It took five years on a waiting list – five years in facilities in Barrie, and then Haliburton – but Pat Ledlie is finally back in Bradford.
She moved into Bradford Valley Care Community earlier this month, and on Sunday, celebrated her 89th Birthday in Bradford.
Her only regret? That it took a five long years before she was finally able to find accommodation in the community where she has so many friends, and where she played such a key role, as a volunteer and “craft lady.”
Ledlie’s annual Christmas Open House events were legendary. Her paper tole pictures, crocheted and knitted crafts, and above all, her jams and preserves were the stuff of legend, and attracted customers from across the region.
She launched the Craft Circle at the Danube Seniors Leisure Centre, volunteered at the Helping Hand Food Bank, and was a regular volunteer at the Tuck Shop at Bradford Valley, where her husband resided for 10 years as he struggled with Alzheimer’s Disease.
Ledlie was also involved in the establishment of the first Caregivers’ Group, for caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients.
There were only three participants at the group's first meeting – founder Cathy Bennett, Ledlie and “one other person,” she remembers. “We wondered, is this going to fly or not?”
But by the second meeting, word had gotten out and there was “quite a nice group,” Ledlie says. “Week by week, we grew.”
There are other memories that she treasures, as she settles in at Bradford Valley.
“I’m never bored. I think back to some of the things I’ve had in my life,” she said – like the High Tea she organized for Princess Anne.
She is no longer Bradford’s ‘Craft Queen,’ she acknowledges. Health issues, including a diagnosis of macular degeneration while she was in Haliburton, have caused her to cut back on her crafting. But Ledlie still crochets, and this year alone crocheted 160 hats for charity – 80 for adults, and 80 for children and teens.
It’s something to do, “besides sitting here waiting to get old!” she says with a laugh.
Ledlie is still settling in at Bradford Valley. She credits her doctor with ensuring that she is finally back home. “I bless him,” she said. “I’m so glad to be back.”