The new pride of New Albany is Rose Run Park and its Raines Crossing Bridge. The timeless structure features a wide opening that welcomes all and connects two large aspects of the community, the learning campus and the Philip Heit Center for Healthy New Albany. During a time of social distancing and outdoor activities, the park and its beautiful bridge were completed right on time.
The park was completed in late 2019 and was scheduled to host its grand opening celebration in the spring. The event was then rescheduled to Sept. 26 and was to feature the Rose Run 5K, fun activities and more, but because of the ongoing pandemic, the event was again canceled. Regardless, it’s never too late to acknowledge the Raines Cadieux New Albany family that helped make Raines Crossing happen.
The family’s $500,000 donation to the New Albany Community Foundation and, in turn, the bridge, wasn’t just a random generous contribution. In a way, it’s also a thank you to New Albany residents, all of whom helped the Raines Cadieux family through a traumatic experience.
Dealing with the Unexpected
James D. DeCamp ©James D. DeCamp/JamesDeCamp.com
Sandy Raines and Ron Cadieux have known each other for years, but when Ron was earning his Ph.D. at Michigan State University, where Sandy’s father was a professor, the duo was reunited and eventually married.
“Our father fixed us up, he was very persistent,” Sandy says, laughing.
Since Ron and his son, Nathan Rideout-Cadieux, were based in central Ohio, Sandy and her daughter, Laura, decided to move to the area and chose New Albany as their new home. The young community afforded endless opportunities, especially for Sandy who already had 15 years of real estate experience.
Honing her entrepreneurial spirit, Sandy launched The Raines Group in 1998 and hired Stephanie Masterson, who is now the company’s president. Sandy says starting the business was overwhelming, but it never knocked her down – she pushed out newsletters, explored the neighborhood and got involved in the community at the New Albany Country Club.
“People embraced us here, it really was wonderful,” Sandy says. “Everyone was so friendly and welcoming.”
The community support didn’t stop there.
In 1999, Laura was celebrating the holiday season with her father and other relatives in Florida. The condo where they were staying featured an old-fashioned elevator with an accordion door, and then-8-year-old Laura was excited to give it a ride. The owner had adjusted the machine to allow the doors to stay open while it operated, so the accordion doors weren’t shut as she began her ascent. Suddenly, Laura noticed something on the ground and when she bent down to inspect the object her head got caught between the ledge of the next floor and the rising elevator.
“I could hear the bones cracking in my ears and I just didn’t know what was happening,” Laura says on a 2012 episode of I Survived....
She was life-flighted to the nearby trauma hospital and underwent several emergency surgeries, lasting 15 hours.
After arriving back in Ohio, the Raines Cadieuxes were overwhelmed with affection. Driving from the airport, signs hung across highway ramps welcoming Laura home. Once in New Albany, yellow ribbons had been hung from hundreds of trees, and local families delivered meals and cards to the recovering family.
“People, I literally had no clue who they were, were sending me cards and I still have a lot of those cards,” Laura says.
Laura, by request, also made it home just in time for her 9th birthday. She returned to school with brownies to celebrate her big day and was greeted by 1,000 paper cranes hanging in the atrium.
“It was really amazing how much the New Albany community came together,” Laura says.
The community has gone above and beyond for the Raines Cadieux family, and they wanted to show their gratitude with a physical presence. When exploring ideas with Craig Mohre, president of the NACF, they realized a bridge was a great way to symbolize the strong New Albany connection and how The Raines Group helps families connect to New Albany. And now, during the pandemic, it’s a place where people can safely come together.
“It’s a place where people can connect,” Sandy says, “and there’s a lot of change going on, but it’s an opportunity to have something positive in the community, so it really feels good.”
Moving Forward
After graduating from Columbus School for Girls and then the University of Michigan, Laura moved to Chicago and now works for Google as the programmatic media lead helping large companies with their display advertising strategies.
Nathan also moved to Chicago and the stepsiblings now live down the street from each other. Laura and Nathan envy the New Albany walking paths and outdoor spaces that are especially perfect during the pandemic. They agree that New Albany will always feel like home.
“Nathan and I have talked about how much we do feel a community (New Albany) is and how much it feels like home,” Laura says. “We have had six homes in the New Albany community as we grew up, and just thinking about our wonderful experiences around New Albany is amazing.”
As for Ron and Sandy, New Albany will most likely always be their home base, in large part because of the people.
“It’s a beautiful community, architecturally and in every other way,” Ron says. “What makes it such a special place is the people.”
Impactful Family Experiences
A traumatic incident can sometimes negatively impact not only the victim but also their family. For Laura and her family though, her accident actually brought them closer.
“I think it’s been a family unit we’ve kind of built together,” Laura says. “It’s not necessarily been one time, it’s been 25-plus surgeries. Having that continued support has been really essential in me being the person I am today. I think without their love and support, I would have never gotten the world’s best surgeons and care.”
Laura isn’t the only family member to have health complications. At 5 months old, Nathan underwent open heart surgery and is set to have another procedure soon.
“We’ve shared these experiences together as a family,” Ron says. “We are grateful that we have grown closer through these challenging times.”
Lydia Freudenberg is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
