‘HUMAN SERVICE’

Kansas is one of the nation’s leaders in providing services for people with developmental disabilities. Pam Musick, Pittsburg, has the joy of knowing she has been part of that.
She retired recently as performance improvement consultant for the Southeast Region, Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services, and was honored with a reception May 8 at the Pittsburg SRS offices.
The youngest child of James P. and Julia Morettini-Hamilton, she said her mother’s kindness inspired her to go into “the human service business.”
“My mother was the angel of the community,” Musick said. “She would cook for community members, take in those who needed shelter and nourishment — all because it was just the right thing to do.”
Her first love, though, was music, and she performed locally with pianist Jim Benson before earning a bachelor of science in education from Pittsburg State University in 1968. Musick taught in Kansas City for several years, and also performed with Benson in the Kansas City area.
“Later I married and raised my family,” she said. “In 1980 I returned to PSU and earned a master’s in special education. I had my third child, then went on to the University of Kansas to earn my master’s in social welfare.”
In 1984 she went to work at the Cherokee County Mental Health Center as a therapist specializing in chemical dependency. “I provided individual, group and family therapy, going into people’s homes,” Musick said. “I didn’t realize how dangerous that could have been.”
From 1985 to 1992 she also coordinated an annual NAB (Non-alcoholic Beverage) Christmas party in Pittsburg.
During her time at Cherokee County, her husband became ill. At that point the Pittsburg SRS office called and asked her to interview for a position. She needed more money, so accepted it.
“God sure does for us what we can’t do for ourselves,” Musick said. “This opportunity allowed me to impact thousands of people. I was able to orchestrate drug and alcohol prevention, intervention and treatment programs for a whole region of people. In addition to alcohol and drug abuse programs, I was able to impact all privatized services in the Pittsburg SRS Management Area.”
The area served later expanded. “My office, although based in Pittsburg, has in reality been throughout Allen, Bourbon, Crawford, Cherokee, Labette, Montgomery, Elk, Chautauqua, Greenwood, Wilson, Linn and Anderson Counties — my beautiful southeast Kansas!” Musick said.
In 1990 the Home and Community Based Services Medicaid Waiver enabled persons with mental retardation and/or developmental disabilities and their families the freedom to pick and choose the services they need to pursue their preferred lifestyle while living in the community, rather than in an institution.
“In the real world out here in our beautiful southeast Kansas, this means people with developmental disabilities are receiving the supports necessary for them to choose where they live, who they live with, what they do for work and activities they do in the day, who they socialize with and what they choose to do for recreation,” Musick said.
The key is to listen to people, even if they can’t verbalize their preferences.
“People can tell you things through their behaviors, though it almost gives me heartburn to use that word, because all of us have behaviors,” Musick said. “A lot of listening is done by watching, and in Kansas we’ve been listening for a long time.”
She has been honored and blessed, she said, “to work for the citizens of this great state of Kansas, and be a support to them as they enjoy the freedom of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
Musick said her plans for retirement include having more time for camping and riding her horses.