Faces of The Fellowship: Lidia

The Fellowship  |  June 8, 2016

Lidia, 85, has lived alone in Yekaterinburg, Russia, since her husband passed away one year ago. Her health problems, which include poor eyesight, high blood pressure, heart problems, and severe arthritis, make it hard for Lidia to leave her house. Even walking to a different room is difficult, so she must use a cane.

Every day, Lidia struggles to walk to her piano, where she puts aside her walking stick. She enjoys playing the songs she learned long ago in her youth.

When she was three years old, Lidia’s parents discovered their daughter had a beautiful talent, and later she became a music teacher for many years. After retiring from her teaching career, Lidia discovered a new talent: songwriting. For years, she wrote and performed songs at the local Fellowship-sponsored Hesed, until her health problems prevented her from leaving her home.

Lidia remembers enjoying these performances: “When I used to visit Hesed, there was never an event that I didn’t play at.”

Today, The Fellowship brings Hesed to Lidia, providing her with personal hygiene items and homecare assistance, which is especially important now that her husband passed away. Weekly visits let Lidia know she isn’t alone and that others want to care for her in her old age.

She knows she could become very lonely, as she cannot leave her home, but now she can rely on The Fellowship to bring comfort and joy to her life. She feels very blessed for the assistance and visits!