The Heart of the House Award
Charles Giles
Over the years I've acquired quite a collection of awards. My wife refers to one corner of my office as the "People Love Me" corner, as that's where I display all the plaques and framed awards I've managed to acquire.
Last night I received a very special award, and it's one that has touched me deeply. It will have a place of honor in my office. At its annual meeting, Wellness House of Hinsdale gave me its highest award. It's called the "Heart of the House Award." The photo above was taken last night along with Jeannie Cella, the Executive Director of Wellness House.
Wellness House is one of the premier centers for the emotional support of people who live with cancer in the Midwest. It is known throughout the mainstream cancer care community and this award has been given to a number of truly outstanding people in the field.
The award, given in conjunction with Harris Bank, takes the form of an engraved and framed tribute. Two copies are made. One is given to the person receiving the award, the other is displayed at Wellness House itself. Below is the text of the the 2006 award.
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The Heart of the House Award
Wellness House has been blessed to have made some wonderful friends throughout its nearly 16 years of existence--friends who appear at just the right time, to perform just the right task, responding to just the right need. These are volunteers who step up to make a significant difference in the life of the organization, the ones who provide a lasting impact on the quality of the programs that people dealing with cancer depend on while navigating their journey through treatment and beyond.
With so much of the difference between despair and hope dependent on being proactive and armed with empowering tools, Wellness House has been incredibly fortunate to count as a long-time friend the Reverend Dr. C. Scot Giles. From almost day one, this positive and powerful specialist in the hypnotic arts and sciences has been a constant at Wellness House, teaching people living with cancer to harness the power of their minds and get in touch with their own healing power.
In his private practice of teaching people the skill of self-hypnosis, Scot became frustrated with the inability to reach more patients. There has been a waiting list to get into his program for several years. His was a creative frustration which led him, in the mid-nineties, to propose a monthly self-hypnosis group at Wellness House to take place on Saturday mornings. From its inception, this group has been a huge success, allowing more people to benefit from learning the skill of self-hypnosis while responding to a cancer diagnosis.
In addition, Scot has been an abiding friend to the organization as it has moved through many stages of organizational growth and development. Filling the role of “advisor,” Scot has readily responded to invitations to help dig into issues and challenges, strengthening Wellness House in fulfilling its mission.
It is because of Scot’s knowledge, expertise, selfless willingness to share it and abiding presence in the life of Wellness House that Wellness House and Harris Hinsdale present the 2006 Heart of the House Award to Scot Giles.