A Well Deserved Retirement! Congratulations, Pam Lemke

Some people spend their careers working in a community, while others spend their careers making a difference in it. Pam Lemke has certainly done the latter. After decades of dedication, compassion and service to our rural communities, Pam is officially stepping into a well deserved new chapter; retirement.

Pam’s remarkable career in community service included her time with Northern Frontenac Community Services in Sharbot Lake, followed by more than two decades with Land O’ Lakes Community Services in Northbrook, where she spent 23 years supporting individuals, families and those who needed a helping hand.

Pam decided to retire last month. She said that she has been thinking about retirement, “and when I talked to friends who have or are considering when to go, they told me that I would know when it is time, and now is that time for me.”

In a media release announcing her retirement, the Alzheimer's Society of Kingston Frontenac Lennox and Addington outlined her achievements throughout her career, working with seniors and the frail elderly.

She served as a Regional Palliative Care Education Coordinator, managed an Adult Day Program and shared her knowledge and experience as an instructor with Loyalist College in Bancroft, teaching Personal Support Worker and Educational Assistant programs.

Her passion for helping others eventually led her to the Alzheimer Society, where she dedicated the last nine years of her career. In 2018, Pam took on the responsibility of managing the first Alzheimer Society office in northern Lennox and Addington, helping bring much needed services, support and connections closer to home.

This was a job that she designed herself, since at the time the Alzheimers Society of Kingston Frontenac Lennox and Addington did not have any rural locations, delivering services to the region exclusively out of its office in Kingston. They have since opened an office in Napanee.

Since setting up the office in Northbrook, Pam has become the face of the agency in the local community, building connections not only where seniors gather, but throughout the community. She established caregiver support groups, coffee groups, and “spent a great deal of time being involved trying to break down the stigma of Alzheimer's and dementia, in our area,” she said.

And as if her professional dedication wasn’t enough, Pam’s commitment to her community extended well beyond her working hours.

Pam served as a member of the Land O’ Lakes Lions Club for eight years, including taking on the role of Club President from 2021 to 2022.

Her volunteer contributions also reached across numerous organisations and causes. From serving on the board of directors for Pathways for Children and Youth, Rural Legal Services, the Mazinaw Community Fund, URCA Housing and Adult Connections, to lending her time to Habitat for Humanity’s Family Selection Committee, Pam has continually stepped forward wherever she could, to make a difference. She also dedicated years to the Friends of Bon Echo, helping support and preserve one of our area’s most treasured places.

That’s quite a list of accomplishments, but what makes it even more remarkable is that so much of it was done voluntarily, simply because Pam believed in helping others and strengthening the community she calls home.

Throughout her career, Pam has been much more than a familiar face in community services. She has been an advocate, an educator, a leader, an organiser, a listening ear and, for many, a friend.

Now that she has retired from her office job, she will continue to volunteer in the community, and is busy already.

The much loved Golden Girls & Old Pharts groups will be continuing their adventures, but with an exciting new chapter of their own.

They will be branching away from the Alzheimer Society and moving forward as an independent community group, with Pam continuing to coordinate the activities, outings, friendships and fun that we have all come to know and love.

The bus trips, the laughter, the adventures, the friendships and the memories will continue.

And perhaps that’s the greatest reflection of Pam’s career. After all these years of serving others, her passion for bringing people together remains as strong as ever.

“Pam, congratulations on your retirement! May this next chapter bring you more time for yourself, new adventures, plenty of laughter and the satisfaction of knowing just how many lives you’ve touched along the way,” concluded the media release.

The release did not speak to the future of the program in Northbrook, however, and for her part, Pam Lemke is hopeful that it will continue under a new person.

“I would hope that all of the work that has gone into getting the program established in the north, will not be lost,” she said.

The Alzheimer Society can be contacted through their website or by phone at 613-544-3078