We are ready to roll

If you often drive over the Rainbow Bridge between La Conner and Shelter Bay, you are likely to have seen a man pushing a disabled tribal member in a wheelchair and they both seem to be very comfortable.

Bob Grace has spent his life being a caregiver. In 2013 he connected with Francis Sylvester, whose mother is a member of the Swinomish Tribe.

As bystanders, we witness one of the most positive challenges of Grace's caretaking responsibilities, pushing Sylvester across the bridge to La Conner, buzzing around town and then heading back to Shelter Bay.

Sylvester experienced seizures at a very young age, which necessitated a metal plate in his head. He doesn't speak but he claps his hands when his caretaker walks into his room.

Grace puts diapers on Sylvester and bathes him and makes sure he has been fed properly. They eat lunch at the senior center on the reservation and then head off for a beautiful walk across the bridge. They watch television together.

This challenging routine happens six days a week. Grace has Sundays off. As if he did not have enough exercise, Grace loves to go hiking on Sundays with his companions.

Grace wanted to be a caretaker even as a young man, but in those days he got the vibe that caretaking was not a manly thing to do.

His dad had serious diabetes so Grace looked after him and when his dad passed away, Grace worked on a Volunteers of America night shift, checking on different homes for six years.

After that he was a live-in caretaker in Sedro-Wooley for five elderly people. Next he took care of a man who had his legs blown off at Boeing when his paint roller contacted an electric box and exploded.

Grace is totally upbeat about his connection with Sylvester and is optimistic that it will go on for many years.

If you pass by Bob Grace and Francis Sylvester, feel free to give them a thumbs up, which is so well deserved.