Connections That Last
A few days ago, someone came to reception at Bethany Corporate and asked for me. It was a former fundraising campaign committee member that I worked within the early 2000s. He had seen my name on something around Bethany and I’m so glad he stopped by to say hello.
We worked together on a small fundraising campaign in Calgary and lost touch after that. I asked him how he was doing these days and I learned that his wife is now a resident at Bethany Riverview. He talked to me about how difficult it was for him to make the decision to move her into care. Her dementia just became too difficult to manage on his own.
His eyes sparkled as he told me how wonderful the care team at Bethany has been to both of them, and how much that has eased his mind. His wife was an accomplished writer. Having her words and language, that have been so important to her, slip away during the course of the disease was incredibly difficult. She was angry a lot of the time. These days when my friend comes to visit her, she’s often smiling and interacting with her caregivers. They make her feel special.
Relationships can slip away, too, during the busy-ness of our lives. His visit was a good reminder to me to take the time to stay connected. Whether it’s old friends, new friends or work colleagues…we never really know what people are going through until we take the time to pause, connect, and ask “How are you doing these days?”
Hope you’re having a great week. Thanks for all you do.
— Gail
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