MSS CONNECTION: Spring 2024 Edition

Time keeps flying by!

It is hard to believe we are almost half-way through 2024. Wasn’t it just yesterday we welcomed the new year?

From the desk of Steve

McAlilly

One thing is for sure--life goes on. At Methodist Senior Services, our Mission is still clear—to serve older adults in the spirit of Christian love. Though we will depend on different ways to do our sacred work, but the work is still there to do. And it must be done!

In these pages we celebrate the vision and the work of our twelve campuses across the state. You will see that, despite the pressures of declining resources, we are finding creative ways to serve the elders. What we did yesterday is not good enough for today or tomorrow.

As the world has climbed out of the pandemic of COVID, we notice things have changed. I am proud of our teams who are finding new and better ways to serve. Occupancy is rising. We are providing over $46,000 per month in Sunday Fund assistance! We recently completed our third class of the Beth and Henry Brevard Celebration of Leadership. 64 of our team members are graduates! That’s enough to start a movement.

Many providers of long term care are refusing to serve elders “who cost them a lot to serve”. The poorest, the least of these, the frailest are being cast aside simply because it costs too much to serve them.

I assure you that Methodist Senior Services will never cast them aside.

But to do that we need you! In these uncertain times and dwindling resources we need you now more than ever. It will take your gifts and support in more ways than ever for us to continue to serve those society casts aside.

And we are confident you

will rise to serve with us!

Senior Services Statistics

Number of Units: 1,429

% of Occupancy: 90%

Total Residents: 1,385

Sunday Fund Recipients: 26

March SF Assistance: $46,620

Gov’t Rent Assistance Residents: 493

Outreach Service Recipients: 164

Total Served by Senior Services: 1,549

Total Employees: 876

Our Mission: to serve older adults in the spirit of Christian love

Our Core Values:

• Servant ministry

• The dignity of elders

• Compassion for those we serve

• Equity and empowerment

• Operational excellence

• Innovative service

Our Vision: to ensure Mississippi elders and our team members are safe, secure, supported and loved

renee.reid@mss.org Stephen L. McAlilly, President/CEO Bill West, Chair of the Board

Second Wind® Dreams Helps Dugan Take A Second Look At Living With Dementia

On March 28, 2024, the Team at Dugan, in West Point, Mississippi, had the opportunity to experience a virtual dementia tour led by Second Wind Dreams®. The Virtual Dementia Tour temporarily alters participants’ physical and sensory abilities using sensory tools and instruction based on research conducted by P.K. Beville, geriatric specialist and founder of Second Wind Dreams®

The Virtual Dementia Tour offers hope by providing practical ways to provide insight and support. More than 3 million people have experienced the Virtual Dementia Tour and it is used in a variety of settings including healthcare, higher education, and the community. This program meets and exceeds federal mandates for additional training for every healthcare entity providing care to people with memory impairments.

“It was an eye opening experience,” said Koltlyn Phillips, LPN at Dugan. “It changed my perspective and how I look at dementia.”

Trained facilitators guided participants outfitted with patented devices that alter their senses while they tried to complete common everyday tasks and exercises. The Tour enabled our team of caregivers to experience for themselves the physical and mental challenges those with dementia face daily and used the experience to provide better person-centered care.

It was definitely an eye opener,” said Latoya Bennett, Administative Assistant. “I see things differently now.”

A Special “Thank You” to Melora Jackson, Director of Clinical Services at Second Wind Dreams for helping us accomplish this training.

Seashore Highlands Welcomes New Executive Director

Methodist Senior Services is pleased to welcome Rick Lee to the Seashore Highlands Retirement Community as the new Executive Director. He began on Monday, February 19, 2024.

Rick brought 35 years of experience as a health care professional to the role, with 25 years in the senior living industry. His extensive knowledge and background, including an LPN license for 35 years will be instrumental in serving elders. His most recent position as the Vice-President of Operations for a large senior living organization in Texas gives him unique insight which will be useful in guiding the team of Seashore Highlands.

In addition to Rick’s professional experience, he has achieved specialized education as a Certified Dementia Practitioner, Certified Dementia Case Manager and Certified Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Trainer.

Rick was born and raised in West Texas in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and he relocated to the Mississippi Gulf Coast three years ago. Rick shared, “I have a strong passion for serving seniors and their families and I take great pride in mentoring and leading teams with the ultimate goal of providing the very best quality care in the industry.”

