COLUMBUS, Ohio — A group of firefighters teamed up with a local business to renovate a bathroom and brighten the spirit of a friend of their team in need.
The Columbus Division of Fire said the process all started with a call about someone injured in a fall that came from a familiar address.
It was Kay Werk who fell.
Werk is known among many Columbus firefighters for her work to help develop the Division’s Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) program after firefighter John Nance died in the line-of-duty in 1987.
She was a big part in creating a team of peers to address the mental and emotional wellbeing of firefighters coping with Nance’s loss.
In her work, she rode along with engine and medic crews to see how firefighters were challenged on a daily basis and helped address mental health concerns in many crisis situations.
Werk is also an Ohio State University College of Social Work Hall of Fame inductee.
Ten years ago, Werk had a stroke that left her left arm and leg in limited use.
Through it all, she still works with clients at home in a motorized wheelchair since her stroke.
Last year, she fell in her bathroom while trying to get out of her wheelchair and fractured her leg.
She was hospitalized for five days, in rehab for 21 days then tested positive for COVID-19 and sent back to another wing of the rehab facility.
Werk spent two months away from home, and in that time, the firefighters she spent a lot of her career helping were brainstorming how to return the favor.
Columbus Division of Fire reached out to local construction supply businesses who made several donations and members of his team familiar with tools and started to renovate Werk’s bathroom.
The team let Werk know they were making some changes to her home, but she had no idea how much work they were actually doing.
On January 18, 2021, Werk was finally released from the rehab facility and got home to a small welcoming party of firefighters hurrying to re-install a soap and shampoo dispenser in a new nine by 15-foot bathroom with a roll-in shower.
The team said they were more than happy to help out a friend who had done so much for them.