Jeanne Cronin's Home Away from Home
Donation protected
First off, thank you so much for taking the time to read our story! For those who may not know her, our mom, Jeanne (Jeannie), was diagnosed with Primary Progressive Aphasia, a form of dementia that targets communication, back in 2015, at the age of fifty-one. Since then, her condition has deteriorated, progressing her diagnosis to Alzheimer’s disease. She has lost most of her ability to communicate, and requires around-the-clock care as she is no longer able to perform tasks of everyday living independently.
Her care falls on our dad, Pete, and our youngest brother, Colin, who is planning to attend Emmanuel College this fall. Our dad faces his own battles with Parkinson’s disease (a diagnosis that quickly followed a successful fight with stage IV cancer) and was recently furloughed from his job due to COVID-19.
A few weeks ago, Mum was admitted to a local hospital for stroke like symptoms. Her tests came back negative, and she was transferred to rehab and then to home after a few weeks. Unfortunately, over the last few days, Mum has continued to become very unsteady, is falling often, and is increasingly confused and disoriented. She has been hospitalized again and will most likely require rehab placement following her discharge.
Given the sudden and quickly evolving changes in her level of functioning, as well as the baseline level of care that she already requires, it is time for us to look into a long-term, permanent placement for Mum once she is ready to leave rehab. However, due to the perfect storm of dad getting furloughed, mom's devastating diagnosis in her early 50s, and a world-wide pandemic, life has brought about a large financial burden with even greater bills looming.
With this fund, we are looking to raise enough money to help cover the first three months of long term care while we look into further financial options for Mum. Unfortunately, the system doesn't work too strongly in favor of mothers who choose to stay at home, so it has been very difficult trying to receive assistance for her. We are very cognizant that many families are facing hardships of their own, so we appreciate all the help that we can get. Even a gesture as simple as sharing her story and this link, and raising awareness of PPA and early-onset Alzheimer's disease is a great gift to us.
Thank you again so much for taking the time to read this page, and thank you to everyone who has reached out over the years! We have received endless prayers, well wishes, and an outpouring of love and support from so many, and we cannot thank you enough! For more on Mum as a person, feel free to continue reading below, but for now, thank you! We appreciate you more than you know.
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As a little background to who she is as a person, Jeannie is an absolutely incredible woman, to say the least. In the early 90's, she left her job as a school psychologist and began her adventure as a stay-at-home mom. As a mother to four rambunctious children, and the wife to a very busy husband, she had an innate gift for balancing six hectic schedules, never missing an appointment, birthday, anniversary, or event (although, there was a good chance she was showing up late.) All the while, she ensured that our family was graced with unconditional love and support.
She was very involved in our lives, as well as the lives of her friends and extended family. Jeannie was always willing to help others. She was always taking new moms under her wing, helping them acclimate to motherhood, or to life as a mother in West Newbury, MA. As a woman of great faith, mom made sure our family was involved in the Catholic Church, through which she helped support four young children in Columbia. She was firm, and expected the best, but raised us with a strong sense of values and respect for others. Jeanne had, and from time to time fortunately still has, the ability to light up a room with her infectious laugh and big, bright, beautiful smile. The amount of people who have reached out with so many kind words about her over the years is a true testament to the exceptional friend, sister, mother, and wife she is and will always be.
In closing, one of the greatest aspects of Mum’s life is her relationship with her husband, our dad; a love that makes the Notebook look lame in comparison. This Christmas, our dad wrote us a letter about her, and their relationship is the epitome of what we all strive to have in our lives someday (it's brutal trying to live up to their standard, let me tell you).
In dad's words, "It was 30 years ago that I fell for her like a blind roofer and put on the full court press to steal her away. We watched the sunrise together over Haleakala and the sunset in Santorini. We danced on the roof of the Parker House in Boston and the floor of the Versace Hotel in Australia. Her dream was always to play on the beach with her children. San Diego and San Juan. Mission accomplished. The day she received her PPA diagnosis she told Dr. Caplan, “I am o.k. with this. I’ve had a great life. I’ve done more than I imagined.”
By far, she was always the smartest one in the room and I took great pride in secretly knowing that I was playing for a distant second place. I always appreciated the fact that I married way up. I felt like Frosty, "What a neat thing to happen to a nice guy like me.”
In some ways, brutally slow; in others devastatingly quickly, she has slipped away and there wasn’t anything any of us could do to stop it.
I can imagine what our lives might look like if Mom wasn’t Mom, and it isn’t as fun, as bright or as caring. I can’t, however, imagine how much harder dealing with her disease would be if I didn’t deservedly idolize her."
