Stories of Service

A Thank You to Her Mother's Senior Companion

Barb W. Senior Companion

Senior Companions - Gratiot, Isabella, Clare Counties

Life is about many things and transition is certainly one of them.  Life changing events come for all of us and one of the major life transitions is when a parent comes to live in one’s home.  Having recently been in that position, I am even more aware of how good it is to know community resources.  Caregivers worry about parents having to make a move from state to state, getting to know a new home and making new friends.  I tried to make my 92 year old mother’s move to Michigan a smooth one: making her bedroom look like the one she had at her home; putting up lots of family pictures; making sure friends and neighbors visited to welcome her.  All of those things were very helpful but I know in my heart that the person who helped the most was her Senior Companion.  Even though my mother’s memory was failing, she still enjoyed playing hours of Gin Rummy and her Senior Companion spent hours each week playing cards with her.  When my mother’s memory continued to fail, the Senior Companion still played cards, though the rules went by the way and sometimes the game looked nothing like Gin Rummy.  You see, my mother loved playing cards but more important was the one-on-one contact with another person outside the family who not only played her favorite card game but laughed with her and made her feel special.  Fact is my mother wasn’t the only one who relied on the Senior Companion.  I relied on her also and knew my mother was in the best of hands.  Transitions aren’t always easy but our Senior Companion made all the difference!