'FaceTime for Nana' is easing isolation for elders in SouthCoast nursing homes

Mar. 29--Sarah Firth was scanning through her newsfeed on Facebook recently when something caught her attention.

It was an image of an adult daughter standing outside the window of her mother's room at a nursing home, holding a white board as her only means of communication.

"It made me cry,' said Firth, a nurse with New Bedford Public Schools. "I thought these poor people in the nursing homes; they're so scared and isolated. I wish I could get a bunch of iPads to give to them."

Once her husband, Peter, assured Firth that iPads would be able to connect those in nursing homes with their loved ones through FaceTime, Firth reached out to her friend, Jill Valadao, to see if she was interested in starting a fundraiser together.

Valadao, a speech therapist, jumped at the opportunity to help.

"I work with geriatrics and home care. I worked in a nursing home for years before this," said the Dartmouth resident. "When this started, the focus was on how local kids were going to get fed with schools closed and that's been taken care of.

"The people in nursing homes get forgotten. Out of sight is out of mind. I remember when I worked in a nursing home the patients with dementia, they're used to seeing their families every day and it's troubling if they don't. Your heart breaks for those people."

When Valadao created the Facebook fundraiser page "FaceTime for Nana" on St. Patrick's Day, the goal was to raise $300, enough for one iPad. As of Friday afternoon, they had raised more than $3,000.

"We thought maybe we can get enough money for one iPad for one nursing home. When we started it, we had hoped for more, but you never know with fundraising," said Firth, a Dartmouth resident. "It's just kind of grown. It was a small act of kindness and it's grown into something bigger. In a world now where everyone is fending for themselves, you have to keep doing stuff for others."

Valadao was pleasantly surprised with the support from the community.

"It brings out the good in people," she said. "Just to see the people who are donating, it takes your breath away. Some people are giving $300. It's uniting people."

The first three iPads were carefully delivered by Firth and Valadao Friday morning to Autumn Glen's memory unit in Dartmouth and Alden Court Nursing Care and Royal of Fairhaven Nursing Center in Fairhaven.

"We each took our own car to be socially responsible," Firth said. "The staff person from each site met us outside and we handed it over. We had gloves on and wiped down the packages right as we handed them over. We did a quick drop off. It was just really great."

The response has been amazing.

Later that morning Firth got a message from Alden Court activity director Sharon Jensen thanking them on behalf of the residents and staff for the new iPad.

The message on Alden Court's Facebook page read:

"During such a difficult time, these sweet gestures literally make the residents days. Yesterday more than 75 face time calls were made to families at Alden. This process has kept our families connected and reassured that their loved one is safe and content. The residents get a kick out of the technology and share a few laughs/smiles when they see their loved one on the ipad.

Our goal is to find positive things to keep the resident spirits up and this is one of the many good things happening. Today, the residents and the staff will be receiving performances from local young performers donating their time and their talents to present mini concerts for the residents VIA FACE TIME. The Ipad gift was a blessing today. So thank you Sarah for thinking of Alden Court."

"They were so grateful," Valadao said. "I feel like there's some stigma with screen time, but now people are using it for good during these uncertain times. I like to see the positive in all of it. This technology is connecting people."

Firth said she hopes this will provide some comfort to those who can't be with their loved ones.

"I just want to say elderly people are vulnerable as it is, COVID-19 aside," she said. "Especially those suffering from dementia and Alzheimers, they feel isolated already. We thought seeing a familiar face might make them feel connected."

To donate, search FaceTime for Nana! on Facebook or visit https://www.facebook.com/donate/214767643067996/.

Follow Laurie Los Lee on Twitter @LaurieLosSCT.

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