It’s a wonderful service and one that I’d never experienced before from somebody outside the family’
Two years ago, Roy and his wife Jeanette used to regularly go out for coffee and a stroll. But that stopped when Roy’s dementia made it hard for him to get out of the house.
Roy’s dementia affected his balance, so daily tasks like taking a shower became a challenge. The morning routine he used to have - getting up, taking a shower and seizing the day – just wasn’t happening.
“I tended to spend a lot of time lying around. Not sleeping, but just lying there thinking. And when you’re my age, you’ve got a hell of a lot to think about,” said Roy.
While trying to find a way out of this predicament, Jeanette heard about Arvida Good Friends.
“It was suggested to me that perhaps they could come and help Roy have a shower. I thought ‘he wouldn’t do that’, so I thought I won’t tell him and somebody will just come,” said Jeanette.
Jeanette’s strategy worked and now Roy gets help with his morning routine, which means the couple find it easier to go on excursions. Sometimes Jeanette calls on the Arvida Good Friends service to arrange a car with a driver.
“I can just ring and say I’d like to go into the city or I’d like to be at the art gallery. Apart from anything else, you don’t have to find a park. Somebody else does all the parking!”
Roy sums it up like this: “It’s a perfect name. Good Friends are good friends. If you’ve got a problem, they will solve it.”
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Read The Goh family's storyNot only is there someone looking after Dad, but also someone who can give Mum a bit of her own ‘me’ time.