Val

 

12/13/24

“I would avoid that seat if I were you . . . Val has been known to throw food.”

That was my first introduction to Val, one of Greg’s co-residents in memory care. As I got to know Val better, I observed her throwing not just food but also beverages and a swift right hook. Lean and petite, she looked frail, but she could lob a balloon across the room during “volleyball” and use the same hand to give you a solid clip, I was told, if you were slow to duck.

Mostly non-verbal, she often responded to music by tapping enthusiastically and even dancing in her own way. In the year-and-a-half that I had observed her, I saw Val smile only once – when she was with a visitor.

She had been in the hospital a while. I recently learned that she had passed away.

3/22/25

10/3/25

11/19/25