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Care
Partner of the Month-
May-August 2005 Josephine Figueroa Bronx, NY Josephine takes a great pride in watching and assisting with her sister's recovery. She's filled with wonder and amazement as she assists with the healing process and finds that her own spirit is being healed as well. Josephine says: "Ser parte de la familia de una persona que ha sufrido de un ataque cerebral es una situacion que causa problemas para la persona que esta a cargo de su cuido, como yo, que soy su hermana. Tengo que superar el estres de la situacion y pensar solamente en la salud de mi hermana. Hay dias de desaliento, hay dias de coraje y hay dias de cansancio. Pero cada dia de mejoramienta para ella me da con fianzce. I came to New York from Puerto Rico when I was 8 years old. I led a normal life. My parents registered me at school and we learned to speak the English language which we didn't know before. I graduated, went to City College of New York in Economics and Statistics and then went on to get my Masters in the same area. I worked for a private industry for a year or two and then joined the United States Government Department of Labor and I worked there for almost 30 years as an economist statistician. I retired about 12 years ago. About one month after retirement I went berserk and said "I have to do something" and I began to volunteer at the Botanical Garden where I give tours to adults as well as the Bronx Zoo where I give tours to children. I love what I'm doing because I love plants and I love animals. I've never been married and have no children. When my sister went off to get married and set up her own home I stayed with my parents and lived a normal life. I had a job that required a lot of travel and I enjoyed it but my mother was showing the signs of Alzheimer's so I had to stay closer to home. So my retirement was a combination of her physical and mental disabilities and just beginning to get tired of the job after 30 years. So I stayed home and took care of my mother and she stayed around about 7 years and then she died. And then in about a year my step-father died. And then it was just me and Sis and then she had her stroke. Prior to the stroke I knew she was diabetic and about the arthritis but that's about it. A stroke just never entered my mind. On the evening of July 4th I was at my house asleep and she was at her house watching the fireworks display. That next morning when she got up she called me and told me, "Don't get excited, don't get panicky but I think I've had a stroke." So of course I ran over there. She was on the floor and obviously I couldn't lift her. So we called 911 and I was there when they came. EMS was great. When we got to the hospital they did all the tests - I was living from moment to moment. The doctor said she'd had a stroke and they'd have to keep her there for further tests. I didn't know what a stroke was. I had to ask how does a stroke happen, etc.? The hospital did what had to be done. 
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