Safety Measures for Bradford Seniors

Hello, I am Eva Gutsche, and am sharing the story and situation my mother Giselle Gutsche recently faced. My Mom is an active senior living in a senior's residence, The Elden, in Bradford Ontario. The Elden has 154 units, housing upwards of 200 residents. It was constructed without any community sidewalks, in any direction, of the residence. My Mom along with a group of friends had been advocating for a safer way for herself and other residents in her home, to walk.

In order to access the closest sidewalk, which is 750 meters from The Elden, she was required to navigate the dangerous gravel shoulder of Sideroad 10, south of Line 8 Tragically, our Mom's was struck by a vehicle at 2:20 pm on September 30th and she died at the scene of the accident.

The harsh reality is that Giselle, and other seniors living at the Elden Seniors Residence, have no safe way to access essential services on foot. Sideroad 10 and Line 8 have no sidewalks, forcing elderly residents, including those using mobility devices like wheelchairs and walkers, to navigate the busy roads on uneven gravel.

Myself along with my two sister's Madelaine Johnston and Bernadette Glover, her grandchildren Amanda, Nicole, Rachel and Tanner and the rest of her family of devasted by the loss of our mother/grandmother/great-grandmother and want to ensure others do not face her demise.

The money raised through this campaign will be used, in partnership with the community, for several measures, with a priority on a sidewalk on one side of the road to replace the uneven gravel shoulder and a pedestrian controlled intersection with considerations of a community which may need a little more time and other measures for hearing and sight impairments. We would like to see a lowering of the speed limit which is currently 60km to 30km for the section in front of The Elden Retirement Residence. We would also like permanent signage to highlight, to passing drivers, to please slow down.

These immediate measures would greatly assist residents of the Elden and many others in the community with safety measures to ensure that they and their family can safely move in the area. Our collective funds will be offered for these measures in hopes of speeding up a process that has not moved in 5 years (when the Elden first opened).

Thank you for helping make something a simple as walking outdoors from your home, not a life threatening experience.

P.S. The suggested amounts were set by GoFundMe not by us - any donation is greatly appreciated (though the minimum the system will accept is $5) Please do not feel that you need to go with the suggest amounts that appears - please to edit to your comfort level - again any amount is greatly appreciated.