Bernice Martin greets friends who showed up on her lawn to sing Christmas carols. Martin has a terminal lung disease and was severely restricted during the orange phase. (Photo supplied by Karen Basque)
A Saint John woman with a terminal disease got a festive surprise from her friends.
73-year-old Bernice Martin has pulmonary fibrosis and requires oxygen every day.
Her daughter, Karen Basque, says the orange phase limits her mom’s social interaction as she is only person who can see her.
“She’s touch-deprived not having people around. Sometimes I bring my friend’s [dog over]. My friend’s dog is an 11-year-old chocolate lab who just wants to be touched. That works out pretty good,” Basque said.
Basque adds the harder days are when her mom feels well enough to go out but can’t leave.
“She knows her good days are limited. It’s almost like they are numbered and those are wasted days. Those are days that are lost where she doesn’t get to go out and see her friends and family,” Basque said.
Friends of Bernice Martin who recently surprised her by singing outside her Saint John apartment building. (photo supplied by Karen Basque)
A group of Martin’s friends showed up on the lawn outside her balcony window last Wednesday and surprised her by singing Christmas carols just to lift her spirits.
“It took her breath away which is not hard these days. She had a hard time expressing her gratitude because she couldn’t catch her breath because she was crying. It was happy and sad. It really warmed my mom’s heart,” Basque said.
Basque says her mom was “awestruck” by what her friends did saying sometimes she doesn’t feel like she deserves them calling them “too good”.
A day later, Zone 2 returned to the yellow zone, meaning Martin can see her friends again.
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