Shirley Bandar

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting. - Valerie and Lise

Many of you already know that our mom has been feeling fairly frisky the past few years, especially after her miraculous health rebound in 2014.  With a COPD diagnosis, a great hospice team, and the addition of lots of oxygen, within a few weeks Shirley began moving on with her life.  She moved from her beloved home in Palm Desert to a nice apartment in an independent community nearby, and enjoyed resuming her pool exercise classes and visiting the casino for the slot machines.  She was a role model for agile aging, and inspired others with her humor and sense of fun.  She was doing so well for so long that she went "off" hospice.

In the past few months, however, Shirley has been feeling more and more tired, and weak at times. Answering the phone and going to the dining room for her meals became a challenge, and her usual activities no longer interested her. We recently gathered her team together and decided she would benefit from a move, and so she has now moved to The Hallmark in Palm Springs, much closer to Lise and easier to visit more often.  With a new hospice and caregiving team in place, she is in relatively good spirits and comfortable.  She even has ice cream everyday, and enjoys seeing the hummingbirds at the feeder out her window.

During this time Shirley is not always able to keep up with her friends and family on Facebook or Instagram, or even by email or phone.  Speaking is not easy for her now as she tires easily. We thought a CaringBridge link would be a nice way for you to say hello to her and send her messages we will be sure to read to her. Of course we think she would love a card from you, too, and if you let us know we'll send you a snail mail address directly.

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers for her.   We'll keep you posted.

Valerie and Lise