I had the opportunity a few years ago to provide case management for a wonderful family. I’ll call them Bob and Bonnie Smith. They lived in a small home in a nice quiet neighborhood in Omaha. During my monthly visits to their home, Bob was always excited to show me his World War II photos. He had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s several years earlier. His wife had framed his beloved photos of him in his uniform and with the plane he had piloted during the war.
I spent time with Bonnie discussing issues that came up each month. The big issue that we hadn’t accomplished was giving Bonnie a break from being a caregiver. She had been hesitant using an agency to “sit” with him. She didn’t want him to just sit and watch TV. She finally agreed it was important and we would both write down any ideas and talk about them next week.
As I drove to my office that day, I remembered how Bonnie said that Bob loved to play golf. She said his golf buddies wouldn’t play golf with him anymore because he was too slow. I couldn’t forget that, it seemed so sad. I then remembered a conversation I had with a neighbor, Nick, age 17, who was on a high school golf team. Nick stated he was trying to earn money to buy new golf clubs. I discussed the idea of a job with Nick’s mother; she gave me permission to ask him if he would be interested.
Nick called me and we discussed Mr. Smith and his diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. Nick was agreeable to visiting with the Smith Family to see if we could get the golf outings started.
A couple of days later we met with Bob and Bonnie. Bob seemed excited to have someone to show his war pictures to, but also seemed pleased to know that Nick was in JROTC. Bob and Bonnie both agreed that Nick could go golfing with Bob. Two days later, Bonnie drove Bob to Elmwood Park and rented a cart and left Nick and Bob to spend the afternoon golfing. Nick called her when they were finished and she picked up Bob and they invited Nick out for ice cream.
Bonnie trusted Nick and all seemed to go well. Bonnie was able to run errands, or just take a nap. Nick and Bob played golf for eight months that year, sometimes two to three times per week. Nick earned enough money to buy a new set of golf clubs and Bob helped him pick out some “decent” golf shoes. They said their goodbyes as Nick left for college that fall. Within the month, Bob became ill and weak. Nick e-mailed me to see how he was doing and said he missed his talks with Bob. Nick and I talked about how important that summer of golf was for Bob. Nick said it was a special summer for him too. Bob died the following week, Nick sobbed on the phone as I told him. Nick did drive back for the funeral.
I will always remember that wonderful family and how a simple case management suggestion changed so many lives.
