We had the good fortune of connecting with Michele Maas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michele, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
In November 2020, my husband, Jonathan, came down with Covid. He spent 80 days in Aultman hospital, 47 of those days on a ventilator, with a less than 3% chance to live. His journey to health was terrifying but while he was in the hospital, the nurses and doctors who took care of him became my support and my lifeline. As a licensed professional clinical counselor, I continued to see my clients through Telehealth the entire time my husband was sick. I had many nurses, EMTs, and firefighters who were my clients at that time and I got to see the trauma and fear that they went through on every shift. This gave me a unique perspective into the lives of frontline workers since I got to see it from the side of a therapist and also from the patient’s family side. As my husband improved, I sent in cards and food to show my appreciation for their difficult job. My friends started sending in items of support and it grew. We wanted to be more intentional about giving back to frontline workers. One year to the day of my husband coming home, a group of us jumped in the Polar Bear Plunge for Jackson Township Schools and we raised start up funds for our nonprofit. On February 12, 2021, our nonprofit, Another Act of Kindness, was born with a mission to give back to frontline workers who give tirelessly during every shift. We give out Nursing Scholarships to bring new nurses into the field and we provide mental health and wellness programs called, Healing the Healers, to provide support and to retain experienced nurses in the field. Additionally, we have baskets of support items for staff in several units in the hospital in which Jonathan spent time. It feels so good to be kind.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I have my own counseling private practice called, Maas Mental Health and Wellness. I have been a therapist for over 25 years and I specialize in women’s issues, depression, anxiety, trauma and LGBTQ+ issues. I learn from every single client and feel that it is important to be a life-long learner. It seemed to be a natural progression to start our nonprofit, Another Act of Kindness because it aligned with my counseling background which has really helped to move the nonprofit toward our goals of providing frontline workers with mental health support. After facing the possibility of losing my husband, I don’t let fear get in my way of my goals. We have already provided our Healing the Healers Retreats for over 700 nurses throughout Northeast Ohio and we want to continue to grow this program to reach many nurses, firefighters, doctors and other frontline workers. We can’t wait to see where we go from here.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We have some of the best restaurants in the area and we love to take guests to any one of the Gervasi venues from The Twisted Olive in Jackson to The Crush House or the Bistro in Canton. This past fall, I participated in harvesting grapes at Gervasi Vineyard and we had so much fun. We also love eating downtown Canton at Lucca or Basil which are always delicious. We also love 35 Brix in Green where you can always run into friends and eat a wonderful meal.

We do enjoy hiking and there are so many trails in Northeast Ohio. We especially love hiking in the Virginia Kendall area of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. During the summer, there are several amphitheaters in the area and we love sit with our friends and neighbors in the community to hear all of the talented cover bands.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
We dedicate our shoutout to what we call “The Trifecta” of God answering the prayers of so many people, the amazing doctors, nurses and staff at Aultman Hospital’s Medical Intensive Care Unit and my husband’s own tenacity to return home to his family

Website: https://www.anotheractofkindness.org/

Instagram: @another.actofkindness

Linkedin: Another Act of Kindness

Facebook: https://facebook.com/another.act.of.kindness

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