A few words from Gary:

Today's world of innovative technology, especially digital electronics, offers all sorts of wonderful methods for increasing the independence of those we care for.  

This piece introduces you to our wonderful "Grandma G" and some of the things we did to facilitate her self-care.  

We would appreciate your SUBMISSION of ideas and products you have found helpful.  

To her friends, she was known as Edna J, and respected as Michigan's foremost authority on button collecting.  To us kids, she was always "Grandma G", maker of sandwiches created with extremes of dark brown sugar, thick coverings of creamery butter all wrapped up in fresh from the oven, warm, white bread.   

She had always been an independent soul.  Her assertiveness and directness was apparent in her recognition as Michigan's first licensed female mortician. 

Grandma G (left) with her sister, Aunt Ella

Then in 1936, she broke with "housewife" tradition and shocked the community. The Midnight Flyer (express passenger train) made a special stop in Laingsburg to pick up Edna, and she traveled all the way to California by herself to spend six months with her sister.  I have always wondered what Granddad did during her absence.

After Granddad's death, she comfortably spent the next 30 years living by herself, taking Arthur Murray dance lessons and touring the world with her dance instructor.  

Grandmother G and her dancing instructor.

How dare we think, just because she was getting older, she would ever want to live someplace else or change her home, in spite of her 90 years and her continually fluctuating blood pressure.  Living three hours away, there wasn't much we could do for her, other than our monthly visits and weekly phone calls.  

Grandma G did have Katie, her high school student.  She did Grandma's house work, ran some errands and served as her afternoon companion (provided the Tigers weren't playing, as they totally occupied her interest). 

We were actually expecting that call from Katie.  She had arrived to find Grandma G unconscious in the bathtub.  She had apparently gone to the bathroom and while getting up, she had passed out and fallen into the tub.  Katie had called the emergency number, and Grandma G was transported to the local hospital with sirens and flashers operational, personal intrusions that Grandmother deeply resented.    

The doctor blamed the fall on her blood pressure and put her on some new meds.  She was pretty badly bruised up from her fall but would recover without difficulty. 

Grandma G's house when she and Grandpa served as the local morticians (note hearse in driveway)

I think Grandmother knew the jig was up and there would have to be some changes made if she were to continue living alone in her home.  So, before her discharge, we began to gently acclimate her to her new way of life . . . not an easy task given her 90 years of independence and her "in charge" German blood.  

First to go was a dumpster full of throw rugs that literally covered every path she traversed in that big old house.   Her arguments were strong against this safety precaution, given her need to preserve her flooring rather than herself.   We pointed out that her limited trips through her house in the next few years would not wear out the carpeting in the living room or the linoleum in the kitchen. They had already lasted 30 years!  

The next "extravagance" was a portable telephone.  She was still using the dial wall phone installed in the kitchen 25 years earlier, necessitating a 30' walk anytime someone called when she was sitting in the living room.   We programmed it with 911 and the neighbor's phone number.  A little belt with a pouch was made so she would have it with her at all times.  

Grandmother loved the beautiful maples that enclosed her house.  In the fall, she would have us pull her chair next to the window so she could watch the colors fall.

 The major remodeling scene was the bathroom.  She saw no reason to " ditch a perfectly good sink, stool, and tub", just because they had more than 30 year's worth of stain created by the strong corrosive qualities of her well water.   We finally convinced her that we could do it ourselves and at least avoid the cost of the carpenter and plumber. 

First went the old tub.  She only used the shower head anyhow, and it was very difficult for her to get in and out.  We replaced it with a walk in shower that had a large bench in one end,   shelves for all her bath gear, grab bars conveniently located, and a hand held shower head. 

After that, we were surprised to hear her again and again remark about the marvel of that shower.  To her, the experience of using that convenience was far superior to even the new TV (with its remote) that allowed her to actually read the numbers on the players' uniforms. 

Grab bars were also placed around the toilet, meaning she no long had to reach for the flimsy towel bar when she stood up. 

We also attacked the kitchen.  The way that kitchen was set up, one would have thought she had been cooking for the Camp Pendelton Marines for the past 30 years.  We found tin baking soda containers and other odds and ends that  the Smithsonian would have given their eye teeth to obtain.  These historical odds and ends filled her cupboards.  

The cupboards were emptied and reorganized.  The first shelves of the cupboards (within easy reach) between the sink, stove and refrigerator were dedicated to the few pots, pans, dishes and food stuffs she used everyday.  The doors from those cupboards were removed. 

We introduced her to the convenience of a small microwave for cooking her frozen dinners.  "By gum" she said as she was blown away by being able to heat her instant coffee water in two minutes.  

A trip to the hardware store yielded a wonderful cart with wheels that she could load up at the refrigerator and move to the counter and stove to prepare her meal.  Then she could wheel her prepared meal to the table, and afterwards take her dishes to the sink.   We also moved the kitchen table closer to the food preparation area. 

Then we got her a small walker with wheels and a basket.  She could easily take it on the porch to get the mail.  We put a flat board in the bottom of the basket, and she found she could take her morning coffee and toast to her living room chair in one trip instead of two.  

We had worried for years about her stairs to the second floor where she kept all her hobbies.  While she did not go upstairs often, she refused to let go of journeying into her piles of junk from time to time. 

She had formed the habit of storing things on those stairs.   They were also dark and covered with a heavy carpet.  We removed the carpet and she was extremely excited (with our encouragement) to find beautiful oak treads underneath.  She argued, but we won and placed alternating strips of yellow and orange tape on the steps.  Another hand rail was put up so there was one on both sides and higher wattage bulbs were installed to increase the visibility.

Grandmother G preferred the red tinted leaves of the maple by the driveway over the yellows and golds of the other maples that protected her home.

In the bedroom, we convinced her to give up the double bed for a twin that was easier for her to make.   We positioned it just inside the door, reducing the number of steps for her bathroom trips during the night.  

We also removed the closet door for easier access and lowered the rod, making it easier for her to reach her clothes. 

In addition, we placed several hooks just inside the closet so she could easily hang her robe, night clothes and house dresses, without the hassle of clothes hangers.  

We reorganized her other clothing so that daily items were located in the top two drawers and her shoes and slippers on top of the dresser
.

Our final step was to arrange a signal system with the next door neighbor.  At night, when Grandma G went to bed, she would turn on a small light in the window to signal that she was OK.  Then in the morning, when she got up, she would turn it off, indicating to the neighbor that she was up and functioning for the day.  

After the "make over", we would visit from time to time and put things back in order for her, along with "refining" her new methods for living life.  

She loved to answer the portable phone from her chair and enjoyed demonstrating her dexterity with the TV remote.  She also prided herself with her capacity to pull a frozen meal from the refrigerator, and with the help of her microwave, fix  dinner for us, as she had always enjoyed being the hostess.    

Grandmother continued to live in that home for 3 more years before a stroke necessitated her placement in a nursing home, which by the way, she "ran" and thrived on the attention she got from the staff. 

She lived until her 96th year.  While she did not achieve her final goal of having Ernie Harwell announce her 100th birthday during a Tiger ball game, she did live a very full life, and she enriched the lives of all of us who shared her enthusiasm and her desire to make this world a better place in which to live.  

And our thanks to Grandma G for introducing us to the unbelievable experience of sandwiches made from dark brown sugar, creamery butter and fresh from the oven, warm bread.  

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