May, 2023
Evelyn was in her late 50s/early 60s when she was brought to the hospital for severe leg pain. This was the beginning of a painful odyssey which resulted in her moving into a nursing facility in New York City and was told she would never again live on her own.
Eventually, she moved to a facility in Wilmington, N.C. to be closer to her children and grandchildren. But she never felt comfortable having them visit her at a skilled nursing facility. She loved the nursing home staff, but wanted her own home.
A social worker told her about the Money Follows the Person Program. By that time, she had been living in nursing homes for seven years. With the help of MFP and the New Hanover CAP/DA Waiver program, she was able to move into her own home.
“I was a little scared of the world now because I’m in a chair now and the world looks go big,” she said. “But I’m in a lovely place, a little house with a garden.
“It was a huge adjustment from going, going, going (before the illness) to sitting in a wheelchair. I thank God that I can make little things to eat and appreciate the sun, the garden, the people around me.”
Evelyn says her goals are modest – to see her grandchildren grow into teenagers, to sit in her garden, maybe to get a computer and learn to drive again.
In addition to helping her, Evelyn believes Money Follows the Person provided a special inheritance for her family.
“I want my children, my grandchildren, my great-grandchildren to never give up,” she said. “I want to leave that legacy behind."
