By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, June 12: In a heartwarming event, another patient of Halfway Home was reunited with her family today after being missing for over three years. Glorina Shadap, who had been presumed dead, was handed over to her family at the Halfway Home in Sabahmuswang.
Ilasiewdor Gashnga, a social worker at Halfway Home, expressed her joy during the reunion. “There is no happiness more joyful than seeing family members reunite after losing their loved ones for many years. It is even more delightful if the person, once lost and presumed dead, suffered from mental illness. Imagine the joy for the family discovering that their loved one, thought to be dead, is alive and they can reunite as a family,” she said.
Halfway Home, located near Jowai and operated by the Society for Urban and Rural Empowerment (SURE), is fully funded by the Social Welfare department. To date, it has successfully reunited two families with their mentally-ill relatives who had been lost for more than three years. The staff at Halfway Home managed to accomplish these reunions in less than a month.
On May 17, Jiratan Bibi from Kowarpur, Kamapur, Kamrup district in Assam, was handed over to her family in the presence of Additional Deputy Commissioner, West Jaintia Hills, DV Lyngdoh, and District Social Welfare Officer (DSWO) Ripaia Passah. This marked the first time a patient from a halfway home in Meghalaya was relocated with their family.
On Wednesday, Glorina Shadap was handed over to her family in the presence of R Passah, DSWO, Rolinson Teron, and her family members. Niwanka Shylla, Project Coordinator at Halfway Home, Sabahmuswang, expressed immense satisfaction with the success of these reunions. “We are immensely pleased to be part of the journey of uniting two patients of our Halfway Home with their families. It is an experience of a lifetime,” she said.
Glorina Shadap, who was diagnosed with chronic Schizophrenia, had been admitted to MIMHANS on March 7, 2021, after being found loitering in Mawiong area. Initially, she was uncooperative and provided little information about her background. However, with treatment and medication, her condition improved, and she revealed her name and origin. She was subsequently transferred to Halfway Home on August 11, 2023.
Through dedicated efforts by the Halfway Home staff and assistance from individuals such as Dr HH Mohrmen and Rolinson Teron, contact was eventually made with Glorina’s family. After confirming her identity and facilitating communication, arrangements were made for her family to come and collect her.
Glorina was on Wednesday reunited with her son, Nelson Khorar, and her sister, Celina Kholar. Celina, overwhelmed with emotion, said, “Glorina has been missing since March 2021, and we searched for her everywhere; we thought she had died.” Nelson Khorar expressed his happiness, saying, “I am very happy to see my mother.”
Also present at the reunion were R Passah, DSWO, Dr HH Mohrmen, Secretary of SURE, and John Teron, Glorina’s brother-in-law.