dealing With toxins Through
Faith & Conviction
by mary godfrey
Editor’s Note: While we typically do
not publish life experiences in the
magazine, Mary’s story presents a
compelling, human side of environ-
mental concerns.
A
s a singer, I’ve always appreci-
ated air. It now has a whole
new meaning. the damages. They suspected potential
Short of breath and very ill, environmental threats and recom-
I began giving away heirlooms to mended remediation to avoid “li-
family and music memorabilia to ability.” After reading their report, it
old band mates. I made a bucket list: substantiated my concerns. Yet, due to
see Mt. Rushmore and participate in the high costs, removal was delayed.
songwriting camp and music therapy. By now, several of us in the
I prayed for two weeks. Miraculously, department, including myself, had a
I met a musician who lived near Mt. chronic cough, which prompted me
Rushmore, organized song camps and to call the doctor. Following an X-ray
did music therapy. It felt empowering. and other tests, my doctor reported
Realizing I had a purpose, I began to my lungs were “stretched out like an
heal. old rubber band.” Tests showed lung
While working at an airport nodules, as well as an undetermined
lounge, everyone smelled an over- lung disease. I was given a medical
whelming, “rotten egg” odor. A con- note and rested in bed for weeks.
cerned co-worker called the authori- Friends spent the night, helping and
ties. They found a moldy sewer trap offering support.
and chemical spill, but couldn’t locate “You have more to do here” a
the source. friend guided as he offered herbal
My job responsibility included
reporting concerns and conflicts.
Consequently, my communication
was met with resistance. “Be careful
what you put in reports,” my manager
cautioned.
Simultaneously, I noticed grow-
ing damage on some walls due to a
leaking pipe. Researching online, I
suspected black mold and relayed that
to my supervisor.
“Oh Mary, mold is everywhere”
he said, dismissing my concern.
Truth be known, mold is every-
where. There are more than 69,000
species of mold; some are beneficial,
some are dangerous. Of those, 400
are pathogens to humans.
As the progress continued at
work, an industrial group accessed
24 Phoenix
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48