Mum is an unbelievably special woman to all who know her. Thank you for taking the extra time to read about her story. We hope if nothing else, you continue to send your thoughts and prayers and share her story, because it truly is one worth hearing.
Her care falls on our dad, Pete, and our youngest brother, Colin, who is planning to attend Emmanuel College this fall. Our dad faces his own battles with Parkinson’s disease (a diagnosis that quickly followed a successful fight with stage IV cancer) and was recently furloughed from his job due to COVID-19.
A few weeks ago, Mum was admitted to a local hospital for stroke like symptoms. Her tests came back negative, and she was transferred to rehab and then to home after a few weeks. Unfortunately, over the last few days, Mum has continued to become very unsteady, is falling often, and is increasingly confused and disoriented. She has been hospitalized again and will most likely require rehab placement following her discharge.
Given the sudden and quickly evolving changes in her level of functioning, as well as the baseline level of care that she already requires, it is time for us to look into a long-term, permanent placement for Mum once she is ready to leave rehab. However, due to the perfect storm of dad getting furloughed, mom's devastating diagnosis in her early 50s, and a world-wide pandemic, life has brought about a large financial burden with even greater bills looming.
With this fund, we are looking to raise enough money to help cover the first three months of long term care while we look into further financial options for Mum. Unfortunately, the system doesn't work too strongly in favor of mothers who choose to stay at home, so it has been very difficult trying to receive assistance for her. We are very cognizant that many families are facing hardships of their own, so we appreciate all the help that we can get. Even a gesture as simple as sharing her story and this link, and raising awareness of PPA and early-onset Alzheimer's disease is a great gift to us.
Thank you again so much for taking the time to read this page, and thank you to everyone who has reached out over the years! We have received endless prayers, well wishes, and an outpouring of love and support from so many, and we cannot thank you enough! For more on Mum as a person, feel free to continue reading below, but for now, thank you! We appreciate you more than you know.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As a little background to who she is as a person, Jeannie is an absolutely incredible woman, to say the least. In the early 90's, she left her job as a school psychologist and began her adventure as a stay-at-home mom. As a mother to four rambunctious children, and the wife to a very busy husband, she had an innate gift for balancing six hectic schedules, never missing an appointment, birthday, anniversary, or event (although, there was a good chance she was showing up late.) All the while, she ensured that our family was graced with unconditional love and support.
She was very involved in our lives, as well as the lives of her friends and extended family. Jeannie was always willing to help others. She was always taking new moms under her wing, helping them acclimate to motherhood, or to life as a mother in West Newbury, MA. As a woman of great faith, mom made sure our family was involved in the Catholic Church, through which she helped support four young children in Columbia. She was firm, and expected the best, but raised us with a strong sense of values and respect for others. Jeanne had, and from time to time fortunately still has, the ability to light up a room with her infectious laugh and big, bright, beautiful smile. The amount of people who have reached out with so many kind words about her over the years is a true testament to the exceptional friend, sister, mother, and wife she is and will always be.
In closing, one of the greatest aspects of Mum’s life is her relationship with her husband, our dad; a love that makes the Notebook look lame in comparison. This Christmas, our dad wrote us a letter about her, and their relationship is the epitome of what we all strive to have in our lives someday (it's brutal trying to live up to their standard, let me tell you).
In dad's words, "It was 30 years ago that I fell for her like a blind roofer and put on the full court press to steal her away. We watched the sunrise together over Haleakala and the sunset in Santorini. We danced on the roof of the Parker House in Boston and the floor of the Versace Hotel in Australia. Her dream was always to play on the beach with her children. San Diego and San Juan. Mission accomplished. The day she received her PPA diagnosis she told Dr. Caplan, “I am o.k. with this. I’ve had a great life. I’ve done more than I imagined.”
By far, she was always the smartest one in the room and I took great pride in secretly knowing that I was playing for a distant second place. I always appreciated the fact that I married way up. I felt like Frosty, "What a neat thing to happen to a nice guy like me.”
In some ways, brutally slow; in others devastatingly quickly, she has slipped away and there wasn’t anything any of us could do to stop it.
I can imagine what our lives might look like if Mom wasn’t Mom, and it isn’t as fun, as bright or as caring. I can’t, however, imagine how much harder dealing with her disease would be if I didn’t deservedly idolize her."
Mum is an unbelievably special woman to all who know her. Thank you for taking the extra time to read about her story. We hope if nothing else, you continue to send your thoughts and prayers and share her story, because it truly is one worth hearing.
Co-organizers (5)
Colleen Cronin
Organizer
Amesbury, MA
Peter Cronin
Beneficiary
Jack Cronin
Co-organizer
Harrison Cronin
Co-organizer
Colin Cronin
Co-organizer