Reports said she and her late husband Harry had four children: Tom, Barbara, Margi and Janet. Janet sadly died at the age of 13. Ada's granddaughter, Debi Higham, and other family members continued to visit the care home.
For the wider family, Ada and Tom living in the same care home offered reassurance.
Debi reportedly said that there was no separating the two and that the family found it reassuring to know they were both being looked after around the clock.
That point is important.
The decision was not simply about Ada wanting to be near Tom.
It also meant that both mother and son could receive professional support while remaining close to one another.
That combination can be valuable for families facing the difficult transition into later-life care.
The National Institute on Aging emphasizes that caregiving needs can change over time and that families may need to reconsider arrangements as circumstances change. It also recommends sharing caregiving responsibilities rather than expecting one individual to do everything.
Ada's decision happened within that larger reality.
She could remain emotionally present for Tom while the care home provided the professional support both of them needed.
Love Does Not Always Look Dramatic
Stories about family love are often told through major events.
A parent crossing an ocean to find a child.
A child giving up a career to care for a sick parent.
A family coming together after years apart.
But Ada and Tom's story is different.
Their love was visible in repetition.
Good morning.
Goodnight.
Breakfast.
Tea.
Television.
Games.
A trip to the hairdresser.
A hug when she came back.
The beauty of the story is that none of these things would normally make the news.
They are the ordinary details of family life.
But when the people involved are 98 and 80, those ordinary moments suddenly become extraordinary.
Their ages remind us that a relationship can survive almost every stage of life.
The roles may become more complicated.
The practical responsibilities may change.
But affection can remain remarkably familiar.
Aging Can Change the Role of Family Members
There is another layer to Ada's story.
As people age, family roles can become complicated.
Parents who once cared for their children may eventually need care themselves.
Adult children may become caregivers for parents.
Sometimes spouses care for one another.
Sometimes siblings share responsibilities.
And sometimes, as in Ada and Tom's case, an elderly parent may still feel a strong instinct to look after an adult child.
The National Institute on Aging describes caregiving as something that can involve helping another person with everyday activities and tasks. It can include family members, friends or neighbors and can change as the needs of the person receiving care change.
The emotional dimension can be even more complicated.
NIA notes that caregivers may experience a reversal of roles, such as taking care of a parent who once cared for them. Families have to balance support with the older person's independence and wishes.
Ada's situation presents a different version of that reversal.
She was the older person.
She was the one who had entered a care home.
Yet emotionally, she still identified herself as Tom's mother first.
That identity was not erased by age.
A Care Home Can Still Be a Place for Family Life
There is sometimes an assumption that entering residential care means leaving behind the familiar aspects of family life.
Ada and Tom's story challenges that assumption.
Their room and care arrangements may have been different from the family home they once shared, but the relationship continued.
The care home became the place where they could watch television together.
It became the place where they could drink tea.
It became the place where Tom could wait for his mother to return from the hairdresser.
It became the place where Ada could say goodnight to her son.
In other words, the location changed.
The family relationship did not.
That distinction can be important for older adults and their families.