At age 43, Sylvia Cruz-Solano started volunteering at Crestview senior living in Bryan. On its own, that wouldn’t be anything particularly remarkable. But here’s the thing: Sylvia wasn’t supposed to live to be 20, much less 43. Today, at age 66, she’s still going strong as a Crestview volunteer and still defying the odds.
“I was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at a young age and told I wouldn’t live past the age of 18,” Sylvia recalled. “I guess I beat that by a few years.” Her smile is infectious. Kindness and patience are in her very nature. So is seizing the day, something she learned when she wasn’t sure how many days she would have on this earth.
“I never knew,” she said. “I just got up in the morning and kept keeping on. It seems to be working!”
As a volunteer at Crestview, Sylvia spends time each day from around 8am until 2:30pm with the community’s memory care residents. She reads to them, tells jokes, plays games and more. “Whatever they enjoy, I’m here for it,” she said. Sylvia’s favorite game is dominoes. “Sometimes they beat me, sometimes I beat them. We always have fun.”
As for Crestview, Sylvia says it’s nothing short of a second family. “I’ve been coming here for 22 years,” she observed. “These people, from the residents to the team, are my family. Truly.”
Written by Jeff Bell
