Written by Laura Roe Stevens
As I walked into The Healing Garden at Torrance Memorial Medical Center to meet Elaine Booth-Carnegis, I approached a woman with an inviting smile, a friendly demeanor ... and a little sparkle. Dressed in summer navy and white, Elaine wore elegant jewelry that perfectly matched her outfit, accompanied by white athletic shoes studded with faux diamonds.
The former nurse and Torrance Memorial volunteer for 20 years exudes fun, positivity and fashion— something I didn’t anticipate, considering all she has endured. Yet Elaine would likely tell you that everything in her life—the good and the challenging times—has been a gift from God.
“I have a plaque at my house from a friend I adore. It says, ‘I trust the next chapter because I know who the author is.’ That’s exactly how I feel,” Elaine shares with a smile.
A two-time cancer patient, Elaine lost her husband, George Carnegis, in 2019 and has a daughter who battles leukemia. Even though Elaine survived breast cancer and was diagnosed with and receives treatment for neuroendocrine cancer, she lives life on her own terms. In fact, the day we met, Elaine was preparing to leave for “a bucket-list trip” with a friend to visit Calgary and Banff, Canada.
While Elaine has lived in Rancho Palos Verdes for 40 years, she was born in Philadelphia, raised in Ohio and graduated from The Ohio State University. She proudly tells anyone: “I’m a Buckeye!”
Gratitude & Giving
George died on Abraham Lincoln’s birthday in 2019 and was buried on George Washington’s birthday—something Elaine finds fitting for a man who loved history and engineering. In fact, George played a role in U.S. history by being on the design team for the Surveyor 1 spacecraft, which made the first American lunar landing on June 2, 1966.
“He was my knight in shining armor,” Elaine says proudly of George, who went in for a checkup. because he was feeling a bit tired. That’s when interventional cardiologist James Matchison, MD, and Matthew Ostrom, MD, an electrophysiologist in cardiology, ran tests and learned that George had experienced a heart attack six days earlier. If they had not discovered this, he might not have received the proper care or lived five additional years—giving him valuable time to spend with family.
“I’m so appreciative to all who cared for him at Torrance Memorial,” says Elaine. “We were able to share even more special moments with our daughter, Cara Genberg, an operating room nurse at Miller Children’s Hospital of Long Beach, and her husband, Bob Genberg, a retired firefighter paramedic, and our granddaughters, Sarah Raasch and Kelly Genberg.”
Elaine became a member of the Heritage Society to honor her husband and chose to include Torrance Memorial in her estate planning as part of the hospital’s Planned Giving Program. This initiative allows individuals to create a legacy through wills, trusts or other planned gifts, ensuring future generations receive the same compassionate care both she and George received. These gifts not only support vital hospital programs and advancements but can also provide financial benefits to donors, such as tax advantages and income during retirement.
“The care I received for both my cancer treatments—and that George benefited from—was tremendous,” she says. “I am forever grateful.”
