Being a part of a larger community
Ask any resident to share his or her experience in Independent Living and you may hear the words “balance,” “activity,” “peace,” “independence,” and “expectancy” in the response. Resident Jean Reilly uses these words to describe life at the BA.
“It’s important to have a balance in life,” says Jean, who has lived at the BA for four years. She appreciates the atmosphere of peace that supports her prayer and study in Christian Science, while also enjoying opportunities to be active in the community. “There are so many things that have opened up for me since I’ve been here.”
“I’ve enjoyed being part of our larger community,” she notes. Some of this enjoyment has included reading to the children in an extended-day program at a local elementary school every week and attending open rehearsals of the Boston Symphony, as well as enjoying many other cultural and educational activities.
Jean also looks forward each week to serving as an attendant at her branch church’s Christian Science Reading Room. She and other residents also appreciate the opportunities afforded local members of The Mother Church to attend meetings and to serve in various ways including ushering at the Annual Meeting of The Mother Church.
Always Living at Home
Home has taken many forms over the years for BA resident Mary-Anna Nairn. She has lived in places as far away as Peru, Argentina, and the United Kingdom. But, she says, despite her frequent moves, there is one thought that has stayed with her: “I’ve always been ‘at home’ wherever I’ve lived.”
And nowhere does she feel more at home than at Chestnut Hill Benevolent Association. “I’m really so comfortable here at the BA,” says Mary-Anna who has lived at the BA for 18 years. “This is my extended family.” She remarks on the varied opportunities she has had during those 18 years to contribute to her BA home atop a hill in Boston.
“My home at the BA is so like where I lived in Guernsey in the Channel Islands,” says Mary-Anna. “I lived there with my husband, who was Scottish, and my four daughters as they were growing up.” Now, one of these daughters lives in Greece and England, another daughter in Hawaii, the third in Minnesota, and the fourth near the BA in Massachusetts.
As an artist, Mary-Anna has found special joy in the natural beauty of the BA’s grounds. She is often seen in warmer weather painting a favorite view from a bench or swing. “Landscapes are my favorite subject as a watercolorist,” she says, adding that she has donated many paintings to the BA.
Before becoming a resident, Mary-Anna enjoyed volunteering at the BA for three years. Then she was admitted to the BA as a patient. During that time under nursing care, which resulted in a healing, she was inspired to move to the BA as a resident. Her move from nursing to independent living as a resident was just like coming home, she recalls joyfully.
