“Being independent is very important to me,” said George Selanis, age 97. “I like to keep moving and doing something. That’s my work ethic.”
In his youth, George was always moving. After finishing his junior year in high school, he enlisted in the navy, where he remained for two years as an aviation machinist mate, second class. Upon his return to his hometown of Amherst, Massachusetts, he worked as a farm machinery mechanic for the University of Massachusetts – then known as the Massachusetts Agricultural College. He worked on “engine overhauls on tractors, balers, silo unloaders – anything you can think of.”
“He’s always been an active person,” stated his daughter, Debbie. “That’s why, at ninety-seven years old, he can still do what he does.”
He met his wife Marvette at a dance in Northampton, and it was love at first sight. The two were married for sixty-nine years, first raising their children in Amherst and later retiring to Northfield, which George maintains was an excellent decision. “It’s so quiet here,” he explained. “Some days, it’s thirty minutes before a car ever drives by.” This quiet can be lonely for George, a widower for four years. When his wife was first diagnosed with dementia, he cared for her for the first three years of her illness. Then, when that was no longer tenable, he visited her every day for the next three years at Buckley Healthcare Center in Greenfield.
“The fact that they stood with each other through everything was an amazing testament to the love they had for each other,” mentioned Debbie.
Since Marvette’s passing, George has lived alone in their three-acre retirement home. This has introduced some challenges. Though he is independent enough to take care of himself and perform chores like gardening, cleaning, and mowing the lawn, certain aspects of the house presented potentially dangerous situations. His concrete front steps, for instance, had no handrails; the light in his bedroom could not turn on; and the linoleum under his kitchen sink was loose.
To rectify these potential hazards, LifePath partnered with Pella Windows and Doors of Greenfield, who contributed numerous supplies, such as door and window molding pieces and fastener hardware. Supported by the Helping Homebound Heroes program, which is funded by The Home Depot Foundation and managed in partnership with Meals on Wheels America, nine volunteers from Pella arrived in three company trucks to make safety- and accessibility-related home modifications on George’s property on November 8. After a Pella-provided kick-off lunch, the volunteers set to work, unloading ladders, saws, and other supplies to begin to make George’s home more accessible.
Of Al and Sue Herringshaw, co-owners of Pella Products of Greenfield, LifePath Home Safety Program Director Mark Devlin said, “I have known Al and Sue for over 20 years. They are hardworking, caring community members, where they live and where they work. Nothing surprised me coming from Al and Sue: the high count of Pella volunteers, the care and kindness of each volunteer, the extreme skill level within this team of volunteers, and the impressively productive home modification result.”
“We certainly want to help and support a part of our community,” mentioned Al. “Through this, we get the fortunate piece of team-building and spending time together outside work.”
Sam Murphy, an employee of Pella, echoed Al’s sentiments. “I’m excited to do something philanthropically,” he said, “especially during the week of Veterans Day.”
Altogether, the Pella team was able to make more than twenty modifications to George’s home. These included adding metal handrails to the steps in the front and side of the house, replacing the house’s storm door, constructing handrails on the frequently used steps in George’s garage, installing wireless doorbells, pressure washing the front siding, establishing functional lighting in the bedroom, securing linoleum in the kitchen, painting the bathroom walls, patching a leak in the bathroom ceiling, updating all fire prevention devices, and improving insulation and lighting in the basement. They also gathered leaves from the gutters and picked up yard brush that surrounded the home.
“The first night that I talked to my dad after the project, he said, ‘Oh, Debbie, you’re not going to believe how nice everything looks,’” said Debbie, following the project’s completion. “And my dad’s not a very expressive person, but he just couldn’t believe how much work was done and how much easier it’s going to make his life. The volunteers worked with him so well and let him decide what was best for him. If you asked me to rate the work out of 10, I’d say 10, without a doubt. I think my dad will really appreciate and feel even safer with everything that he has and being able to stay at the house for as long as he can.”
“It is quite meaningful to have helped George, a Navy veteran, during the week of Veterans Day,” said Mark. “And George is a poster child for active, independent aging in place. Maintaining his property and orderly home seem to provide great purpose, pride, and hope in George’s life, and I for one am proud to have lent some support to that winning equation.”
If you are interested in volunteering for the Home Safety Program, call LifePath Volunteer Resources at our main number, 413-773-5555, to learn more, or visit the Home Safety page. If you would like to find out how the Home Safety Program could help you, call 413-773-5555, ext. 1230, to speak to a Resource Consultant.
