You Don't Visit or Call !

To the Editor:

Concerning the article “Mickey Rooney testifies about abuse” on March 2:
Mickey Rooney had the courage to go before Congress to speak about abuse of senior citizens.

We seniors are abused by our states for their failure to give property tax rebates due to homeowners and apartment renters.

We are abused by the Social Security Administration because we did not get a benefit increase for two years. Social Security funds should have been left alone by our government, instead of using our money to pay off their bills — which they created, not us.

We also are being abused by our own families who don’t realize we exist. They don’t visit or call. Yet, when their generation was growing up, we dedicated our lives to spend time with them and their sports.

I am 78, not allowed to drive, and embarrassed to ask them to take me anywhere, even to the doctor’s office. My friends are even tired of taking me.

To use a taxicab when you have to go somewhere is too expensive.

All of you younger people, give us a break. Someday, you will be in our shoes and that’s when you will learn what Mickey Rooney and I are talking about.


Betty Conville
Washington Township

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Dear Betty:
When my mother Clara Fernandez was in a nursing home we were there quite often, usually around feeding time, we would make sure she would eat, and the lady that occupied the place next to Clara would often talk about her daughter and how she would come one day to visit.. On this particular Sunday lunch had just been served and the lady's daughter showed up to visit with her husband, you should have seen the older lady's eyes light up when she saw her daughter.

Her daughter upon seeing that she was having lunch, she said, "Oh we see that you are busy having lunch, we will come back some other time." and turned around and left....
I avoided looking at the older lady's face because my own heart was aching.