Janine’s Story

Janine, an artist from Provincetown, gets support from HOW to help her cope with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Janine first came to HOW in 2017 to get help filing for disability benefits when she could no longer keep working full-time.

Two years later, as her PD progressed, Janine returned because “…it was getting hard to do even odd jobs, and I couldn’t live off of social security benefits.” Working with the Provincetown Housing Authority again and Janine’s landlord, HOW was able to secure a voucher that now covers most of her rent.

More recently, our Client Services manager met in person with Janine, her therapist, and a friend, while her father and another friend joined by Zoom. While reviewing her daily needs, Janine said she wanted to start acupuncture treatments, which a monthly stipend from HOW is now covering. At the end of the meeting, Janine stopped by HOW’s pantry for a few food and personal care items — what she described as “a bag of goodies.”

“There’s a little bit of shame around this. It’s hard to ask for the help, but HOW makes it easy.” Janine continued: “It moved me that my friends were so concerned. For my father, it’s about knowing I’m being taken care of or taking care of myself. He worries. It doesn’t matter that I’m 60 and he’s 88.”