How Mum's death inspired me to start a company to help others care for their aging parents - now we're changing lives together

The year was 2014…

I had just returned from work and hurried out to get a few things to quickly make dinner before the rain started. I was about to pay for the items I bought when my phone rang… It was my sister calling.

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“Sherina, where are you now?” with panic in her voice…

“I’m getting a few things at the market, is everything okay?”

“Mum was rushed to the hospital. We were both cooking when she started breathing fast. She went into the parlour and we noticed her legs were swollen, so I and Daddy rushed her to the hospital.”

“Wait, what happened? She didn’t eat anything and just started breathing fast?” I asked, fearing for the worse.

“No oh, she didn’t eat anything. We were just cooking in the kitchen when it all started.”

“Which hospital are you at?”

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I had not done enough for Mum. She was my pal, and I promised to take her around the world. After working for 7 years; including working as a rig nurse with Chevron, my hope was that someday, there would be enough money to spend time with her and take her places; It was the least I could do after all she had sacrificed for me.

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I had the opportunity to give her a treat, but never got around to doing so.

Tears welled up in my eyes; memories of our time together flooded my mind as I sat by her hospital bed, holding her hand and praying for her recovery.

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Nothing in this world had prepared me for what was to come.

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I had all the time to take care of My Mum but was too consumed with work and life to see her. Here she was on her hospital bed, struggling for life.

I asked God to make her well again, so I could do just a few of the things I promised, but the reality was harsh.

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After weeks in the hospital, She was back home; but this time, constantly needing dialysis. She needed regular care, and I was always willing to do it. Seeing her in such a vulnerable state, unable to do the things she once loved, broke my heart into a million pieces. But I didn't care. I would do anything for her at this point.

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I had to juggle work with caring for Mum; spent hours with her, making sure she was as comfortable as possible. It was a difficult; financial, and emotionally draining experience, but I didn't regret it. It was the least I could do for the woman who had shown me so much love.

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And then, one day, she was gone. My world shattered into a million pieces, and I didn't know how to go on. I was filled with so much sadness and sorrow, feeling like a part of me was missing. But even in my grief, I knew that my mother’s legacy had to live on.

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I find working class people who are too busy to be with their aged or ailing parents. They work so hard, hoping that, someday, they will give their parents the best care… they would pay their parents for the hardship they passed through training them.

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I started Shetinella Care Services to help others in need. I wanted to help people to be there for their elderly parents, and provide the friendship which they long for.

Looking back, I am grateful for the time I spent caring for my mother. It taught me the true meaning of empathy and compassion, and how much it can change someone's life. And though she may be gone, her memory lives on in the work that we do at Shetinella Care Services.

Sherina Chukwubueze

Shetinella Cares Services

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