Good Sorts: Woman gives her friend priceless gift - freedom

October 3, 2022

It’s easy to forget sometimes how well most of us have it - most of the time.


This week’s Good Sort is a really timely reminder about how important it is to make the most of every day.

Jocelyn Tjeerd lives in a single room, just her and her owl figurines, she can’t leave much because she’s incapacitated.

Jocelyn has motor neuron disease and how she got it remains a mystery.

Her entertainment is largely her computer, she loves crime dramas but all day, every day, she longs for a change of view.

“Just to see other things. To see people living normally, to see young people gives you hope,” she said.

This is where Annie Hardcourt comes in.

Jocelyn can drive with her head but it's exhausting, so every Tuesday Annie comes and dashes her away.

“We love escaping. We love leaving the reception area and not telling them where we are going,” Jocelyn said.

From indoor to outdoors, the pair go past where they aren’t supposed to go - they’re off to see the world even if it’s only for a few short hours.

“It enriches my life because I hear Jocelyn's stories and we’ve got to know each other a lot over the last four years,” Annie said.

The pair talk as they walk, no subject is off limits including solving a few political problems.

Annie, a retired nurse, is a volunteer for Mary Potter Hospice. She helps the terminally ill enjoy their final days.

Jocelyn’s diagnosis came with a life expectancy of three years, she’s been going for 12.

The two do all sorts, when 1News was with them it was a trip to the chemist to get a gift for Jocelyn’s grandson.

Once a week Annie gives a priceless gift - freedom. Something taken for granted until you don't have it.

“It means an awful lot to me. I can see things that are living, see people with hope and it just lifts my happiness,” Jocelyn said.

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