As a 91-year-old widow, Gloria was self-sufficient and lived alone. One day she wasn’t feeling quite right, so she drove herself to the hospital.
She was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and the diagnosis did not look good. Doctors even suggested hospice care. But Gloria wasn’t fazed. She’d been through many things in her 91 years. As a Jewish woman, she started painting at a young age to process emotions and to deal with bullying and antisemitism. She eventually became a civil rights activist.
After her diagnosis, Gloria’s son Corey moved to Wilmington to take care of her full-time. But Gloria’s home wasn’t accessible and even though her son was there, she was in need of a ramp to get in and out of her home.
Corey didn’t know what he was going to do so he called the New Hanover Senior Resource Center and they connected him with WARM NC. Corey recalls that on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year for Jewish people, he said a prayer with his mom. “The second I finished the prayer there was a knock at the door. It was WARM saying they were there to measure the home for a new ramp.”
Nearly four years after her diagnosis Gloria is still enjoying life with her son, in her own home. Corey is grateful for the extra time he’s been able to have with his mom and says, “I want to thank WARM and I want to thank God for extending my mom’s life.”
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