Mary Beth Brindley spent the last 49 years of her life in a relationship with her partner Evelyn. Recently, Evelyn passed away and Mary Beth is facing health problems of her own.
Without Evelyn’s income (and having no claim to any social security benefits), Mary Beth was forced to give up the home that the two shared together.
If giving up your home of almost a half a century weren’t bad enough, Mary Beth now worries what will happen to her. After staying in the closet at work for fears of being laid off, Mary had this to say about possibly being forced back into the closet in her personal life:
“I would be in assisted living with people in their 70’s, 80’s and 90’s…and the bias is still there…. I think I would be brave enough to not go back into the closet, but to be shunned again, all of the hurt would come flowing back.”
As a result of Marys story, and gay seniors across the nation, a Portland non-profit organization called Friendly House is setting out to identify senior housing options that are welcoming to sexual minorities and to educate the community about some of the special challenges they face.
Here’s the video clip from NewsChannel8 in Portland:
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