COUDERSPORT—A mission group of 10 Episcopalians, mostly from Lancaster County, completed repairs to four homes and worked on two other projects in Potter County last week.
A medical tsunami struck Marian Martenasâs parents about 10 years ago. First, her father suffered a stroke, followed by her motherâs heart attack. Bob McKeegan would need 24-hour care for the rest of his life. Wife Barbara recovered and could live independently in the coupleâs Lancaster apartment. They just couldnât occupy the same space in any nursing home or retirement center the family investigated.
âIt shattered our hearts that they couldnât be together,â says Martenas, who talked with her three brothers and two sisters about a solution for the incredibly close older couple. Martenas, husband Wayne and son Michael invited the McKeegans to move into their four-bedroom Lititz farmhouse.