When a California assisted living home was unexpectedly shut down for numerous violations, sixteen elderly disabled residents were left behind with no place to go and no one to care for them.
Maurice Rowland and Miguel Alvarez, the center’s cook and janitor, chose to stay while other staffers walked away. They spent several days without pay caring for the residents until the fire department and sheriff took over.
The incident led to legislation in California known as the Residential Care for the Elderly Reform Act.
“My parents, when they were younger, they left me abandoned,” Alvarez said. “Knowing how they are going to feel, I didn’t want them to go through that. “If we left, they wouldn’t have nobody. “
