A member of the Army Of Good – I don’t have permission to use her name – sent me a box of beautiful and very soft and furry stuffed animals. I was going to use them as Bingo prizes at our Friday night games, but I remember that the staff has been telling me that Jean, who has just returned from some time in a nursing facility, so loved the cat I gave her earlier each year, she slept with it and held it for hours.

It is hard to convey the intensity of the resident’s love of stuffed animals, especially one like this rabbit, who is especially soft and furry. The elderly, when they come to assisted care, often give up everything that they know and love in the world – people family, friends, neighbors, pets.

Jean adores Red and hold him for as long as she can. She has several stuffed animals she holds in bed while she sleeps, and another big stuffed dog in a dog bed on the floor. Just as Diane loves her baby Sue, Jean is drawn to her animals, and if she can’t be with real animals, she will love the ones she has.

She took to this rabbit so quickly, she could hardly believe it when I told her it was hers. She almost seemed to be praying with the rabbit, it felt so good to her. The staff was right, as usual. This was what Jean really needs.

If you wish to write to Jean, you can send letters and photos – I believe she would love animal photos  –  to Jean, The Mansion, 11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. Iearned tonight that the Mansion needs mulch for their garden. I’ll take care of that.

Thanks to the angel who sent the stuffed animals, the rest will go among the Bingo Prizes, now getting quite fabulous.