The 12 km journey to Grandma Li’s home

Zhang Yu-Xuan (張育瑄) is a care worker from the southern district office of Mennonite Christian Hospital. One of her clients in Zhuoxi Township is 80-year-old Grandma Li, who has lost the vision in both of her eyes. With poor mobility and living together with her elderly husband, Grandma Li’s closest neighbor is 12 km away. In need of constant care, she relies on Zhang Yu-Xuan’s three weekly care visits to assist her with bathing and various other general everyday matters. Conditions in the elderly couple’s tin-roofed house are far from ideal, and with other family members all trying to make a living, with regards to caring for two elderly relatives, it’s a case of, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is week.”

Hualian’s southern district has close to 12,000 elderly residents and many vulnerable residents living alone require not only health care, but also help with various other aspects of living. Founded in 1997, Mennonite Social Welfare Foundation began providing community care to the county’s elderly residents. In 2005, the foundation rented an office in Yuli, the southern end of Hualian, providing care workers and various other services to the community. Nevertheless, in order to ensure the resources needed to take care of vulnerable sections of the community in Hualian’s outlying areas are adequate, the investment and compassionate assistance from people in all social circles is essential.  

The 12 km journey to Grandma Li’s home

URL:https://www.peopo.org/news/245627

以下是中文對照

關於黎阿嬤家的十二公里路

照片

張育瑄是花蓮門諾醫院南區中心的照服員，她在卓溪鄉有一位服務的對象黎阿嬤已近80歲，阿嬤雙眼失明、行動困難、與阿公同住，跟她最近的一戶鄰居相距有十二公里遠。缺乏照應的生活，靠著張育瑄每周三次到宅服務，協助洗澡等生活事宜。兩位長輩住的是鐵皮屋，生活條件並不好，家人也出外謀生，對照顧兩老實在是心有餘而力不足。

花蓮南區將近有12000位長輩，在當中獨居的弱勢長輩除了健康上的看顧之外，生活上也普遍需要協助，門諾基金會在民國86年成立，開始投入縣內居家年長者的照顧工作。並於民國94年在花蓮南端玉里鎮租用辦公室成為在地服務中心，提供各式居家與社區的服務。儘管如此，花東偏鄉的弱勢照顧資源仍然需要各界的投入與愛心幫助。