Charlottetown Informer October 2023

RECOGNIZING OUR HOUSEKEEPERS

Andrews of Summerside DOC Kim Jay hugs Facility Manager Paula MacDonald during an International Housekeepers Week celebration at Andrews of Summerside. A special thanks to all our housekeeping team members for all your hard work.

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY

It was amazing to see our homes come together to celebrate our housekeeping team members this past month

While we all have different roles, we share a united goal - providing a quality experience for our residents Our housekeeping team does that every day both through the work they do keeping our homes clean as well as their interactions with residents Thank you for your professionalism, your kindness and your dedication

While on the topics of professionalism, I want to highlight our Summerside nursing team

Over the past few months Summerside has been facing an RN shortage, which means everyone has been working more than is ideal to keep things running smoothly Kim, who always leads by example, has been taking extra shifts while keeping up on her DOC duties This is not a situation we want to be in and it’s one we are trying to remedy, with a multipronged recruitment strategy In the meantime, I want our Summerside team to know how much we appreciate your efforts and dedication

Meanwhile, both our Summerside and Charlottetown homes were recently managing COVID-19 outbreaks Due to both team’s preparedness, larger outbreaks were avoided Another example of our amazing teams working under pressure

On a less serious note, Kendra Long, Alana DesRoches and Kim Jay are all marking significant milestones with Andrews Kendra has been with us for 17 years, Alana has been with for 16 and Kim is celebrating 15 years Congratulations. All three of you have made Andrews a better place over the course of your careers You may not always be aware of the impact you have on people, but I can attest, it’s been overwhelmingly positive

I started talking about housekeeping, and now I have a bit of my own to do On the topic of uniforms, you spoke and we listened We are working on new designs using lighter fabric More updates should be coming soon

And for those of you who are not aware, Andrews team members have access to a service called EAP (Employee Assitance Program ) This service provides confidential consultations, information and resources, community referrals, and counselling for a variety of subjects including work stress, life stress, health, family and even money I encourage anyone interested to access LifeWorks tollfree by phone at: 1-877-207-8833, or visit online: https://login lifeworks com/

User ID: murphy

Password: eap

Happy October and happy Thanksgiving weekend!

Mizan

It is Andrews Sen to provide a safe and secure input and feedbac expertise and

CORE VALUE LEADERS

know residents likes and dislikes and is always patient, respectful and attentive to their needs.

ABOVE & BEYOND SEPTEMBER WINNERS

Our Above and Beyond winner for September is Paige Barry Paige is always friendly with our residents and helpful to her fellow team members We are fortunate to have her at Andrews of Charlottetown

Paige, who is in her senior year of high school, started working as a dietary aide at Andrews two years ago Her experience with us has been so positive she intends to study nursing after graduation

“I really enjoy getting to talk to all the residents,” she said “Everyone is so sweet and nice It’s more of a family environment than a work environment ”

When she’s not working or studying, Paige enjoys playing basketball and cooking Two of her favourite things to make are chicken alfredo and chocolate chip cookies.

OUR OTHER HOMES

Rachelle Caliboso : Parkhill

Marlon Go : Summerside

PAIGE BARRY : CHARLOTTETOWN

Paige was recognized for going above and beyond.

Bev Walsh : Stratford

GETTING TO KNOW. . .

AMANDA KOTLAR

Amanda Kotlar is our Senior Living Advisor for two years. Prior to joining Andrews, she worked for many years in various roles in the hotel and hospitality profession She’s an avid runner and has completed two half marathons, as well as a number of shorter events, since taking up running in 2017

W H A T W O U L D Y O U C O N S I D E R T H E P E R F E C T M E A L ? Pizza. It's my favourite thing to eat that I never get tired of eating.

C O F F E E O R T E A ? Tea

W H A T I S Y O U R F A V O U R I T E M O V I E ? Top Gun.

W H A T I S Y O U R F A V O U R I T E B O O K ?

This is difficult, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an old favourite of mine and I have a lot of new favourites. One of my favourite authors is Lisa Jewell, she writes amazing mystery\suspense novels

W H A T T A L E N T W O U L D Y O U M O S T L I K E T O H A V E ? I would love to be a singer

W H A T D O Y O U A D M I R E M O S T I N P E O P L E ?

Resilience, we never truly understand how strong we are until we are faced with obstacles to overcome.

I F Y O U C O U L D L I V E A N Y W H E R E , W H E R E W O U L D Y O U L I V E ?

In a house with an ocean view I love living by the ocean

W H A T M O T T O D O Y O U L I V E B Y ?

Tomorrow is uncertain, do what makes you happy and be kind to others

‘We always looked forward to Halloween’

Residents share memories of celebrating spooky holiday

Andrews of Stratford resident Polly Mullin will never forget the Halloween local kids released a pig inside a neighbour’s house as a prank

“I know the woman that was living in that house,” Polly, who grew up in Morell, P E I said “She became a nun ”

As extreme as letting a pig loose inside someone ’ s home may sound, pranks like that were a staple of the holiday in the early to mid-1900s, a time when Halloween customs were still heavily influenced by the English tradition of Mischief Night. P.E.I. newspapers from the time abound with stories of Halloween shenanigans from one end of the Island to the other Tipping over outhouses even setting hay bales ablaze, were all standard fare for the period

In fact, Polly recalls another Halloween where a family woke up November 1 to find their wagon on the roof of their shed

“You’d pretty well know who the little devils were who were around doing that,” Polly said

But not all Halloween pranks were as complicated. Some were simply a play on the old idea of “trick or treat.”

