COCOA BEACH, Fla. — For the past month, 98-year-old Ann Bush has been getting in her morning steps right outside her Cocoa Beach home.
What You Need To Know
- Ann Bush, 98, walks laps each morning on the front porch of her Cocoa Beach home
- She's hoping to raise awareness for hospice workers who took good care of her
- Her daughter says Bush stayed positive despite her home being damaged by Hurricane Katrina
- EVERYDAY HEROES: Read inspiring stories about other people in our community making a positive impact
"This is a lap, once up and once back. And I do it 10 times. And at 98, 10 times is enough," Bush says.
Sure, the retired librarian and author is getting exercise, but there's another purpose in her daily routine.
"I went into hospice care, and that's when it started," she says.
By "It," she means "Laps of Love," which supports the St. Francis Reflections Foundation, a hospice service in Brevard County. Bush wanted to give back to the hospice caregivers who cared for her. She was inspired by England's World War II veteran Captain Tom Moore, who at 99 years old, took laps in his garden during the pandemic to raise money for charity up until his 100th birthday.
Bush's daughter, Cornelia, isn't surprised her mom wanted to give back like this.
"I think if people haven't experienced the wonderful caring that people of hospice are, they need to know," Cornelia says.
Her mother's home was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. But even as her world crumbled, Ann Bush was helping others.
"Her house was destroyed all around her, and you wake up the next day and say, 'I'm here for a reason,' " Cornelia says.
Now, Bush is taking steps to help others as long as she can.
"I'm proud of all of them," Ann Bush says.
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