When Eli Pine started working at the Boundary Community Restorium in 2017, taking care of others was a prospect that filled him with trepidation. The road that brought him here was long and arduous. Born in Ukraine, Eli lived five years in an orphanage, partially blind. No family, no brothers, no sisters to give him direction, support. He took his lumps when he bumped into things or fell, learned his lessons from whomever had the grace and kindness to sit with him, to offer him guidance.
And the day came when a mountain walked into his life, followed by a soft and gentle breeze. Befriended and loved, Eli became the adopted son of that mountain, Len Pine, and that gentle breeze, his wife, Karen.
Eli’s trepidation at the Restorium was short lived. It wasn’t long at all before those he took care of stopped seeing him as simply a Restorium employee … he became a friend they looked forward to seeing, a cherished member of the Restorium family.
On August 7, the Restorium Resident’s Council called Eli in on his day off and away from the fair booth he was attending as director, along with his wife Anna, of Hope House, a non-profit dedicated to helping county residents and families beset by emergencies such as fire and flood.
There, on behalf of the Friends of the Restorium, the council recognized Eli as the July 2024 recipient of the Ray Olson Employee of the Month “We Care” Award.
“Selected for this award by the residents you serve with exemplary kindness and compassion,” his award citation reads, “your unfailing commitment to the safety, well-being and comfort of residents contributes greatly to the mission and purpose of the Boundary Community Restorium.”
In addition to the certificate, Eli was awarded a $50 check from the Friends of the Restorium, a $30 gift certificate to the Springs Restaurant contributed by the Kootenai River Inn and a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers grown, arranged and donated by grower/owner Paula Rice and the floral artists at Bee Haven Flower Farm.