A Sister, an Advocate, and Eleven Years of Showing Up: Meet RGA Volunteer Cathy Lomasney
This National Volunteer Week, we're proud to celebrate one of our most dedicated volunteers — and the story of what 11 years of commitment looks like.
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Contact: Laura Milewski, Sr. Director of Development
lmilewski@raygraham.org | (630) 620-2222
A Sister, an Advocate, and Eleven Years of Showing Up
Meet RGA Volunteer Cathy Lomasney
Lisle, IL — Every week, without fail, Cathy Lomasney walks through the doors of Ray Graham Association's Main Street Community Learning Center and sets up for Bingo. She brings prizes she picked out herself, prizes she has thought about, ones that account for dietary needs and personal preferences and the small details that tell people they were seen. Then the room fills up.
It didn't always fill up like that. When Cathy started leading the program, it was a small group around a table. Now it spills across the room, drawing in participants who had never joined a group activity before. "Everyone benefits from the magic that Cathy brings to Main Street," says Jan Mallak, Assistant Director of Program Support. "We love seeing those who don't typically engage in in-house activities ask for a seat at the table. Cathy brings out the best in all of us."
Cathy is a retired teacher. It shows. She knows how to read a room, how to pace energy, how to make sure no one feels left out. When she noticed one enthusiastic spectator watching from the sidelines week after week, she invited him to be the Bingo caller. He accepted.
But Bingo is only part of the story.
Cathy first came to RGA more than 11 years ago because of her brother Tom. Tom is 67 years old and has lived in one of RGA's community-based homes for years, where he receives the 24-hour support his health requires. He has Williams Syndrome, and a number of other medical complexities that make consistent, attentive care essential to his safety and wellbeing. He also has a great smile, loves going out to eat, loves bowling, and loves spending time with the people around him at Ray Graham.
Cathy has spent a lifetime looking out for Tom. What changed, over time, is the scale of what looking out for him came to mean.
As a member of RGA's Advocacy Committee, Cathy has become one of the organization's most trusted family liaisons. When proposed federal legislation included a potential $50 billion reduction to Illinois' Medicaid program, legislation that would have put community-based homes, day programming, and essential healthcare services at serious risk, Cathy got on the phone. She personally called more than a dozen RGA families, explained what was at stake in plain terms, and walked them through exactly how to contact their U.S. House Representatives. She was patient. She was clear. She stayed on the line until people understood.
"We always know we can depend on Cathy to make the phone calls and lift people up," says Caren Musembi, Chief Services Officer at Ray Graham Association.
That dependability extends to RGA's fundraising community as well. Cathy and her husband Ken sponsor the Golf Classic, the Monarch Walk, and the Butterfly Ball every year, in honor of Tom and his housemates in the Mark Affetto home.
At RGA, families are vital partners in the mission of supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Cathy Lomasney is what that partnership looks like when it's lived out fully, not as an obligation, but as a calling.
This National Volunteer Week, RGA celebrates Cathy with deep gratitude for eleven years of showing up, speaking up, and bringing the whole room to life.
About Ray Graham Association
Ray Graham Association's mission is to empower those we support and those who care for them to reach, grow, and achieve. Founded in 1950, RGA serves nearly 2,000 people with disabilities and employs approximately 350 people across DuPage County and the surrounding region. RGA is accredited by the Council on Quality and Leadership with Person-Centered Excellence Accreditation, with Distinction.
To learn more about Ray Graham Association or to get involved as a volunteer, visit raygraham.org.
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