Success
Story
Downsizing at 94!
EPS moved a lovely,
ninety-four year old lady from her home of many
years to a seniors’ residence, on a trial
basis. She had been living in the family home with
the assistance of a caregiver. Her only son lived
out of province, and although they were very close
and he visited as often as possible, she felt very
lonely. The decision to downsize was filled with
emotion and doubt for her.
The experiment was a success! Moving to the senior’s
residence opened up a new world for her. She met
many new people and happily participated in the
activities offered by the residence staff. A month
later, she decided the new living arrangement
worked well for her, and it was time to downsize,
permanently, to the senior’s residence.
Her son contacted EPS, again, to discuss the
disposition of the personal and household property left in the
family home. He did not have the time required
to look after the project himself, and confided
that he found the prospect of “going through
a lifetime of family memories” overwhelming.
EPS provided him with a practical solution for
completing the project.
The first task was to make a list of items that
were gifted to family members who lived in different
cities across Canada. Once the lists had been
approved by the mother and son, and accepted in
writing by the family member, EPS made arrangements
with a recognized mover and oversaw the packing
and loading of the items. EPS tracked all shipments
to their destination.
The next step involved the separation and packaging
of the balance of her belongings for donation
and disposal. This portion of the project proved
to be very complex since mother was quite a collector
and had filled her house “to the roof top”!
Her large collection of rare Cactus, which was
precious to her, provided a special challenge.
EPS managed to find a home for the entire collection
with a botanical club that is associated with
a local university.
Before the project was complete, the family home
was sold. Because the house was not occupied,
it had to be monitored regularly to validate the
insurance policy. EPS agreed to monitor the house
until the sale closed.
EPS visited the mother, regularly, and kept in
touch with the son by telephone and E-mail to
keep them informed about each step of the project.
Throughout the project, each time the son visited
his mother, he was able to concentrate on her
health and welfare, knowing that EPS was attending
to the details of the disposition of personal and household property at the family home. The son told EPS;
“You made a very complex and demanding project
worry free for everyone …”
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