Leo Recalls Oak Ridge Career and Experience as a PCM Client

Leo and his wife, Emma.

Joseph, known by his friends and family as “Leo,” is a friendly soft-spoken man residing in the city of Elizabethton, Tennessee with his wife Emma. Leo worked for the Oak Ridge Complex for 21 years. He first began his career at Oak Ridge as a Health Physics Technician, then became a Laboratory Technologist in the Health Physics Division and retired as a Research Associate in the Environmental Services Division. His work included studying the effects of nuclear materials on animals and in the environment. He traveled to multiple buildings and other complexes in the country during his career. As he recounts his time there, he smiles and states he found his work remarkably interesting and really enjoyed it. He believes his work eventually influenced the overall safety of the complex and everyone’s understanding with respect to working with nuclear materials.

When asked about his educational background, he smiled and said, “Oh, it surprises everyone, but I don’t have a degree!” He explained that before 1965 things were quite different. He wanted all the education he could get, but as an African-American male at that time, the only classes he could take were night classes at the University of Tennessee. He spoke with pride about how as his career advanced, and he was looked upon by his superiors as someone who could seek out talented individuals among minority groups. He would often travel to educational institutions seeking out such individuals for higher level jobs within the complex. He saw this as both a great responsibility and opportunity to support advancement and equality for all minority groups. It was a time of transition that he looks upon appreciatively.

Before becoming a Professional Case Management (PCM) client, Leo did not know he was eligible for benefits from his work in Oak Ridge. He was attending a gathering in Oak Ridge when he learned what he was eligible for and about the services PCM can provide to him. He said although he also learned of other home care companies, he found PCM the most interesting. He says being a client of PCM has been a “real pleasure.” He is grateful to all the PCM staff, like Kelly, his case manager, who have entered his home. PCM has shown him that despite his illnesses, he can and deserves to live a healthier, happier life and will be appreciated long after he is gone. He would “absolutely” recommend PCM to any one of his friends because PCM has always been forthcoming with information, and their representatives have always been professional.