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45 years of being a 'rock star'

Subhead
Hills' Tuff Home honors McGaffee for her dedication at work
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By
Mavis Fodness

For more than four decades, Glenda McGaffee has made Tuff Memorial Home and Tuff Village her place of employment.
To honor her dedication, co-workers recently gave her a bunch of rocks.
“Those were so cool,” she said with a laugh. “I cried — it was so neat.”
The longest tenured employee at Tuff home was honored Jan. 21 by the nursing home’s staff and residents.
They presented McGaffee with a plaque, cards, cake and a glass jar filled with 40 black rocks.
On each rock was written a word (for five rocks two words) that described McGaffee and what she brings to her co-workers, the home’s 50 residents and her job.
“One even put ‘short’ on there — that made me really laugh,” McGaffee said.
Activity director Joslyn Jacoby indicated that McGaffee might be short in stature but not in heart.
Words such as “sincere, considerate, fun, loyal, committed, capable, coffee lover, sweet, talented, calming, hard-working, and enthusiastic” also describe McGaffee.
“We are so thankful to have her,” Jacoby said. “She is always there when we need her.”
McGaffee (nee Wassenaar) grew up in Hills, graduated from Hills-Beaver Creek High School in 1974, and started working at the Tuff Home in 1976, at the suggestion of a neighbor who needed help with resident activities.
Since that initial position in the activities department, McGaffee has worked full time as the home’s secretary, bookkeeper, and in social services working directly with resident care.
She credits the Tuff Home for changing her life as a single person.
“I met (husband) Sam at the nursing home,” McGaffee said. “He delivered paper supplies.”
Invoices from the office product company indicated “see Glenda” at the time of delivery. Eleven months after meeting in January 1982, the two were married. The couple has two grown daughters, Katie and Samantha.
Ten years ago McGaffee went to part time and moved back to working only in the activities department.
“She is so personable and she gets everyone out of their rooms,” Jacoby said.
“Coffee drinker” was one of the descriptive words for McGaffee, for going to get a cup of coffee often prompted residents to leave their rooms, McGaffee said.
“Musical” is another description.
The most frequent activity McGaffee completes today at the home is playing the piano for resident sing-alongs at the nursing home as well as at the assisted living facility.
Her musical abilities began early when her late father purchased a piano for her at age 9. She uses the same piano to give lessons to her piano students, which currently number 17.
In the past decade, McGaffee has also been a correspondent with the Hills Crescent until the newspaper folded in 2019. She has since become a substitute paraprofessional at her alma mater, the H-BC school district.
McGaffee’s heart is at the Tuff Home.
“I love the residents and staff,” she said. “I treat them as I would like to be treated.”
For that McGaffee’s jar of rocks had a small card attached that read, “45 years of being a Rock Star,” in reference to McGaffee being the “best of the best” at her job — one that McGaffee hopes to be at for a few more years.

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