Troy Shantz
The care and compassion Georgie Cossitt received from the Alzheimer’s Society of Sarnia-Lambton had a huge impact on her last days, her son says.
During twice weekly respite care visits, Cossitt and personal support worker Sue Jones would go for walks, make arts and crafts, and they would cook together — a hobby Cossitt had to give up after being diagnosed with dementia.
“She was able to do all these things that she loved to do but couldn’t do anymore,” Roy Cossitt Jr. said of his mother, a former teacher.
“My mom looked forward to it so my dad didn’t have to worry at all; he had his life.”
Society spokesperson Marie Marcy-Smids said the respite program is designed to temporarily relieve care partners, who sometimes need to be with their loved one 24-7.
The Society’s support was essential to the late Roy Cossitt Sr., Georgie’s husband, who maintained an active community life into his 80s.
During Jones’ home visits, he would run errands, meet friends for coffee, or attend the regular Golden K Kiwanis Club meetings.
“With how difficult it can be sometimes with Alzheimer’s, it was a relief. More than just a relief I guess,” said their son.
“She was more than being looked after. She was very happy and looked forward to seeing Sue.”
In fact, Georgie Cossitt always showed signs of improvement following the visits, he said.
Cossitt Sr., a former Polysar engineer, died in 2018 and his wife passed last February.
But the support they received from the Alzheimer’s Society was so appreciated by Roy Cossitt Sr. he arranged to bequest a $10,000 donation.
Roy Cossitt Jr. said he hopes his father’s contribution will inspire others to do the same.
“For a stoic man like him to say that’s where he wanted his money to go to, it says a lot,” he said. “That would be a very emotional thing for him.”
About 3,000 seniors in Sarnia-Lambton live with dementia, Marcy-Smids said.
The Society offers therapy sessions, support groups, respite and counselling to clients and their families or care partners. It employs nearly a dozen specially trained PSWs in the respite program, as well as councillors and therapists, she said.
Each year, society representatives normally make more than 11,000 in-home visits to about 900 clients, Marcy-Smids added.