Rick is married with 3 grown sons and 5 grandsons. In his free time, he enjoys boating, traveling, spending time with family and friends and making a positive impact on those individuals he serves daily.

We are delighted to have Rick on board as part of the MSS family at Seashore Highlands and look forward to his contributions.

2023-2024

Februay 7, 2024

GREEN TEAM

RED TEAM

BLUE

Endow Mississippi: Strengthening Charitable Giving in Mississippi

Mississippi is incentivizing philanthropy, encouraging charitable giving, and building on the strong tradition of neighbors helping neighbors in our state through the Endow Mississippi Tax Credit Program. Endow Mississippi provides a 25% tax credit to donors who give to permanent endowments at qualified community foundations.

To learn more, visit: endowms.org

Methodist Senior Services started an internal, general endowment fund in the 90’s, thanks to the legendary Henry Brevard. To be more progressive, MSS recently partnered with local community foundations across the State to allow donors to contribute directly to local campus endowment funds. Donors can now contribute to local campus endowment funds to receive this unique state tax credit.

To learn more about your giving options to support Methodist Senior Services, visit https://mssgiving.org or email Brittany Cuevas, Vice-President for Philanthropy, at Brittany.Cuevas@mss.org or call 662-844-8977.

For more information or to apply online visit: www.theshepherdsfund.org

DID YOU KNOW?

Through The Shepherd’s Fund, retired or disabled pastors, their spouses, or widows can apply for a one time grant up to $10,000 each or $20,000 total for medical expenses? They may reapply in subsequent years, especially if they have a chronic ongoing medical condition.

While this fund is not a part of the Methodist Senior Services ministry, they are a wonderful partner and we wanted to share this opportunity with those you might know that qualify.

PK Thomas, Director of Development at CREATE Foundation & Traceway Retirement Community Board Member

PK joined the CREATE Foundation in 2020, following ten years with Mississippi State University Development Foundation. His primary duties at CREATE are to work with community affiliates, as well as all current and prospective donors. PK is committed to community service and continuing to build the legacy of donor impact in Northeast Mississippi.

We asked PK what he thought about endowments and the tax credit:

What is an endowment?

An endowment is a planning tool for the future. It is a tool that allows an organization to raise funds that will benefit the organization in perpetuity and can be used strategically to raise funds that will provide steady support over the life of the organization.

Why should donors contribute to endowments?

Endowments allow donors to make an infinite impact on organizations that they care about. Gifts to endowments funds keep on giving long after the donor is gone.

How have you seen endowments make large impacts?

It has been a blessing to see our organizations benefit from their endowment funds in various ways. We have seen organizations use their endowment funds to support new programming, make facility improvements and support staff development just as a few examples.

What is your favorite story about a donor giving to an endowment or creating an endowment? I worked with a donor on creating a scholarship in memory of her mother and daughter. It was very fulfilling to assist her in making this desire of hers come to fruition and allow her to see her gifts in action!

How would you describe a donor that chooses to make an endowment gift?

The beautiful thing about endowments is that anyone can make a gift to it! No gift is too small...they are all important!

When should donors submit their application and donation to a community foundation endowment fund in order to receive the tax credit?

The Endow Mississippi Tax Credit Program is based on a first come-first served basis so donors should submit their applications as early as possible. Donors are not required to make a gift when their application is submitted. They have the opportunity to confirm that they will receive the credit before they make the gift.

This is who we are…this is how we love!

When Ms Diane wanted to take a walk to enjoy the beautiful weather, she asked our new housekeeper Andrea to accompany her. Without missing a beat, Andrea headed out the door walking and talking with her. They perched down outside the clubhouse for a few minutes, where they chatted about where they grew up and about Andrea’s love for her grandmother and her passion for wanting to work around elders because of that love. Talk about a wonderful moment of meaningful engagement! #OneMSS

Methodist Senior Services Communities Recognized Among Nation’s Top

Senior Living Communities

Resident surveys indicate high levels of engagement and satisfaction

Two Methodist Senior Services (MSS) Retirement Communities have been recognized nationally among the best senior living communities through resident engagement and satisfaction surveys. Seashore Highlands and Flowers Retirement Community were recognized for their exemplary efforts in creating a culture of engagement and satisfaction.

Holleran, the nation’s leading research firm specializing in senior living and community engagement, has announced Seashore Highlands and Flowers Retirement Community are among the 2023 recipients of their “Choice Community Award.” The Choice Community Award recognizes organizations with strong cultures of engagement.

