Finding home again at Emmaus Village

Lyn was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2018. For years, she and her husband David managed things together until Christmas Eve 2024, when David passed away following a surfing accident at Flynn’s Beach. He was 82, still body surfing, and very much Lyn’s partner in life.

“Mum was shocked and grieving. She was just lost,” her daughter Kath says. “We all were.”

In the months that followed, Lyn’s children Kath, Jen and Lachlan began to realise just how much David had been doing day to day. As a family, they stepped in, setting up a rotating roster of support so Lyn could remain at home. “We were a good little crew,” Kath says. “We did that for about six months to help Mum adjust and work out what she might need longer term.”

Over time, it became clear that Lyn needed more than practical support. She needed consistency, companionship and reassurance in her day-to-day life. She also did not want to leave Port Macquarie, where she had lived since the early 1980s, raising her family and building deep community connections.

David had been principal of Port Macquarie High School and Lyn spent the final decade of her career teaching languages, including French, at MacKillop Senior College. She was active in her church, volunteered as a Lifeline counsellor, and established a charitable foundation supporting an orphanage in Cambodia.

The idea of Emmaus Village came through a friend, and Kath quietly made an enquiry to explore options. “We did not want to overwhelm Mum,” she says. “We were just thinking ahead.”

When she eventually raised it, Lyn’s response surprised her. “Mum said, ‘Thank goodness you are doing some planning. I did not know what was going to happen.’”

From there, things moved quickly. Lyn visited Emmaus Village, met with staff and spent time at the café. By the end of that week, she had made her decision. “I think I have found the place I am going to live,” she told her family.

Lyn moved to Emmaus Village on 5 June. “There are always bumps in the road,” Kath says, “but from the word go, it was Mum’s decision.”

Since moving in, Lyn has settled well and says everyone has been kind. Staff focus on helping residents maintain identity and connection to what matters to them, including Lyn’s love of language and culture. Not long after arriving, she helped host a Bastille Day gathering with support from staff and has continued attending her weekly folk dancing group with friends supporting her to stay involved.

For the family, the transition has brought reassurance. “Mum’s move is a choice for the future,” Kath says. “It means she will not have to move again.”