Thank you for letting me share your journey Cathy Jensen... Big Hugs :) My Journey with Alzheimers disease was read by my sister, April Max at the 2009 Kankakee Memory Walk. I will always remember April what you did for me that day, as I was too emotional to read it. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Love you, Cathy My name is Cathy Jensen. I would like to share with you this morning my Journey With Alzheimers Disease. I want to introduce you to someone very special to me and my family. My mom, Susanna Bugni. (Larissa holds up an 8x10 picture of mom). This picture was taken on one of the happiest days in my life. My mom came down to Kankakee to live with my brother Mike, and his wife Linda. It was taken in July of 2006. Mike and Linda took mom into their home. I will always be so grateful to Mike & Linda for taking on this huge challenge. I was blessed to have my mom in my life for 46 years. Mom was my best friend. It seemed that I could finish her sentences when she was having diffficulty with her speech. Mom was a very loving and compassionate woman. She loved to do things for people. Mom had five children. We are all very different and mom never compared any of us kids and always knew we were all indivduals. My dad died when I was five years old and I dont really remember dad much. Mom was like a mom and dad to me. I remember one time in the 5th grade, back then everyone had two parents. It wasnt that I thought that I was the only kid in the class without a dad, I was the only kid in the class with a mom who was also my dad! I still remember sitting there that day smiling. Our lives changed forever in 1995...Our family began our journey with Alzheimers disease. We had begun to notice changes in mom. We noticed when mom was on the phone, she would ask the same questions over again. When she would come down from Wakefield, Michigan to visit, I noticed that mom couldnt remember where small things were like the glasses, cups, silverware, towels in the bathroom, etc. Mom started to keep a notebook and she wrote down when people called, when she called them, bills, everything was in that notebook. If she misplaced it, she would get extremely upset. In the early 1980s, mom worked at St. Marys Hospital here in Kankakee on 3-West as a nurses aid. Mom was a people person. She loved her job. When mom first moved down here with Mike & Linda, mom went to the nursing home for daycare. They assigned guardian angels to each resident. Moms guardian angel was named Loretta LaBrec and what a guardian angel she was. Mom would want to go home every single day. Mom would ask Loretta to call someone to come and pick her up and take her home. Loretta would always find things for mom to do. I always knew mom was safe there. I feel Loretta is like an old sister and I love her for all the things she did for mom. She was truly moms guardian angel. Even after the Alzheimers disease had progressed and mom was in the nursing home, mom still thought she was working at St. Marys Hospital and would try and help with the residents on the Alzheimers Unit. The staff were so kind to mom. They would let mom give the residents water when the nurses passed out medications, or they would let me clean off and wipe down the tables after a meal. Mom never stopped. She was always on the go. I have met a great many people who helped take care of mom. Many days, it was frustrating for her caregivers at the nursing home as mom would try to escape to go home. I called mom our escape artist. I will never forget the staff how so many of them in the last few months of moms life would take mom for walks. These were very loving and compassionate people. My mom has taught me many things in life; one is honesty and to always treat people with respect and kindness. Alzheimers disease has made me a stronger person. I dont take life for granted. I dont know where I would be right now if it wasnt for my husband, Bruce, my family and friends. I would like to tell you a little about our Memory Walk T-Shirts for our RMC Memory Makers team. The white teddy bear on the front of the T-shirt in in memory/honor of moms teddy bear collection. Mom had over 200 teddy bears. The names listed on the back of our T-shirt are the names of loved ones who have either died, or are living with Alzheimers disease. Mom passed away on December 25, 2008....in honor and to celebrate her life, Ive put together a gift basket to raffle off today, to help raise a few more dollars to assist in research, man help lines, and provide education and training to better prepare those who are faced with Alzheimers disease. Raffle tickets can be purchased there on the table. We must always remember to be kind and loving to our loved ones, thats how they would have treated you. They still need our love, compassion, and touching. I remember looking into my moms eyes and knowing she didnt know me. I would just give her a big hug and kiss. I want to leave you with my personal message to you if youre a family member with a loved one who has Alzheimers disease, or a professional caregiver, nurse, who cares for patients, residents, or if youre a family member who has a loved one with Alzheimers, always treat your loved one with respect and dignity. Even when mom didnt know me, I always knew every day that mom still loved me. My life changed forever on Christmas Day of 2008. There isnt a day that doesnt go by that I dont think of mom. When I look at moms picture, she makes me smile. My Journey With Alzheimers Disease, by Cathy Jensen
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 00:45:53 +0000
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