“We would go to the neighbours’ houses and one house we went to, his name was Judge Fraser, he was the sweetest old man, ” said Jane Pierce, who grew up in Souris “We’d knock on the outside and he’d knock on the inside and he would talk to us and say there was nobody home Eventually he’d open the door and he always had wonderful treats for us ”

DRESSING THE PART

While pranks and games were more common, elaborate costumes were not

Families were much larger then, sometimes with as many as 12 children, so when it came to costumes people made do with what they had around the house.

“We didn’t have bought costumes,” said Jane “We’d get dressed with old rags around the house, someone ’ s old clothes or something We would usually get a new mask, but that would be it ”

Resident Evelyn Rafuse’s family made masks out of old pockets cut off of clothing and tied around the face Eye holes were then cut so the wearer could see

CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

Clippings from P.E.I. newspapers featuring Halloween stories and advertisements. Halloween in the 1930s and 1940s was very different than today. Costumes were simpler parents often felt comfortable letting their young children trick or treat alone.

FREE RANGE KIDS

Another generational difference likely relegated to the past was kids trick or treating alone.

“Now it seems one or both parents go out with their children,” said Jane “We never had that You just went out It was a quiet town and we just trusted everybody We circulated the houses, we went downtown If the stores were open, we always went into the stores ”

Polly and resident Steve MacDonald had similar experiences

“We weren’t scared to go, ” said Polly. “We knew everybody. Their kids would be coming to our house and we’d be going to theirs.” In Charlottetown, it was common for very young children to trick or treat during the morning, while older kids went out in the evening

“The young ones went in the morning,” said Steve “They’d have their fun and come back for dinner and share their big basket of candies ”

GIMME SOMETHING GOOD TO EAT

Like today, candy was a major draw of Halloween for kids

While chips, packaged candy and homemade treats were abundant, Andrews of Parkhill resident Marlene Mitchell looked forward to taffy apples.

“There wasn’t many taffy apples,” she said “It took a lot to make them ”

Residents agreed while Halloween wasn’t celebrated as commercially as it is today, it was still a very popular holiday

“We always looked forward to Halloween,” said Jane

‘I thought I was gonna die’

Campbell remembers the Halloween she was sprayed by a skunk while taking her kids trick or treating

She had taken her kids down to the neighbour’s house They were walking onto the property, when out of nowhere she was hit with an overwhelming odour.

“I got choked up, ” she said “I thought I was gonna die ”

Eventually, the stinging in her eyes subsided and Thelma was able to continue on with her night, despite the smell

When they got home, she made sure to clean herself and her kids thoroughly, erasing any lingering stink from the skunk attack

However, the next morning when they walked into church for Sunday service one of the parishioners announced they smelled skunk Thelma’s heart sank

In the weeks following, news of the skunk incident spread and the whole community was in on the joke, sending sympathy cards to Thelma.

“I had them saved,” she said with a laugh

Andrews of Summerside resident Thelma

Tracey Johnson has been an Andrews of Charlottetown team member for 17 years.

Prior to joining Andrews, she had worked at Zellers However, after seeing an ad for Andrews in the newspaper, she decided she wanted to devote her life to something she considered more rewarding The idea of working with seniors especially appealed to her

She began working as a housekeeper in February, 2006 and never looked back

“I love the seniors,” she said “I love their stories I love listening to them ”

After nearly two decades in the profession, that love has only grown stronger.

“I love taking care of the residents,” she said. “They’re like a second family. You just feel like I spend more time with our residents than I do my own family.”

MARKING MILESTONES

Every month we will be highlighting team members who've reached significant milestones with us

Alana DesRoches has been an Andrews team member for 16 years. Alana began working at Andrews of Summerside as a student in 2007 after studying nursing at the University of Prince Edward Island

She had always been drawn to senior care, something she credits to time spent with her great aunt, who had dementia In addition to enjoying the work, she respected how Andrews prioritized personcentered care So, when Andrews of Summerside offered her the Director of Care position, she jumped at the opportunity

She remained Director of Care at Summerside for 10 years before becoming Director of Nursing, overseeing all Andrews homes, including our ProTem homes in Moncton, N B

Throughout her career, she’s felt supported by the larger Andrews team

“They’ve always been very open to doing what’s right, wanting to grow and improve,” Alana said

RESOURCES/GAMES

Are You Feeling Stressed or Overwhelmed?

Take advantage of our Employee Assistance Program through Lifeworks This program is available 24/7 online or over the phone and services to help you with work, family, health, money, and life The following is information on how you can access the program:

Toll-free support line: 1-877-207-8833

TTY: 1-877-371-9978

Through their website login.lifeworks.com

Username: murphy

Password: eap

Are you, a friend or family member looking to buy or sell a property?

You could earn up to $250. Read below to learn how.

We are pleased to offer a new Referral Program between Provincial Realty and Andrews Senior Care The Referral Program will work as follows:

Each employee that retains a Provincial Realty real estate advisor, or refers a friend or family member who uses their service for selling or purchasing properties over $150,000 will receive a gift card as a token of our appreciation

For more information, please contact Provincial Realty at 902.892.2266 or email us directly office@provincialrealty.ca.

Jessica Gauthier Human Resources Advisor hr@andrewsseniorcare com

1-902-894-3439 ext 2422

If you have any questions for our HR team about benefits, ADP support, Immigration Program support or any other questions please contact me

Community Cash 50/50

DON'T MISS OUT ON THESE BENEFITS

Paid vacation time starting at 4% per year (Approximately 2 weeks)

Health and dental coverage, of which we cover 50% of the costs

A pension plan where we match your contributions of up to 4% of your salary annually

A fitness subsidy of up to $250 annually

Discounts with local companies, including pharmacies, home heating oil providers and restaurants