At 96, Evelyn Macy sparked her life by getting her ears pierced. But getting there was not a straight path. Kristine, a registered nurse who has been Evelyn’s Life Care Manager for the past three years, shared that Evelyn is a stoic and serious woman.
As part of the regular Lifespark Experience discovery, Kristine learned that Evelyn lost her mother at 13 and had to leave school to care for her younger siblings and their farm. “I asked her how she survived, endured, and thrived,” said Kristine. “Evelyn replied: ‘always hard work.’ She’s lived such a hard life, first raising her siblings and now living with chronic pain that it had me thinking there must be something I can do to help her shine.”
So Kristine asked: “If you could do anything outside of the building today, what would it be?” Her response: shoe shopping! So off they went to Macy’s to buy a really cool pair of tennis shoes and then to the Cheesecake Factory where she enjoyed a slice of banana cream cheesecake. After Evelyn began to relax a bit more at the mall, she turned to Kristine and said, ‘I’d like to get my ears pierced.” Without hesitating, Kristine took her to Claire’s where Evelyn reveled in all the attention and they laughed trying on all the sunglasses. “Knowing Evelyn, I thought she would choose earrings that were a little more cautious,” laughed Kristine. “But no, she said to me, ‘I think we need to go a little bigger.’”
The spark continued. Evelyn started to become more social especially in the dining room at Parkshore, a senior housing community where SilverCrest has partnered with Lifespark to bring its Lifespark Experience to residents. “She loved to show off her new earrings as friends ‘oohed and ahhed’ over them,” said Kristine. “It was wonderful to watch. This experience ignited something within Evelyn and she’s more relaxed.”
It also changed their relationship. “She now likes to talk with me about things other than her pain,” said Kristine. “Because of that one joyful outing we shared, we are getting to know each other on a very different level and it’s wonderful for both of us.” Evelyn knows now that despite her medical issues, she still has it in her to go out and have fun. And enjoy her newfound sparkle.
