My mom wants to volunteer
My mom's husband (not my dad) died in early January. They had been living in his home, and it was not left to her, so she needed to move. The home situation was not a surprise. They kept their finances separate, and he left it to his kids. I found her a house to buy walking distance from mine. She's in her 80s and she doesn't have good mobility, so I'm very glad she's close now. She doesn't drive, and she isn't good at navigating the world on her own. She's not tech savvy. So I feel like I've been managing my own life, plus another adult life. From managing the purchase of the house, inspections, realtor, etc, to getting utilities setup, buying and assembling furniture, getting her taxes done, hiring contractors, taking her to the doctor and grocery shopping... It feels never ending.
She's mostly settled in now, and she keeps talking about volunteering at the local elementary school. I think this is a terrible idea. She was a grade school teacher, but that was 40 years ago. She's a typical boomer who says casually racist things with some regularity. She uses a walker and has a hard time sitting very long in uncomfortable chairs. She's very frail. The school is walking distance from her house, but I worry about her trying to walk over there in bad weather. I work full time, so I can't always drive her. My brother says I should let her try and they will probably just turn down her application or ask her to stop volunteering after she says some racist comment to a kid. I wonder if I am stressing out about this too much. I obviously can't control her whole life, but I hate to see her getting in a situation that is too much for her. I know she will feel upset if she is rejected or fired from volunteering.