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When an Arizona woman visited her uncle at an independent living community in West Valley last week, she made a horrifying discovery.
Gerald McClellan, 75, was dead, still sitting upright in his chair.
Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies believe McClellan may have been dead for three to four days before anyone noticed.
“It looked like a skeleton on a chair. The face, the eyes, were hollowed out,” Angela Bourne said. ezfamily“That horrific scene is imprinted on my mind.”
Bourne said she is still shocked by the discovery of her uncle, whom she says was like a father to her, and was angry that Lifestream staff in Sun City did not check on her sooner.
“I just remember running out of the room to the front desk and asking him when was the last time you saw him,” Bourne said.
He said an executive director later admitted that no one had seen McClellan since the previous weekend.
Bourne said, “He didn’t press the button; they tried to call him, but couldn’t get a hold of him and still didn’t go to see him.” “It wasn’t one day, it wasn’t two days, it wasn’t three days, it was four days.”
McClellan had moved into a studio apartment in the facility, with monthly rent of about $1,700, in January, just after his wife’s death.
“I promised my aunt that I would take care of her when she passed away,” Born said, adding that she was confident about the facility because staff told her there was a daily health screening system in place.
“Every day by 10 a.m., a staff member had to reach out to him or check on him,” he said. “Apparently, it didn’t happen when it mattered most.”
Now, Bourne says she’s turning her grief into action — hoping her uncle’s story will lead to better safety measures because she believes more needs to be done to improve protocols so this doesn’t happen again.
“For people who have family there,” she said, “check on your family member because clearly they’re not doing it.”
In a statement, Lifestream at Sun City said:
“Lifestream at Sun City is deeply saddened by the passing of one of our residents. Our heartfelt condolences and prayers go out to his family and loved ones during this difficult time.
“Out of respect for the family’s privacy, we are not sharing further details at this time. We express our heartfelt gratitude to the emergency responders for their compassion, professionalism and support.”