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At home with Jean LaChance
By Rae Eastman
Jean LaChance is petite and cheerful, and at age 88, is enjoying her life at Providence Court in Pittsfield where she has lived for seven years. “There’s so much to do here — and I do everything. There are card games, puzzles, Bingo, and birthday celebrations.” She reads and watches TV — “anything, as long as it’s decent,” she notes.
After finishing her lunch (provided by Elder Services) in Providence Court’s large, sunny dining room, she compliments lunch supervisor Mary Beth Burris, as she whispers to a visitor, “Mary’s so patient and keeps the rooms spic and span.” LaChance then collects her “little black wagon” in which she keeps her things, and leads the way down the hall to her apartment with the aid of her “friend,” as she calls her cane. Her “friend” has helped her get around since a fall that resulted in several fractures and put an end to her driving. “When bones break, you can put them back together, but my fractures never healed completely,” she explains matter-of-factly. She has clearly accepted her condition without letting it dampen her spirits; the twinkle in her eye and the bright red polish on her nails are further evidence of her positive and independent approach to life. She states proudly, Genevine was my given name: I named myself Jean.”
Her apartment is filled with evidence of her creativity. There are dolls made out of an assortment of materials including one made from mop strings. Filling her apartment are flowers she tends, boxes of yarn for knitting and crocheting, and keepsakes and pictures of her family including one of LaChance with her husband. She beams, “He was such a wonderful man.”
LaChance’s grandson and his wife keep a room for her in her old house in Dalton so she can “come visit anytime.” The thought of it brings a warm smile to her face. “That way my family and I don’t lose touch with one another.”
LaChance’s situation is a particularly satisfying one, because she is now on the receiving end of services she used to give others. For 15 years she was the Elder Services meal-site director in Lanesboro, ordering meals, keeping track of the people receiving them, visiting other sites, coordinating with Elder Services personnel, and generally keeping things going — all as a volunteer.
“Jean positively glows when she talks about her work there,” says Crystal Martin, Elder Services Residential Services Coordinator at Providence Court.
Clearly, she treats her companions at Providence Court with the same spirit. When asked if she helped tend the attractive garden that can be seen through the dining room window, she replies, “Why, yes! I do whatever I can to make people happy.”
La Chance's apartment is one of 103 available to eligible seniors and individuals with disabilities through Supportive Housing, a partnership between Elder Services and the Pittsfield Housing Authority.
Rae Eastman is the retired Sheffield Council on Aging Director.