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Spotlight September 2005
Mary Lynn's Story
Mary Lynn is a 64-year-old woman with Multiple Sclerosis who started working on nursing home transition with IndependenceFirst in March of 2000. She had entered River Hills West Nursing Home in 1998 because her family had decided this was the best place for her to be. Mary Lynn decided in March of 2000 that she no longer wanted to live at River Hills West Nursing Home. She wanted a place of her own. That's when she called IndependenceFirst.
IndependenceFirst staff assisted Mary Lynn in accessing housing, personal care and legal services. She also was able to get funding from Waukesha County for adaptive equipment through our advocacy efforts. On December 1st, 2001, Mary Lynn was able to move out of River Hills West to her new apartment in Waukesha.
Mary Lynn is still living in her own apartment at this present time. She was a bit fearful about how she would cope with life when she first moved out of the nursing home, but she is now so happy and very involved in the community in Waukesha. She plays cards at her apartment complex on a weekly basis. She runs bingo every Saturday at River Hills Nursing Home. She volunteers at the Pregnancy Help Center weekly. She assists an elderly man in the community with crossword puzzles. She attends the Stroke Club at Waukesha Memorial Hospital monthly and participates in activities through the MS Society in Waukesha. She is also very active with her church and attends plays at the Waukesha Civic Theatre. She is also interested in joining the ADA Advocacy Team at IndependenceFirst because she would like to make restaurants and other places in Waukesha more accessible. She also wants to be a Peer Mentor assisting others in nursing homes with their transition. She is a very active and happy person.
Mary Lynn is a positive example of coming "full circle"-first being helped by staff at IndependenceFirst, and now wanted to help others through volunteering at IndependenceFirst's programs.