“I’d rather God took me. What am I doing here?”
Alone until the end, the number of elderly people living alone or isolated continues to increase
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Tomásia Ofélia was an 80-year-old widow. She lived with a pension of only 400€ a month and she had no family.

Her days were sad and lonely since her husband died. Life had lost direction since then. The law of rents that the government approved worsened the situation. She was worried because with no money for the rent, she would have to leave her home and live on the street. “I’d rather God take me. What am I doing here? Seeing people harvesting food from dustbins and eating down here on the street? I don´t want that life for me.”

Her request was granted on 4 March 2013. The police came to the house on 12 March to take an inventory of all her property. Without family, her assets go to the Portuguese state. Ofélia´s funeral (20 days after her death) lasted only 14 minutes. Her body arrived in a hearse, with no special adornment and no one to cry for her.

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