd
North Fayette Township
resident
Hunting season has arrived. Charlie’s
loving it.
Charlie went into the woods near his
home on Cliff Mine Road to hunt turkey.
When he returned, his wife, Karen,
asked, “Did you see any turkeys”
“No,” Charlie replies, then Karen tells
him, “They were all in our yard!”
Hunter Charlie will tell you, he goes into
the woods to look for and quietly wait for
deer. After awhile, the deer make so much
noise, “they wake me up.”
The note on the door at Tonidale Auto
Care read, “Closed, Gone Hunting.”
If Karen were to write the note for the
door, it would offer truth and good news for
the deer population: CLOSED. Charlie is
taking his gun for another walk.”
Mya's big brother's Cub Scout troop was
visiting and entertaining the residents in a
nursing home.
The scouts sang and performed. The time
came to hand out Christmas cards to their
audience. Mya, age 3, wanted to help so she
ran up front to help her brother, Anthony.
She was amazed and so excited.
Mya ran back to her mom. Her little eyes
were big, her little arms were waving and
exaggerating her news. "Mommy, Mommy,
I found allllll the grammas!"
After 2l years, Peg Landon's job ended.
The company outsourced the work. It
turned out the loss of the job, which
involved a lot of travel, and a lot of
stress, actually was timely.
Peg had time to regroup, spend time
with family and friends. Then Peg
began to worry about finding another job.
There were lots of prayers, faith, and
trust. A friend made a suggestion which
led to a new job.
Months of weekly traveling from her
home in Hankey Farms to Harrisburg and
the uncertainty of the new job were
becoming a strain.
A billboard on I-83 enroute to York
caught her eye, time and time again. “The
sign kept coming at me, Baltimore School
of Massage Therapy.”
Finally, one day Peg pulled off the
highway, wrote down the information and
called the school. By the time she
returned home for the weekend, the
school's information was waiting.
Peg had herself experienced the
relaxation and stress relief that massage
offers. She never once considered
becoming a therapist until that obvious
and unforgettable billboard.
Fortunately, Pittsburgh offered a
massage therapy school. The next course
was to begin in two months, January,
2003. She thought about it for one day.
Decided, “It was time to reinvent
myself.”
During school, Peg worked for a therapist
located on Oakdale Road. Many corporations
were promoting employee wellness programs,
and Peg would go to the corporation
headquarters, and offer a l5-minute massage
while client was seated in a chair, called a
chair massage.
Peg had always dreamed of having her own
business. It was all coming together for her.
A local chiropractor began recommending her
services. Peg calls it "incredible how it has
all fallen into place." She loves her work.
Marlene and John McNally have been Peg's
clients. Marlene asked Peg to work with
their son, Michael.
Michael enjoyed music, bass guitar,
saxophone, cross country running, and his
mission trip to the Dominican Republic.
Michael was attending St. Edward's University
in Texas.
His life changed on December 4, 2010. He
was enjoying a bicycle ride until he was hit
from behind and was thrown from his bike.
The driver fled the scene. A witness called
911 and stayed with Michael until help
arrived. He suffered traumatic brain and
bodily injuries.
After months in Texas hospitals, Michael
could finally return home, but how His
father, John, has worked for Bayer for 25
years. Bayer provided the answer. Their
corporate jet brought Michael home to
Pittsburgh on day 103.
Then it was months before Michael
returned to his home in Moon Township.
At Peg's first massage therapy visit,
Michael could not lift his head. He could
not speak. Peg massaged his neck to begin
the process of loosening his neck muscles,
as they felt as hard as a rock due to their
rigidity. As she continued massaging and
moving to his legs, his mom witnessed
Michael moving his legs more energetically
and deliberately.
Progress has been slow. Michael's speech
is improving.
A beach wheelchair helped him experience
Florida's ocean waves with his family in
July. Wheelchair bound, he and friends
enjoyed a Steeler win in September at
Heinz Field.
Michael's mom says, "We as a family
remain optimistic and rely on our faith to
keep us strong and hopefilled."
Christmas will be very different at the
McNally's. It could have been very, very
different.
Peg was told, “You must be a blessing to
Michael and his family."
She answered, "It is more - they have
been a blessing to me."
"Touch is powerful. Massage can help
the quality of life, bringing relaxation and
replacing stress with less stress even if it is
just for that half hour," Peg adds, "It is
important to take care of self."
Said Peg of her career change, "I could not
have written this (life) script for myself."