"We do see her from time to time. It's so nice, especially as a mom, when your kids connect you with old friends and you catch up." The sisters, along with their mother, would often visit a woman in Toronto after she had moved from England to Toronto when they were children. The woman would bring her daughter to the home of the two Robertsons and her husband for extended periods of time. They would enjoy afternoon tea and play board games. And when the woman decided to move to Hamilton and close down the shop she operated, the girls and her mother went to her home often to visit. "It was the best gift I ever had," said Roberts. "It was so good." But two years ago, the woman died and the Robertsons were concerned about the safety of the property she had left her estate to her son. After a friend who had visited the home made a call on behalf of the Robertsons to the province, the family finally got the attention it needed. "She died and I wanted to ensure her daughter was OK, so we went to the Ministry of Community Services and asked what to do with the property," said Roberts. The ministry told her she would have to register a change of address for the sister or, if the sister was a minor, her mother. That could take three months. When the ministry representative asked for more information about the sister's health condition and how many visits the Robertsons had made over the last five years to check on the woman's well-being, it became clear the family had made a mistake, but could easily fix the problem. Roberts' mother was able to sign the form on behalf of her sister. The ministry official also told her that if there is any change in the home or if something goes wrong, her visits will be reported and "there will be a response." She is hopeful that one day when the sister returns home, the ministry will issue her a card to let her family know that her house is safe. "I feel so much safer," she said. "It was all going on, we knew someone would get hurt and it's a lot nicer to know that (when) she's back home we'll have notice if something happens." The Ministry of Community Services, said spokesperson David Cooke, is currently working to create a program that would allow the province to keep an eye on the homes of vulnerable adults, by alerting a social worker if there is a need to be concerned. That could include reports of abuse, neglect or anything else that a social worker would need to see. Cooke said there are no plans yet to develop a system for this. But in the meantime, if the ministry does receive a call from someone who is concerned about a home, they will make a note of it and send an officer over to inspect it. Until such a program is established, Cooke said, the province continues to "look at ways to improve the (Ministry of Community Services) delivery and make our services more relevant to the public." jsteeves@thespec.com 905-526-3301 | @StevesTheSpec - A heartfelt letter from one Robertson family member to another - The best gifts I ever received - The letter that started it all - Follow @SPECtheblog on Twitter.