Danika Baker

10/28/14
NURS 240
Well Elder Report

My maternal grandmother, Sylvia Joans-Stanton, was born in Uxbridge, England,

November 24th, 1924. She was the eldest of a brother and a sister. Growing up, her
family did not have any money. Christmas was always a celebrated time to be with her
family and she exclaimed the joy of her and her siblings when they would receive fruit in
their stockings from Santa.
Sylvias father, Alex, was in the air-force, so they moved quite frequently in order
to provide for his family. Sylvias mother, Flora, was a very proper and well kept woman.
She was a stay at home mother to her three children and taught the girls to knit, crochet,
sew on buttons, darn sock and other lady like duties of the house.
When Sylvia turned 18, she was forced to join the service. At this time, WWII was
going on. Sylvia was a part of the Royal Air-force as a tailor. Her main duties were
sewing and adding patches and badges to uniforms. Sylvia expressed that she had always
wanted to be a hair dresser growing up, but that wasnt a possible way to make a living at
the time and her family needed her to make money.
While in the service, Sylvia met the love of her life, Alexander Johnston, a Scotland
native, at an air-force dance in England. The two were married in Padgate, one of
Englands Air-force bases, where they also had their first son, Alexander. The family of
three moved to Scotland were they had two more boys, Gordon and David.

Looking to better their lives and the well being of their family, Alex was offered a
job opportunity in America. In 1955, Alex took a trip over seas to venture for their
American dream while Sylvia to care for their three boys. After getting his feet on the
ground and a place for his family to live, Sylvia and her three young boys traveled across
the Atlantic Ocean on a small ship called the Captain Cook. After many days at sea, they
finally arrived to America, where Alex picked up his family in a car. For his children, it
was their first time ever riding in an automobile, for no one owned a car back home. Alex
got a job in Detroit, Michigan, at General Ford. A few years after living in Detroit, my
mother, Carol, was born.
Sylvia was a stay at home mother after moving to America. She recalled having a
difficult time adjusting to some customs here in the states. One incidence, was seeing a
boy walking around outside with football pads on. Sylvia thought for certain that the poor
boy had some sort of physical deformity. She had never even heard of football at that
point in her life.
Sylvia and her family stayed in Detroit for about 20 years and then they traveled
north to Traverse City, Michigan. It was in Traverse City, where they fell in love with the
small towns beauty, and decided this was the perfect place to call their forever home.
Sylvias children have given her 9 grandchild and 8 great grandchildren, which most still
live in Traverse City today.
In 1992, Sylvia lost her beloved husband Alex due to a heart attack. With her all
children married with families of their own, she had to learn how to learn how to live
independently. She moved to a very nice small home on Traverse Citys east side. Her
kids and grandkids have always made a point to visit frequently and regularly.

This November will mark Sylvias 90th birthday. She claims that the secret to living
a long life is through being healthy and happy. During her 70s and early 80s, she would
religiously walk 2-3 miles a day. Today, she walks a little shorter distance around her
neighborhood to get her exercise. Sylvia has always loved doing yard work and still
mows her own grass, racks her own leaves, waters her flowers, cuts down hedges and
weed whacks. She enjoys having her two gin and squirts a day during happy hour,
while eating a dish of peanuts before every dinner. She attends church every Sunday and
is a member of the churches dorcus circle where she knits and crochets for people in
need.
Giving up driving was a difficult for Sylvia do to. With getting older her eye sight
has deteriorated. Over a few years she slowly decided to cut down, starting with only
driving to get groceries early in the morning and to go to church. Then only to church on
Sunday mornings. More recently she has decided that she will not drive on the roads
anymore, but she wants to keep her car so that she can drive in her neighborhood to take
out her trash. Having three of her four children close by in town and willing to drive her
anywhere she needs to go, makes the transition that much easier. For an independent
woman such as herself, giving up that freedom was hard to do.
For her age, Sylvia is on very few medications. She takes a blood pressure
medication and a multivitamin with iron. She has macular degeneration in both eyes, but
phenomenal hearing. She might not be about to read novels anymore, or use her sewing
machine, but she can still knit and crochet with ease. Routine is an important part of her
everyday life. She likes several shows on television that she looks forward to and visits
from her family who usually come by on different days of the week. Cooking, baking,

knitting and shoveling her driveway are some of her favorite activities that shes looking
forward to doing this winter and for several winters to come.