“These communities embody the Methodist Senior Services mission to serve older adults in the spirit of Christian love,” said Christie Vance, Vice President for Operations and COO for MSS. “Our core values of servant ministry and compassion for those we serve, the dignity of elders, innovative service and operational excellence guide our teams at these two communities and throughout the 12 MSS campuses around the state.”

Awards are granted by exceeding Holleran’s proprietary National Benchmark. This places Flowers and Seashore Highlands in the top senior living communities in the country.

Flowers Retirement Community offers independent senior living and assisted living following the groundbreaking Green House® concept for senior living. Flowers is an official Eden Alternative Community, which promotes a living environment rich in variety and spontaneity.

Seashore Highlands offers independent senior living in villas, assisted living apartments and memory support assisted living following the groundbreaking Green House® concept for senior living.

The Green House® concept, born out of the Eden principles, is designed to deinstitutionalize nursing home life and provide an environment where elders engage in meaningful life activities, eliminating “loneliness, helplessness and boredom.” The idea is to deliver care and services in a facility that is home, not “home-like.”

Holleran has the largest benchmark of its kind, measuring both resident and employee engagement in the senior living space. Currently, the benchmark comprises more than 147,000 resident and employee surveys from nearly 300 organizations across 36 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada.

Methodist Senior Services: A Company on a Mission

Region Area Director, Rick Lee, Executive Director of Seashore Highlands, and Christie Vance, Vice President of Operations and COO of Methodist Senior Services.

Methodist Senior Services’ more than 60-year-old tradition fulfills its one mission: serving older adults in the spirit of Christian love. Approximately 1,000 employees and 1,600 volunteers make that mission the organization’s prime focus. Today, MSS serves more than 1,700 elders in 12 statewide campuses offering affordable apartments, personal care/assisted living, the Green House® Homes and skilled nursing care. For more information concerning MSS or its communities, please visit the website at www.mss.org.

Flowers Retirement Community: MSS has been serving seniors in the Mississippi Delta at Flowers Retirement Community since 1978. For more information, visit mss.org/Flowers or follow Flowers Retirement Community on Facebook.

Pictured Above: Jennifer Thompson, South

Seashore Highlands: MSS has been serving seniors along the Gulf Coast since 1984. Learn more about Seashore Highlands at mss.org/Seashore or follow @SeashoreHighlands on Facebook.

Holleran is the premier provider of employee and resident engagement and satisfaction research and benchmarks, serving not-for-profit senior living providers nationally. For more than 30 years, Holleran has specialized in researching and consulting with senior living providers, retirement communities, and healthcare systems to develop business strategies that match their mission, vision and values. Utilizing sophisticated research analysis, alongside our extensive survey benchmarks, leaders gain a clear vision of the strengths and opportunities within their business.

Learn more at www.Holleranconsulting.com.

U.S. News Announces 2024 Best Senior Living Ratings

high performing

Washington, D.C. – April 16, 2024 − U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in hospital rankings and consumer advice, today revealed its 2024 Best Senior Living ratings to assist seniors and their families with researching and choosing the best senior living community for their needs.

Now in its third year, U.S. News’ Best Senior Living ratings evaluate over 3,500 communities in the U.S. in one or more of the following categories: independent living, assisted living, memory care and continuing care retirement. Senior living communities are evaluated on several criteria, including resident and family members’ satisfaction with safety, care, community management and staff, value and other services and amenities.

“Best Senior Living reflects U.S. News’ commitment to helping families navigate the important and complex decision of researching and choosing a senior living community through trusted, data-backed community ratings,” said Sumita Singh, general manager of Health at U.S. News. “We are proud to recognize those communities that stand out as ‘Best’ by providing exceptional care and satisfaction, as directly expressed by residents and family members of residents who live and thrive in these communities.”

Mississippi Methodist Senior Services has seven communities that earned the highest possible rating in this report.

Pictured Left: Monica Jennings, Executive Director, Flowers Retirement Community and Christie Vance, VP of Operations and COO of Methodist Senior Services.

Here’s your chance to have the CONNECTION delivered right to your email !

We understand some of you love to read from the physical, printed newsletter and we will continue to print those pieces for you.

However, so many people get their news “on the go” now and we wanted to make things easier for you to keep up with all the things happening at Methodist Senior Services.

We are now publishing our newsletter, the CONNECTION, digitally. You can have it delivered directly to your email inbox by registering at our quick interest form online.

We will also be posting it to our website: www.mss.org

Sample email announcing the newsletter and sample digital pages online.