Oma Jusko strokes Nutmegs nose at her home in Newcastle on Saturday, April 19. Jusko, who is in hospice care, often expressed a wish to meet a donkey as she watched favorite movies like Jesus of Nazareth with her family. (Photo courtesy Bisi Cameron Yee)
“This may be a long shot…” began the April 16 post by Waldoboro resident Kelsie Jusko to the Damariscotta/Pemaquid Area Bulletin Board Facebook page.
The request was indeed unusual. “I was wondering if there would (be) anyone near the Newcastle area that would have a very friendly donkey and would be willing to bring to our home.”
Jusko went on to explain that she hoped to fulfill a dream for her 90-year-old grandmother, currently under home hospice care. Oma Jusko wanted to meet a donkey. And Kelsie Jusko wanted to make that happen.
The response was immediate and overwhelming. The post was shared more than 50 times and offers rolled in to bring donkeys, miniature horses, even mules from as far away as Winthrop.
According to her daughter Cindy Parker, Oma Jusko grew up on a farm in Dark Corners, Texas. While there were horses and cows around, it was the donkeys on the farm that the young girl was drawn to.
“Those were hers,” said Parker. “The ones she cared for and cared about.”
The symbolic nature of donkeys was important too. Always religious, Oma Jusko converted to Catholicism when she met and married a handsome air force captain named Vincent Jusko.
“She read the Bible, she put us through religious studies,” said Parker. “Everything in our house had crosses and the Lord’s Prayer … She always taught us the Ten Commandments – do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
When she moved to Maine, Oma Jusko even tried to convince her daughter to add a donkey to her already overflowing household so she could look out her bedroom window and see a scene that would remind her of the biblical movies she always enjoyed watching.
Four days after her granddaughter’s Facebook plea, Oma Jusko finally got her donkey.
Several people who saw the post had tagged Ellen McFarland, who also lived in Newcastle and has been known to take her well-socialized donkey Nutmeg and miniature horse Coppertop to fall festivals at the Chase Point Assisted Living Facility in Damariscotta.
At 9:15 a.m. on the Saturday before Easter, McFarland and her sister Jenny Mitkus brought Nutmeg and Coppertop down the road for a visit. Neither had ever been inside a house and both were initially hesitant to enter, to walk on unfamiliar surfaces like hardwood floors and area rugs. But with a little urging and the temptation of a peppermint treat they made their way to Oma Jusko’s bedroom.
As Nutmeg nudged her way closer to the bed Oma Jusko reached out, her face aglow.
“Her smile just made the whole thing,” said McFarland.
Nutmeg and Coppertop visited with Oma Jusko for 30 minutes as she stroked their noses and blew kisses.
McFarland said she was touched by “how much that family loves that woman. How much they just truly love her. Enough to make something like that happen.”
More than 300 people agreed, responding to the photos of Oma Jusko and Nutmeg that Kelsie Jusko posted to the Facebook bulletin board with comments like “This makes my heart so happy,” and “You just gave my faith in humanity a boost.”
For Kelsie Jusko, the sweet meeting also fulfilled a dream of her own after watching the grandmother she loves decline for the last several months.
“I wanted to see my nana in a different light right now because of everything she’s going through,” she said. “I just wanted to see that joyous look on her face like I’ve seen in the past.”
Kelsie Jusko said her grandmother was surprised and humbled that anyone would go to that amount of trouble, expend their time just for her.
“Why would they do that?” she asked.
“Because you’re amazing,” responded her granddaughter.
(Bisi Cameron Yee is a freelance photojournalist based in Nobleboro. To contact her, email cameronyeephotography@gmail.com.)
