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Wearing a World War II veterans hat, a bright red jacket, and a mask, of course, Catherine Chapman sat in a wheelchair and waved her hand to the rhythms provided by three members of the Ferko String Band.
The live Mummers music was one of several gifts Chapman received, but the biggest gift of all came in the form of hugs from two people she hasn’t seen or touched in four months: her son and daughter.
“She’s the type of woman who most of her life was spent in the backyard, in a beach chair reading a book. And I know she misses people. She’s legally blind, she’s deaf as a post. She’s in such a dark place,” Hill said.
Nursing home lockdowns not only keep visitors away, they restrict the movement of residents inside.
For instance, they’re not allowed to eat together in common dining halls. They can eat in their unit dining areas, but in limited numbers.
Chapman said she soldiers on as best she can in her confinement at St. Joseph’s Manor.
“It’s just something you have to cope with. And while I don’t like it I manage to amuse myself. I have the TV and my DVDs. But it’s hard,” she said.
Born in Olney, this newly minted centenarian almost died when she was 14.
“I missed two years of school because of a strep infection. I was in the hospital for four months and it was another couple of years before I could get back into the normal high school routine,” she explained.
She believes the power of prayer helped her pull through.
Chapman still has vivid memories of the day World War II ended in August 1945.
“All hell broke loose” is how she describes the scene in San Diego — an experience Chapman almost missed as she was on duty back at the base at the time.
But an officer who felt sorry for her took her on an ambulance call into the city.
“And the ambulance could hardly get through the traffic because the streets were jammed with people. I don’t know where they all came from. We had to just crawl through all the people,” she said.
Chapman was saluted for her service Thursday by state Rep. Tom Murt, Congresswoman Madeleine Dean and a member of the Chapel of Four Chaplains.