This morning something I feared looked like it was happening. Everything turned out ok; but I still have a knot in my stomach.
We have an elderly lady who lives alone next door in a rundown house. It's technically a double wide trailer; but it's been anchored in place for a long time. It's in terrible shape. The woman's health has deteriorated over the last few years to where she isn't driving and it looks like she has been getting some kind of services or home care. She has a daughter in the area and a grandson that I don't know a current location on.
Her house really is bad and she is not in a position to repair it. It needs siding, a new roof and trim at a minimum. Birds actually nest in the soffit and fascia along the back and sides of her house. She uses a space heater for heat and that alone scares me. DH and other neighbors have patched holes in the side of the house, fixed light fixtures, etc. She is very proud of owning her own property and talks about leaving it to her children. I think it also has ties to her late husband and her independence.
We were hit by the blizzard last weekend. Before the storm came DH called her twice and left messages trying to see if she was planning to be home for the storm; and letting her know that if we lost power he would come get her since we have a wood stove. Her driveway still hasn't been plowed out so we assumed she went to her daughters.
Fast forward a week; I walked into the kitchen this morning and there was a police car in the road with lights on. The trooper was talking to our neighbor across the street. My heart hit my stomach. I went outside with sopping wet hair and no coat to get my mail. At that point other neighbors started showing up while the officer and eventually 2 others responded and spent time banging on the windows. One neighbor was calling hospitals. The neighbor across the street called for a welfare check because he noticed she hasn't been in her doorway like usual and he hadn't heard from her either. Eventually they were able to get into her home and no one was there. I was so relieved.
But I'm kicking myself for not having more contact information for her. One other neighbor even walked down the street to the home of the person who cuts her grass; but no one was home there. None of us have her daughter's name or phone number. Apparently several of us do check in on her. It scares me to see her alone there; but we try to respect her wishes and dignity too. The neighbor across the street was convinced she had passed alone at home. He was pretty upset. The different neighbors I have met have known her for +30 years. Because we all have decent size properties; I had never met most of these people. (I'm not exactly known for being outgoing either.
)
Going forward; I'm going to do more to be prepared for this kind of situation. I will ask for emergency contact information for her at least. I would like to at least put faces and names to our other neighbors. We've only really gotten to know the people on either side of us. I've always been concerned if something should happen to her. I feel guilty for assuming she was ok.
We have an elderly lady who lives alone next door in a rundown house. It's technically a double wide trailer; but it's been anchored in place for a long time. It's in terrible shape. The woman's health has deteriorated over the last few years to where she isn't driving and it looks like she has been getting some kind of services or home care. She has a daughter in the area and a grandson that I don't know a current location on.
Her house really is bad and she is not in a position to repair it. It needs siding, a new roof and trim at a minimum. Birds actually nest in the soffit and fascia along the back and sides of her house. She uses a space heater for heat and that alone scares me. DH and other neighbors have patched holes in the side of the house, fixed light fixtures, etc. She is very proud of owning her own property and talks about leaving it to her children. I think it also has ties to her late husband and her independence.
We were hit by the blizzard last weekend. Before the storm came DH called her twice and left messages trying to see if she was planning to be home for the storm; and letting her know that if we lost power he would come get her since we have a wood stove. Her driveway still hasn't been plowed out so we assumed she went to her daughters.
Fast forward a week; I walked into the kitchen this morning and there was a police car in the road with lights on. The trooper was talking to our neighbor across the street. My heart hit my stomach. I went outside with sopping wet hair and no coat to get my mail. At that point other neighbors started showing up while the officer and eventually 2 others responded and spent time banging on the windows. One neighbor was calling hospitals. The neighbor across the street called for a welfare check because he noticed she hasn't been in her doorway like usual and he hadn't heard from her either. Eventually they were able to get into her home and no one was there. I was so relieved.
But I'm kicking myself for not having more contact information for her. One other neighbor even walked down the street to the home of the person who cuts her grass; but no one was home there. None of us have her daughter's name or phone number. Apparently several of us do check in on her. It scares me to see her alone there; but we try to respect her wishes and dignity too. The neighbor across the street was convinced she had passed alone at home. He was pretty upset. The different neighbors I have met have known her for +30 years. Because we all have decent size properties; I had never met most of these people. (I'm not exactly known for being outgoing either.
Going forward; I'm going to do more to be prepared for this kind of situation. I will ask for emergency contact information for her at least. I would like to at least put faces and names to our other neighbors. We've only really gotten to know the people on either side of us. I've always been concerned if something should happen to her. I feel guilty for assuming she was ok.