Gloria was living in an outer western suburb caravan park when she had a stroke and lost her vision.

She could no longer work as a bookbinder or enjoy her reading and knitting. Gloria felt very vulnerable but continued to live in the caravan with assistance from home help and meals on wheels. After some convincing from her doctor she decided to try living at Wintringham Williamstown, and loved it.

The recreation staff at the hostel encouraged Gloria to borrow talking books (including the New Idea, Woman’s Weekly and the western suburbs local papers) and she now plays on a tape player adapted for people with vision loss. When Gloria told Sue (one of the recreation staff) that she loved knitting but couldn’t because of her vision Sue organised the purchase of a magnifier to enable Gloria to knit again.

When asked about her hobbies Gloria responded, "The talking books and the magnifier are great. I can keep up to date with all the gossip and I’m knitting an adult sized cardigan every 2-3 weeks."