We know that during the COVID-19 pandemic, many of our clients have struggled mentally due to the impacts of social isolation and lack of connection to the outside world. We’ve tried our best to do little extras in hopes that it will lift their spirits. For Mother’s Day, we delivered teddy bears to our clients along with their meal!
Among those clients was Lisa, an 89-year old woman who lives in a senior’s home within the city. Lisa uses a walker and isn’t able to leave her home without someone to accompany her. Her doctor said that her risk of falling is too great to go out alone. Lisa always looks forward to going on walks with other residents accompanying her or the days her daughter takes her shopping, but she hasn’t been able to do either since the pandemic hit. It’s been months since Lisa has left her home. Without her regular outings and visits, she feels lonely, isolated, and disconnected.
Lisa was overjoyed when she received a teddy bear for Mother’s Day. She called us a few days afterwards in tears. “I can’t even talk right now because I’m so emotional. Thank you for the beautiful gift that you sent today. You know, I feel so lonely and isolated here”, she told us sorrowfully. Lisa explained that she put her new teddy bear that she named Joey on her walker and said, “I’ll take you everywhere and take care of you!” We called Lisa a few weeks later to see how she was coping. She proudly told us that she had placed a pink bear next to Joey so that he had a friend! In spite of the pandemic, Lisa remains optimistic. “I just try to keep some routine”, she says, “and it is nice to know that there are people like you looking out for me.” We applaud Lisa for her positive outlook and are so happy that we were able to brighten her day!
Thank you to Santas Anonymous for providing us with the teddy bears!
