Meet Hillcrest Commons’ Artists: Rising Above Adversity
The Central Block 75 North Street, Suite 210 P.O. Box 2489, Pitts fi eld, MA 01202 www.integritushealthcare.org
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Photo credit: Stephanie Zollshan, The Berkshire Eagle
Hillcrest Commons’ residents are encouraged to pursue their interests and goals by our supportive health care team. Our employees get to know the personal history, routines and preferences of every resident to help them feel more at home. When we have residents with roadblocks keeping them from following their passions—like Brandy Trigona and Christopher Fuelner, who were featured in The Berkshire Eagle—the Hillcrest Commons team steps up to bridge the gap. Trigona was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease in 2019, losing function of her body at age 52. As an artist, she knew she would have to think outside the box to learn new methods of creating that would not involve her hands. Now, Trigona uses a bite-controlled Bluetooth headset linked to an iPad to make her works of art through head movements. Having iPad access has enabled Trigona to create 500 drawings and connect with a tight-knit community of those who share her diagnosis. No stranger to adversity himself, Christopher Fuelner was six years old when he was diagnosed with a brain tumor that had caused him to endure two strokes, leaving him with a poor prognosis. Against all odds, now 49-year-old Fuelner has been creating art for 12 years— describing the act as therapeutic. He uses acrylic pens and Sharpies—supplied through Hillcrest Commons—to draw anything that comes to mind. Trigona and Fuelner have made the most of their circumstances, adapting to live how they want. They are an inspiration to us all.
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