Esther Lauaki
Eileen Relf is searching for the two kind strangers that came to her aid in Werribee.
“I am so taken back by the kindness and generosity of these two people and I want to thank them,” Eileen said.
The 88-year-old grandmother became lost after she set off on March 5 for a walk from her home at Federation Village to Werribee Terrace Aged Care – about a 25 minute trek.
She asked for directions from a man named “Frank” and, when he couldn’t assist, he called in his daughter, who lived nearby, to drive Eileen to her destination.
“I always take short walks to Werribee and back and that morning I decided I would walk to the nursing home on Russell Street,” Eileen said.
“I thought I knew where it was…but then I got lost.
“When Frank called his daughter to come and pick me up I told him I was happy to walk and he said, ‘No, you’ve walked long enough’.
“It was so nice for someone to do this.”
Eileen’s son-in-law Geoff Haynes said that the “fiercely independent” woman who struggles with memory loss had set out to organise respite care for her husband.
“The aged care place…is quite some distance from her home,” Mr Haynes told Star Weekly.
“She proceeded down Duncans Road almost all the way down to the freeway, where the 7-Eleven garage is, only to realise …she was lost.”
“The gentleman told her his name was Frank and that he was Italian but really an Aussie.
“Unfortunately, Eileen didn’t get Frank’s last name, so she has not been able to thank them both for their help.
“Her request is to send a thank you message… in the hope that they see it and know how much they restored my mother-in-law’s faith in society.”
