Alfred and Harriet have lived on a 2.5 acre property on lower slope of Squak Mountain for about 25 years. When they were younger, Alfred was quite handy in fixing up the out-buildings and maintaining the property; Harriet loved gardening, and enjoyed having enough room for growing lots of flowers and vegetables.
Age has taken its toll, however, on both of them. Alfred, now in his early 80s, has dementia; Harriet, a few years younger, has been acting as his caregiver. As Alfred's condition worsened, Harriet was rapidly becoming overwhelmed. Over several months, Faith in Action worked with Harriet, helping her connect to resources in the community so not only could he get the care he required, but her own needs could be met, too.
Their situation has now stabilized - while Alfred's dementia is severe, a professional caretaker now comes in and helps Harriet with her husband. Harriet, who walks with a cane, has qualified for ACCESS, and she can use that service to get out of the house, to shopping and other services. The couple can continue to live in the home they've been in for so many years.
The only piece missing for Harriet was her garden. While she can't do the same work outdoors like she used to, she still enjoys her flowers. A Faith in Action volunteer who loves gardening was assigned to the couple, only doing work outside. But with such a large property, a single yardwork volunteer is not quite enough, and staff identified the Twitchells as being folks who also could use the help of the Arizona teens when they were here.
The 28 teenagers divided into 
small groups to tackle different projects at the Twitchells'. Some washed windows. A few others powered up the pressure washer and hosed down the walk. More washed the Twitchells' old pick-up truck - while no one drives it any more, by keeping it looking clean, it appears that someone is using it regularly, and makes the couple less vulnerable as a target for crime. Other teens weeded and clipped down overgrown grass. Another set rebuilt the scarecrow. Alfred's dementia is such that he is often suspicious of strangers, but while he was seated outside, drinking lemonade, he enjoyed the teens that stopped by to chat.
small groups to tackle different projects at the Twitchells'. Some washed windows. A few others powered up the pressure washer and hosed down the walk. More washed the Twitchells' old pick-up truck - while no one drives it any more, by keeping it looking clean, it appears that someone is using it regularly, and makes the couple less vulnerable as a target for crime. Other teens weeded and clipped down overgrown grass. Another set rebuilt the scarecrow. Alfred's dementia is such that he is often suspicious of strangers, but while he was seated outside, drinking lemonade, he enjoyed the teens that stopped by to chat.It was a splendid day, with gorgeous weather, and after their hard work, the teens scattered over the grass to eat a picnic lunch. They then packed up, loaded back in their motor coach, and headed into Seattle for fun.
Harriet was thrilled with the work the kids did. But I think she was even more thrilled with just having all the company and commotion. The Twitchells live in a relatively isolated location - having so many visitors just made her day. "I just loved having this youth group come" she reported. "It was so fun having them here. I hope you can find more young people who are interested in helping folks like us - that would be super!"
Thank you, Hebrew High Care-a-Van teens, for working on the behalf of our clients - and thank you to all our Faith in Action supporters, who make it possible for us to arrange these kinds of volunteer projects for our youth and elders.
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Awesome pics of a great day. Thanks for sharing these!
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