It’s always saddening when a friend has to cancel plans with you that you were looking forward to enjoying. So, imagine you’re a resident at a senior home and are told that you can no longer receive visitors because there’s a pandemic. It’s all for a good reason, but it’s still going to break your heart regardless. We’re all human, and humans need social interaction, especially from the people they love the most.
15-year-old Hipa Gupta from Paoli, Pennsylvania doesn’t know firsthand what it’s like to be a lonely nursing home resident. However, she does have the empathy to understand how awful a situation like that must be from the residents’ perspectives, especially since she’s a nursing-home volunteer.
“They told me that I couldn’t visit because they were trying to limit interaction with seniors to prevent the spread,” a disappointed Gupta said.
Not only was she worried about the seniors at the local nursing home she’d frequently visit over the course of over a year, but she thought about her grandparents.
“They’re in India but I have calls with them on Skype. Even though they’re stuck inside their homes we can speak to them. They (nursing home residents) may not have that option,” she said. “The seniors aren’t able to see their families, so that’s causing loneliness, boredom and anxiety.”
Then she came up with a great idea: she’d send puzzle books and adult coloring books with colored pencils to different facilities.
“The puzzle and coloring books will help nursing home residents stimulate their minds and keep them occupied.”
And with each package, Gupta and her 9-year-old brother, Divit, write positive, supportive notes to lift the residents up.
Gupta then drops off the goodie bags outside the facilities.
“I call them and say I’m going to leave the boxes outside the front door. They usually leave it out for a few days to make sure there aren’t any germs before passing it out to the residents.”
So far, the 15-year-old has delivered the care packages to about 23 nursing homes. Way to go!
“Cheering them up makes me happy. Even if it’s just for one day,” the teen said.
Although she’s doing great things, money will eventually run short, which is why Gupta has a GoFundMe set up to support her mission to help lonely seniors. Thanks to over 70 donors, it looks like she has reached more than half her goal!
And through the process, it looks like her positivity and generosity has rubbed off onto other people.
“I’ve heard from a lot of people and people are sharing on social media. They’ve reached out saying ‘you’ve inspired me to do a similar project in my area.'”
Hear more about this amazing teen below. She’s definitely someone who deserves more recognition for the good that she has done. Please share her story on Facebook!
