GLACE BAY, N.S. — A Second World War veteran is doing his best to keep his spirits up, despite feeling isolated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Greg MacNeil, a 95-year-old Second World War vet, is a resident at Taigh Na Mara -- a long-term care facility in Glace Bay, N.S.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and measures but in place to prevent the spread of the virus, residents are unable to have visitors or leave the home.
“It gets lonesome, it gets kind of lonesome sometimes,” says MacNeil.
To help combat his loneliness, MacNeil's family set up a bench outside his window so they can have face-to-face conversations.
“We do have a pane of glass between us and sometimes we joke it's like a life sentence, but I do get to see him,” says his son, Allan MacNeil.
Prior to the pandemic, the veteran’s family had big plans to celebrate his birthday together on May 4. Instead, cars lined the road next to the home and people wished him well from a distance.
“I didn't think I was so popular,” says MacNeil.
Monica MacNeil says she’s worried about her father’s well-being.
“It's very painful because we were use to being here every day,” she says.
MacNeil is the last surviving Second World War veteran at Branch 78 Legion in Dominion, N.S.
When asked to compare the pandemic to his time in the war, MacNeil said, in some ways, COVID-19 is worse.
“During the war, if a family member was lost overseas, then the family that was here would be able to gather. We don't have that any longer,” says Allan MacNeil.
The veteran is doing his best to stay positive, but his family says the isolation has been hard on him.
“We see him weakening, because he's not as active as he once was,” says Allan MacNeil.
The family says, for now, they’re looking forward to the day they can hug their father.
“As soon as they open those doors, we will be the first ones in there,” says his daughter.
