A Couple Finds Independence and Support at Glenmeadow

06/30/2009

It's not surprising that Gordon Snider and Sarah "Sally" Everett, Glenmeadow residents for three years, are enjoying the PBS British situation comedy As Time Goes By, which chronicles the romance of two people who meet, are separated for 38 years, and then are reunited. Gordon and Sally have had their share of ups and downs, unexpected situations, and joyful moments.

"As much as we've tried to plan and be proactive--you really have to--we've also been realistic about what life has thrown our way," says Sally. "We all have a choice, and we choose to focus on all that we have."

 
So while the reality of health challenges brought them to Glenmeadow, they quickly embraced their new lifestyle. "Here, we are able to maintain our independence, easily arranging for support when we need it and taking advantage of readily available services," says Sally. "We just wouldn't be able to do that if we were still in our condo or our old house."

The couple met in 1997 while serving on the board of the Alpha-1 Foundation. Sally began to experience the signs of lung disease in her 50s and was diagnosed with Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency, while Gordon was involved with the organization as a pulmonary specialist.

They began a long-distance friendship. It grew over time, and in 2002 Sally moved from New York to Boston so they could be together. The couple's life of traveling and enjoying their time together was disrupted in 2003, when Gordon suffered a stroke. Less than three years later, he was diagnosed with lymphoma.

 
"When you spend twelve days in ICU, you pretty quickly realize what your priorities are," says Gordon. Now, the rigors of daily physical therapy aside, he enjoys the easy pace of retirement after a career that included establishing and heading up the pulmonary section at Boston University School of Medicine and serving as Chief of Medicine at the Boston VA. "I'm enjoying my life...spending time with my grandchildren, listening to Sally's adventures, watching movies."

Sally, who started her career as an elementary school teacher before finding her calling as a prosecutor for the New York Attorney General, keeps her plate full in retirement. She's working on her first book, which she hopes will inspire others faced with chronic disease, volunteers with Glenmeadow's finance committee, and wants to polish up her piano skills. And then there are the much-welcomed babysitting and chauffeuring duties--Gordon and Sally have five children and seven grandchildren between them.

"Originally we thought we weren't ready for a retirement community," says Sally. "Even with Gordon's mobility issues and my health challenges, we thought we weren't old enough, and so we thought condo living would be ideal." Although they remodeled their condominium to be handicap-friendly, they came to realize they were isolated and dependent on others when things went wrong.

Glenmeadow not only solved those problems for Gordon and Sally, but also enhanced their social life. Says Sally, "I value the caring community we are a part of. When tragic things happen, people rally around that individual, and we all benefit from that support."