Lisa Montoya tackles yet another new role at Manor of the Plains
Certified nurse aid, medication aid, life enrichment director, social service designeeduring her 18-year career at Manor of the Plains, Lisa Montoya has pretty much done it all.
Now you can add the title of dietary manager to the list as she has recently stepped in to fill a critical void within the community.
In this latest position, Lisa will be overseeing the community’s cooks and dining staff and basically just doing whatever she can to make yet another positive impact on the lives of residents.
“I just want to make it better for them. I’ll do my best, and with the help of the staff we’ll do everything we can to make them happy,” said Lisa. While the position will require Lisa to develop a whole new skill set, she’s determined to be successful.
“It’s going to be a whole learning experience for all of us,” said Lisa. “I’m up for it and hopeful I can fulfill it.”
But that doesn’t mean Lisa is going to be leaving her old job behind. In addition to her new duties, she’ll continue serving as a PRN nurse ("pro re neta," which translates to "as the need arises.")
“If this job would’ve taken me away from that, I wouldn’t have ever put in for it— PMMA is my life,” said Lisa. “I’m a CMA
EDITOR’S NOTE: In a nod to our Presbyterian heritage, we regularly feature a column from a PMMA® chaplain in our newsletter. This month’s column comes from Robert “Bob” Griffin, chaplain at Topeka Presbyterian Manor®.
THINKING ABOUT…
Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow on Groundhog Day. For those who gauge the future by a groundhog, that was supposed to mean we were going to have six more weeks of winter. For some, that might be a welcomed forecast. For others, the winter has dragged on long enough!
Bob GriffinSo, as we turn the calendar to a new month in March, what are we to do? Glad you asked!
The Apostle Paul has wise advice for us:“…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things” (Philippians 4:8, NIV). Sometime later, a man of much influence, Buddha, made this observation: “We are shaped by our thoughts, we become what we think.”
What we think and how we think matters. Our thoughts influence our emotional, physical, and spiritual health. You’ve probably heard of “the winter blues.” The winter blues is a real thing!
Chaplain–continued on page 2
Montoya – continued from page 1
(Certified Medical Assistant), a nursing assistant and social service designee (SSD), so I can fill in and put all my certifications to work for me.”
As she begins her new role at the community, Lisa wants to make sure that her fellow staff members know how much she appreciates their continued love and support.
“I want to thank our Manor team for all their help in any position that I have been in and a big shout out to my boss, Tammy, for believing in me and encouraging me to take this big step,” said Lisa.u
Chaplain – continued from page 1
In an article published on February 2nd “Verywellhealth.com” Nurse
Carrie Madormo writes: “If you’ve ever found yourself feeling rather blah during the winter months, you have likely experienced the winter blues. This very common condition affects just about every one of us at some point when we notice a shift in our moods during the colder, darker days of winter. It’s normal to feel down, sluggish, or not quite yourself during this time.” The winter blues are real but we need not let them rob us of our
joy and vitality in life.
One of the ways for us to cope with the winter blues, or a longer winter, is to control our thoughts. We can do that! We may not be able to control the temperature, snowfall, freezing rain, or groundhog, but we CAN control our thoughts.
Take your thoughts to a place, a person, or a thing that rings true of all that is good. Focus your thoughts on the pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy things of life. For me, it’s seeing a picture of my purely innocent two-year-old
grandson with a bowl of spaghetti turned upside down on his head. Or, the sight of a lovely bright red cardinal sitting on a tree limb (perhaps trying to be inconspicuous but he’s too beautiful to go unnoticed!). Or a friend who sent me a note saying they were thinking of me – excellent! Whatever those things are for you, think about such things. You’ll smile more, enjoy life more, “…and the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:9, NIV).
Resource: www.verywellhealth.com/winterblues u
Sharing Campus Pride at Winter Expo
Manor of the Plains was excited to take part at the 2023 Winter Expo in Dodge City. With more than 100 vendors on hand as well as the added draw of a gun and car show, the event provided great exposure for the community. While there, the Manor of the Plains staff handed out flyers promoting our Art is Ageless® program as well as the community’s Health and Wellness Fair.
Tammy Thompson, executive director; Joy Wiggins, sales and marketing counselor; and Lizbeth Ontiveros, human resource director, represented Manor of the Plains the Winter Expo. u
Last call for entries for our Art is Ageless® competition and exhibit
Time is running out for artists age 65 and older who want to enter this year’s Art is Ageless® juried competition and exhibit at Manor of the Plains.
Works to be entered for judging
need to be at Manor of the Plains by 5 p.m. March 3. For the competition, works are to have been completed in the past five years (since January 2018). There are nine categories, as well as designations of amateur or professional. Artists may choose to enter works for exhibit only We have already
received a few entries. These are some of the entries from Jane Eskam, who painted works of art to represent all of the colleges her grandchildren graduated from. The Weber truck is for her son. Jane worked as our human resource director for several years; who knew she could also paint?
If you’d like more information or to enter, contact Joy Wiggins at 620-225-1928 or jwiggins@pmma.org, or visit ArtIsAgeless.org.u
200 Campus Dr.
Dodge City, KS 67801-2760
Manor of the Plains shares customer service survey responses
Manor of the Plains continues to seek customer feedback through monthly telephone surveys. Each month, residents and their representatives are randomly selected to participate in telephone satisfaction surveys conducted by Pinnacle Quality Insight.
The graphic highlights some of the survey results. All scores are given on a 5-point scale, with 5 being the highest score and 1 the lowest score. Between January and December 2022, Manor of the Plains residents and their families gave the community high scores for the move-in process, the professional therapy, cleanliness, and for demonstrating dignity and respect.
“It is friendly,” one resident said about the community. “The staff is nice. I have made a lot of friends. It’s safe and you’re well taken care of.”
We greatly value the opinions of our residents and their representatives
about the care and services we provide, and we encourage them to participate honestly when contacted by Pinnacle Quality Insight. All state and federal confidentiality laws are met in Pinnacle’s service. u