Phyllis Churchill’s world is 290 centimeters wide and 315 centimeters long — just nine and a half by 10 and a half feet. When you add her bed, her chair, and her nightstand, the three main features of her life, it shrinks even more. There is a window in her room, but she can’t get to look out of it. She spends her days sitting in her chair, tearing through word search puzzles and paint-by-number games on her iPad. Churchill is trapped, an effective prisoner inside her bedroom, due to a combination of increasing mobility problems and a housing unit that cannot be built to suit her needs. Two sets of stairs separate her room from the kitchen and living room in her public housing on Watson Street in St. John’s. Her daughter says she hasn’t let them down in almost a year. Apart from medical appointments, when she is being transported by ambulance, Churchill does not leave her room. “The only word I can really think of is isolation. She’s isolated from everything,” said her daughter, Samantha Churchill.
Look into the world of a Saint John woman trapped in an inaccessible house
Phyllis Churchill waited months to find an accessible apartment that could fit her needs. “I couldn’t do it. I don’t know how she does it and still manages to be happy and laugh and smile.” Last summer, Samantha and her mom’s housekeeper managed to get Phyllis outside to sit in the sun for an afternoon. He hasn’t had that experience since. “They’re worried sick about me,” Phyllis Churchill said of her family and friends. “They do not like it”.
On the waiting list
Samantha and Phyllis applied to the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation last year for an accessible unit and have been waiting on a waiting list ever since. About 600 of the housing company’s approximately 5,500 units are partially or fully accessible. They’ve also looked in the private market for a unit that could meet their needs, using online tools like Facebook, but say it’s not moving any faster. “I’m trying to find a place to live and I’m hitting brick walls. I can’t find anything, nothing,” said Phyllis Churchill. John Abbott, the provincial minister responsible for the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation, said the body is working with the family to find something suitable — but it’s a difficult time. “In our own housing stock, that’s a challenge because we just don’t have the units,” he said. “We’re trying to build new ones, but that’s not going to happen today.” John Abbott is the minister responsible for the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation. (Ted Dillon/CBC) The company is looking to the private rental market for help, but Abbott said housing starts to shrink at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, so there are fewer options today. “When I talk to my colleagues across the country, [it’s] very, very similar,” he said.
Daily charge
Three or four years ago, according to Samantha, her mom was diagnosed with cerebellar ataxia, a condition that causes difficulty with balance and mobility. After that, she broke her shoulder and had to have a steel plate fitted. As a result, her mobility is significantly reduced. He has a wheelchair upstairs to help him get around, but it can’t climb the stairs. Phyllis says she doesn’t feel lonely in her room, thanks to visits from her home worker, Janice May, and her daughter. He said her mental health is “pretty good, considering.” Samantha Churchill is the daughter of Phyllis Churchill. She spends a lot of time in her mother’s apartment, helping her with daily tasks that she cannot complete herself. (Garrett Barry/CBC) But Samantha says that despite her mom’s best efforts to put on a brave face, she notices some days. “He’s struggling, I think. He’s trying not to let it go, but we can tell,” he said. Samantha is also concerned about safety and possible exit routes if there was a fire in her unit or the other units nearby. For now, they’re looking for alternatives — and dreaming of the life they could have in a more suitable facility. Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
