compassion
FORGET ME NOT E
veryone I have met from CAP, I just want to adopt them, I just love them!” said Ellen Merrill, a 65-year-old widow who lives alone in Eastern Kentucky. “They are loving, giving and caring, and they don’t just leave when the work is done, they make sure I am not forgotten,” said Merrill while reflecting on the housing crew that made repairs to her home.
that her hand was freezing. “Dominic said, ‘You’re not warm enough, we need to do something about that.’ He went that day and brought me a heater. I’ve been warm ever since then,” Merrill said with a smile. Peggy Ridenour, a CAP Housing volunteer, and AmeriCorps member, worked on Merrill’s home last March.
“When I first met Ellen, she walked with a walker, but very slowly. She didn’t go out much, except to the store and church. I kept in touch with her, and every time I saw her, she was improving, little by little, and I think she appreciated the company.” Ridenour knew that Merrill would benefit from CAP’s Elderly Services Program and urged her to apply.
Last year Merrill was sitting alone in her home with the cold winter chill setting in fearing that the rest of the world had forgotten about her. Her windows were falling out, there was no heating or air conditioning, and the roof desperately needed repairs which she could not afford. She had lost all hope and was ready to give up until a knock on her front door changed everything. “I was wearing two sets of clothes and a hat to keep warm because it was 49 degrees inside my home. When I answered the door, Dominic was standing there,” Merrill recalled. When Dominic Valentine, a CAP Housing crew leader, shook her hand and introduced himself; he noticed 20
Ellen Merrill is all smiles while attending CAP’s annual women’s retreat held at Camp AJ.
christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive | FALL / WINTER 2019
