“Ability NB is a godsend. They were just very helpful and understanding and caring. Because of them, I get to stay in my own home,” Kelly says. “I don’t know where I would be without them.”
– Kelly Boucher
In 2015, Kelly Boucher suffered three strokes in one day: the first at home, the next at the hospital in Oromocto while waiting for transfer to Fredericton, and the third in the ambulance on the way to the capital.
She spent more than two months in hospital. The recovery, in and out of hospital, was slow plodding. But eventually she could walk again and move back to her home.
“I’ve come a long, long way. I use a cane but I can walk long distances,” says Kelly, a 59-year-old who lives in Oromocto. “I can walk to the mall and back.”
But her left side remains weak, she is managing diabetes and is a cancer survivor. She cannot work and the bills for medications – never mind assistive equipment – run $900 a month.
She called Ability New Brunswick looking for help. She couldn’t afford rent, the medication and the equipment she needed for basic living, such as a commode, bed rail and a bench for the shower. It was a truly difficult time for her, stressing over whether she would even be able to keep a place to live.
We were able to advocate for Kelly on a number of fronts.
We secured funding for the equipment she needed through the United Way’s Atlantic Compassion Fund.
We worked to get her a provincial health card that covers the cost of her medications, and we secured a portable rent subsidy.
For Kelly, it has made a world of difference.