Brittany works in the daytime at the Mansion, when I come in, she is often sitting with a resident talking. She is part friend, part counselor, part listener, part caretaker.

She keeps track of medications, consoles the residents when they are lonely, or quarreling, or frightened. She answers the phone when I call, which is usually once or twice a day.

I love talking to Brittany myself, she is so cheerful and funny.

She is the first person I tell when I have some clothes for a resident, or when my new Karaoke machine has arrived, or when I need something given to a resident who is out for one reason or another.

She is always responding to one problem or another, a buzzer going off, a resident needing medication, a crisis in a room. From  talking to her for a moment, you would never quite imagine how hard she works, how stressful the work is, and  how continuous.

I almost never see the aides just relaxing. This is grace to me. I am happy to try to honor and recognize the work these people and the many others like them do. They don’t have easy days, they work so hard and for little pay.

This is Mansion Aides month in my mind, and we are trying to recognize them a bit. The Amazon Gift Cards – $50 each – are going out this week. Special “Better Angel” pens are arriving in a day or so (they never have enough pens) and I’m scheming to do some other things for them.

Thanks for your support in this. I’m thinking  of a special holiday basket,  something modest, cookies or something. If you want to help, you can contribute: Jon Katz, P.O. Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816, or via Paypal, [email protected] Please mark the payment “Mansion Aides.”

These are very deserving people, they don’t get much recognition, although they are intensely appreciated.

Brittany is unfailingly cheerful and responsible. It takes a special kind of person to do this work, and everyone handles it differently. I think the hardest thing for me to do would be to keep a smile like that going all day.

That’s my idea of grace. I’m going to keep going until I’ve photographed each of the 13 aides.