Margaret Hogan, Essie Welsh honored for years of service on Lansing Housing Corporation Board of Directors

by Susan Cantine-Maxson

Thornton Manor in Lansing held a reception honoring longtime board members Margaret Hogan and Essie Welsh Thursday, November 12 at Milty’s in downtown Lansing. Both women have been instrumental in supporting Thornton Manor and its mission with their commitment to the Lansing Housing Corporation Board since its inception in 1977.
Thornton Manor in Lansing, a community-owned non-profit facility, offers short-term rehab stays and long-term placement, if needed, along with short-term respite. Thornton Heights Assisted Living just celebrated its 12th anniversary of providing Assisted Living services to Lansing and surrounding communities this November. Another service provided to the community is Thornton Manor Outpatient Therapy, which is staffed by Rehab Visions Therapy Group and offers Physical, Occupational and Speech therapies to the entire community. Thornton Manor has 60 beds for short-term and long-term placements and several one-bedroom and two-bedroom assisted living apartments.

Margaret Brennan Hogan was born on a farm by Wexford; her dad, Gene, was a bridge contractor at the time. Later, he became part of Brennan Construction. Much of her early life was spent on the family farm now recognized as a Century Farm. She moved to Lansing when she was in second grade.
After her school years in Lansing, she went to college and taught English and bookkeeping at the high school level in a little town close to Dubuque, and she also later taught in La Porte City. There she met her husband because her sister and his cousin lived together in Waterloo. After they married, they lived in LaPorte City until they began a family.
Hogan stated, “In those days, you couldn’t be pregnant and teach school. They let me finish out the year, but I had to hide the fact that I was pregnant. My husband, John, and I decided to move back to the Lansing area where he began working with Brennan Construction.”
The Hogans had four children, two boys and two girls. Hogan now also has eight grandchildren.
Hogan’s involvement with Thornton Manor began when she and several others in Lansing saw a need for a nursing home here. “My mother was in a nursing home in McGregor and my dad wanted to see her several times a week," she said. "My family definitely felt a need for a facility closer to home. Bill Tully asked if I would be willing to be on the board and I said, ‘Yes’. I remember that we went out in pairs, going door to door to every house in Lansing asking for donations to help build the building."
There was an old red barn where the facility now stands. Thornton Manor and Thornton Heights stand on what was once the Leo and Winifred Monroe farm. The assisted living area was added later in 2003. Mayo Clinic Health System-Franciscan Healthcare of La Crosse, WI has managed Lansing Housing Corporation for the last 31 years.
The first board included Margaret Hogan, Bill Tully, Margaretta Keenan Bill Underwood, Tom Kerndt, Marilyn Spinner and Essie Welsh. Hogan stated, "We wanted seven members on the board so if there was a disagreement we wouldn’t have a tie vote; but I don’t ever remember having such a disagreement. We always reached our decisions through consensus. It’s always been such a pleasant group to work with."
"We’ve had great leaders and staff," Hogan continued. "We’ve only had three administrators in all those years: Steve Haas, Deb Heldt and now Sam Kuhn. The community has always backed us up and supported us. It was a nice feeling knowing we had helped people out. It’s done well to keep going all these years, but people have always had very good care there."

Essie Weber Welsh grew up on a farm outside of Lansing in the Mays Prairie area. Welsh met her husband, William, at a dance in Lansing at what is now TJ Hunter’s Banquet Center. She and her husband moved to Dorchester after being married for a few years, but moved back to the Lansing area to farm. They had eight children, most of whom live in the area, with one in Georgia. She also has 25 grandchildren.
Welsh and her husband always farmed; they started organic farming in 1980 when they had an accident with insecticide which killed several head of cattle. From that point on they wanted nothing to do with chemicals. Her son and grandsons continue to operate Welsh Family Organic Farm.
Welsh recalled going to an informational meeting about the building project. There she was asked to become a member of the first board of directors. Welsh remembered, “I served until 1981, when I went to nursing school; but even when I was in school I would attend annual meetings and stayed involved. I got back on the board in about 2010. Getting the building done seemed to be the biggest hurdle we overcame. Then we had to hire the staff and administration, but it all worked out well."
"There was never too much disagreement; it all went quite smoothly," Welsh shared. "The administrators and staff were good and that made the board job easy. The next big challenge was building the assisted living area. Since we aren’t associated with a hospital, we always worry about keeping the beds occupied, but it hasn’t seemed to be a problem. The assisted living area is wonderful because people who still want to live independently but have a closer connection to someone checking on them once in a while if they need something is comforting. People like to visit and socialize; they don’t have to be by themselves if they don’t want to, yet there is that safety net if they need it."

"My mother was a resident there and did quite well," Welch continued. "It wasn’t her home, but it was the next best thing to it. The staff has always been great. To have this type of facility so close is fabulous. I hope it continues as well as it has in the past. I have to give the administrators and staff that we have had over the years a lot of credit for all the good they do. Ultimately, it’s the staff that makes the nursing home succeed for the residents.”

Current administrator Sam Kuhn has been with Thornton Manor for 20 years. In honoring these two women, Kuhn stated, "It has been an honor to work with both Marg and Essie. They truly believe in making sure the residents have everything they need and that the staff have the appropriate resources to take care of the residents. Having a strong supportive board has made my job easier for all these years. Marg and Essie have been a huge part of this community success."