Maggy's Story

John Purves considers St.Amant to be part of his family.

John’s younger sister, Maggy, has called St. Amant her home away from home for four decades. Maggy was born with a developmental disability.

When Maggy was a young girl, John’s parents – his mother Doreen and his late father Robert – came to a difficult realization. Their darling daughter Maggy, they realized, could receive better care with help from St.Amant than the family could provide on their own. Four decades later, the family remains grateful for the help St.Amant has provided.

“Maggy is in a great place – she could not get better care anywhere,” John says. “At home, she couldn’t receive all the stimulation like a pool and loads of activities that she has at St.Amant.”

St.Amant has grown considerably in size and scope since Maggy first moved in. Today, families of a developmentally-disabled individual have far more opportunities for help, from a large residential setting to smaller community homes to a temporary respite program.

“I don’t know if we had these options 40 years ago if we would have done things any differently for Maggy,” John says. “But now St.Amant offers a solution for any family whose loved one has a developmental disability.”

The Purves family has been so impressed with St.Amant that two generations of the family have given back in a variety of ways. John is a veteran member of the board of both St.Amant and the St.Amant Foundation.

“My mother and our family appreciate the active dedication and hard work of all the staff,” he says. “Whether Maggy recognizes it we don’t know, but my family certainly does appreciate it.”