Brenda Betts is 82, has lived in her home for nearly 50 years, and has filled her home with artwork, photographs of family, and love. She is retired from the Airport Commission and volunteers for various causes including a homeless shelter and work with the City of Minneapolis to build more affordable housing. She can no longer play her beloved piano due to the impacts of recent surgeries, but she continues to apply her artistic skills to the creation of beautiful silk flower arrangements that she formerly sold at arts and crafts shows.

Brenda learned about the Age Well at Home program from a provider at NorthPoint Community Health clinic. She has had four major surgeries in recent years, including brain surgery, breast cancer treatment, and an aneurism. She was hospitalized with COVID and survived on a ventilator this past year. Brenda is resilient and wants to remain in her beautiful home as long as she possibly can.

Resilient Homeowners Need Renovations Too

An on-site visit identified that Brenda would benefit greatly from a number of modifications that would make her feel safer and more confident in her home.
Brenda in her basement
    • A new front railing was built to assist her entry and exit from her home.
    • A handheld shower was installed in her bathroom.
    • Due to her difficulty with walking up and down the stairs to the basement to do laundry and work on her floral arrangements, our team installed a second railing and put in a comfort height toilet so that she didn’t have to try to get back upstairs while working.
    • We replaced her broken washer and dryer with a new set, fixed a light fixture in her basement storage closet, and repaired a non-functioning humidifier.

Brenda says that:

“I am just THRILLED with all the work that Age Well at Home did for me! I feel so much safer coming and going to doctor, family, and volunteering visits with the new front railing! Stairs are also easier for me to use going down to the basement with a new railing as well, and I absolutely LOVE my new washer and dryer! Since I can’t use a tub anymore to bathe, it is so helpful to have the handheld shower.”

Brenda on her front steps

Brenda couldn’t help but gift one of her beautiful floral arrangements to us following a follow up visit, saying “it makes me happy to give back!”