Staff were pleasantly surprised Monday morning, May 17, to find in the employee breakroom a beautiful display dropped off over the weekend from the Roanoke Apostolic Christian HOPE Girls. Employees were encouraged with darling notes, a large assortment of snacks, and bottled water with a lemonade packet attached to each one. Their sign said, “Thank you all for loving and serving our community well. You are all loved and appreciated. These treats cannot make up for the hard work you have put in, but we hope they may bring a smile to your face. Keep up the good work!” Love, The HOPE Girls. A sincere thanks to each of these junior high age girls and their adult leaders for this very touching gift of service to others. May God richly bless each of you!
The live streaming of the Roanoke Apostolic Christian Church service was available to watch on activity channel 2 for all residents and Country View tenants who chose to tune in. Thanks to the volunteer staff who gives of her time each week to connect for this spiritual nutrition for the soul.
The work week began with a devotional from the Daily Guideposts read over the intercom for both residents and staff to listen. The verse for the day was “The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine; as for the world and the fulness thereof, thou has founded them.” Psalms 89:11 Even though it was a rainy Monday morning, the words and truth of the Bible brightened everyone’s day even while gloomy and wet outside. Manicure Monday followed devotions. The residents thoroughly enjoyed having scented lotion rubbed on their hands while visiting with the activity staff offering a manicure. Morning Stretch was on activity channel 2 this morning and is always a good way to continue the day. Activity staff moved room to room and “pepped up” the residents and prompted them to participate and follow along with the exercises on the TVs. With some fun-loving encouragement, many joined in and did well. This was followed with a replay of yesterday’s church service. After the busy morning, BINGO was played after lunch. This is such a highlight for residents. Now BINGO is often stereotyped a game “old people play,” but playing BINGO offers many benefits for seniors. One benefit is the social engagement BINGO offers. There is interaction between the caller and player, candy passers, and fellow players. Avoiding isolation and having interaction with others helps with mental health issues such as depression. BINGO helps maintain cognitive function; although simple, it utilizes memory recall and is repetitious yet familiar. Finally, BINGO helps with hand-eye coordination. The simple movement of quickly placing a chip on a card may make buttoning a shirt or opening a can of soda later a little easier, too.
Country View tenants enjoyed Birthday Cake & Ice Cream for dessert in celebration of four ladies in the apartments with May birthdays: Marilyn Leman, the 10th; Virginia Bates, the 25th; Susan Wettstein, the 28th; and Ida Mae Tjaden, the 30th. May God richly bless each one of them on their special day!
While it was another rainy day on Tuesday, everyone was encouraged when turning to God’s Word. The verses were encouraging to be thankful for the gentle rains for the fields and gardens. Then it was time for Wheel of Fortune to guess the letters and solve the puzzles. Later that morning a Travelogue on Italy was shown on activity channel 2. The tour began in the Alpes and continued to Genoa to Portofino to Venice. After that portion of the tour, it continued to the “toe of the boot” and inland, ending in Rome.
What fun filled the afternoon as activity staff went room to room visiting with residents and passing a favorite treat of root beer floats made with A&W root beer & Edy’s vanilla ice cream. The floats were served in cheerful bright colored cups with straws and coordinating napkins. Everyone smiled and seemed happy with the special delivery. While sipping on floats, residents were able to watch some themed videos playing on their TVs on activity channel 2, including a documentary on Heirs Root Beer, several vintage A&W commercials, and finally Billy Joel performing The Root Beer Rag. The evening schedule included Pictionary with the 2nd shift activity staff heading up this comical drawing game.
Wednesday kicked off with BINGO in the morning, Brain Games in the afternoon, and the live streaming of church watch on activity channel 2 in the evening. Staff were again blessed with lunch provided by a resident’s family who wanted to express their sincere appreciation for the excellent care their mother receives at the Home. About 11:15 that day, fresh boxed lunches from Braker’s Market in Eureka were brought in along with a few cases of bottled water. The ham & cheese or turkey & cheese sandwiches with lettuce and tomatoes, large assortment of bags of chips, and many different kinds of cookies made the choice difficult but fun, and all were most delicious. Thank you to this generous family for acknowledging staff in such a tasty way!
The schedule for Thursday included Step Back in Time in the morning. Residents wanted to reminisce about farming and seeing the corn pop up. They asked about the crops to know if anything was growing yet. It’s such an exciting time to watch the tremendous growth of a tiny seed to a small plant to full maturity of bearing fruit. The wonderful smell of fresh popcorn being made filled the halls after lunch to have everyone’s mouth’s watering for Popcorn Pop-In & Movie. It was Trivia Night on that evening’s schedule, stimulating everyone’s mind to recall some fun facts.
FUNNY Friday continued this week, too, with even the Daily Guidepost reading including the benefits of laughter for the body. Jokes were shared during Let’s Laugh that morning. From children to teachers and adults in different jobs, cute things said and funny stories were read. Even some embarrassing moments were shared as all laughed together to the many very relatable accounts. It was Comedy Hour on activity channel 2 throughout the afternoon with several episodes of I Love Lucy being watched on many residents’ televisions. Thanks to our activity staff for their great sense of humor that is simply contagious to residents and coworkers alike.
Weekly word search puzzles were passed out with the themes of Armed Forces Day and Illinois. The National Armed Day is May 15 but has been celebrated on the 3rd Saturday in May since 1950. It was originally known as Army Day, but it now honors all the branches of the military. Thanks to our veterans and prayers for those serving our country yet today.
Saturday’s activity schedule included room visits by activity staff that morning. In addition, the USPS mail is picked up by a volunteer 6 days a week and was passed by volunteer staff that afternoon. Many thanks to those who support the Home in the ways that volunteers can still be safely utilized during the COVID restrictions mandated by IDPH on nursing homes.
Residents who celebrated May birthdays are visited in their rooms and honored with a special cupcake with a candle to blow out. Happy Birthday to Lila Herbst who turned 96 on May 2 and Erma Moser who was 101 years young on the 23rd!
NOTE: “The Cottage,” the new Countryside Barn used for indoor, climate-controlled window visits for residents and their families/friends, continues to be a great way to safely visit loved ones at the Home. This beautiful shed is located in the Home’s west parking lot in front of the building. Remember appointments MUST be scheduled in advance, using the link to Calendly on the homepage of the Home’s website: www.achroanoke.org
NOTE: This email was received from the Woodford Country Health Department: “We need your help! WCHD is asking for feedback regarding COVID-19 vaccinations. If you are a Woodford County resident, please fill out this short survey so we can continue to serve our communities to the best of our abilities: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/9GKP7NR Feel free to forward or post on your website or social media as you deem appropriate. Thank you for your continued partnership.”