Family devastated by loss of matriarch
Bianca Rossetto, 85, resided at Lundy Manor residence in Niagara Falls
Elio Rossetto felt his mother squeeze his gloved hand as she lay in the intensive care unit at St. Catharines hospital.
He watched her eyelids flicker as she tried to open them to take one last look at two of her three children as they stood at her side wearing full protective equipment.
Elio said it was the first time they’d been able to see their 85year-old mother, Bianca Rossetto, for more than three weeks.
Vivian Davidson said the opportunity to see their mother one last time “was a blessing,” although she was too weak to speak,
“We felt blessed that we were able to go in and see her, even though it was horrible.”
Elio said their sister Paola Danchili was devastated she couldn’t attend, too, quarantined herself to ensure that she does not have COVID-19.
Bianca lived at Lundy Manor Retirement Residence in Niagara Falls for about three years, until she was hospitalized on April 2.
She died a week later — one of a dozen residents from the retirement home who have now succumbed to the virus since the outbreak began March 30.
“You never think it’s going to get one of you, but when it gets the queen of the family it isn’t easy,” Davidson said. “You never expect the end of the road to be so quick.”
Lundy Manor reported on Monday that 22 residents and five staff members have COVID-19, and all residents and staff there have been tested by Niagara Region Public Health.
As the number of deaths at the retirement home continues to increase, the grieving family shares concerns previously raised by staff members that “more precautions should have been in place,” Davidson said.
“We feel like she should have gotten better treatment than this,” Elio said of his mother. He said when the home was on lockdown, residents continued dining together and participating in social activities within the facility, and some of the people with whom their mother shared meals with everyday were among the first residents to die.
“The one couple, they passed last weekend,” Davidson said. “The wife passed on Saturday and the husband passed on Sunday.”
The family is also concerned about a lack of information from the home in the midst of the crisis.
“We were just totally left in the dark,” Elio said.
Despite sending repeated emails to the home concerned about the safety of her mother, Davidson said she wasn’t informed her mother had been infected until a public health nurse called to ask her questions to determine if she had been in recent contact with her mother.
“We just felt hopeless like there was nothing any family member could do to make things better.”
In an email, Tim Foster, vicepresident of strategy and business development for Oxford Living — Lundy Manor’s owner — said the company is “committed to maintaining clear and transparent communications with families.”
“This includes responding to all family inquiries as soon as possible (especially where the inquiry relates to the status of loved ones). We recognize that this is especially important in the present circumstances, irrespective of the additional commitments that have been placed on our staff,” he said.
The company said it has discussed issues with the retirement home’s management, and “believe that the inquiry was handled in a professional and appropriate manner, even with the extenuating circumstances at the time,” but could not provide any further information about specific cases.
“We have also made it a priority to ensure that we keep families and the community as a whole updated about the COVID-19 situation at Lundy Manor. In this regard, we have been providing near-daily email updates to families (including regarding deaths/positive cases, other information provided by public health and other news) and have also been issuing media statements on a regular and ongoing basis,” Foster said.
“We know how upsetting this matter has been for our families, especially those who have lost loved ones. We have been doing everything we can to assist them.”
Bianca Rossetto’s family did share one last happy memory with the matriarch before the pandemic hit. They gathered at a St. Catharines restaurant in early March to celebrate her 85th birthday.
“She was healthy. She was vibrant,” Elio said.
“All the kids were there and the grandkids,” Davidson added. “We were all together and she was so freaking happy.”
The family held a small funeral on Saturday, with only a handful of immediate family in attendance.
It wasn’t the send-off their mother deserved.
“We’re a huge Italian family. We’re used to hugs,” Elio said. “At her funeral there would be way more than that.
“She was that type of person. She was fantastic.”
He said the family is planning a fitting memorial for “the unofficial mayor of Thorold” when the crisis ends.
“It will be the party she deserves,” said Davidson.