Topeka Presbyterian Manor
AUGUST 2022
Get to know Alyssa Colter, life enrichment director Alyssa Colter began her career at Topeka Presbyterian Manor more than 10 years ago. She earned her certified nursing assistant designation during her senior year at Washburn Rural High School. In her first job at Presbyterian Manor, she worked as a CNA on the evening shift. That was the beginning of a path through different roles in the community. First, Alyssa switched to the day shift, then she shifted to medical records. While she has enjoyed learning how Alyssa Colter to do different jobs in the community, her favorite position so far is the one she has held for the past two years: life enrichment director. “I was interested in working in this area because I wanted to bond with the residents in a different way,” Alyssa said. That was a challenge at first, because the community was still in “complete lockdown” when she assumed her new position. “I really just focused on trying to connect with everyone, even though we couldn’t all be together,” she said. She and her staff facilitated outside connections, too. The life enrichment department was also tasked with scheduling video calls and outdoor visits
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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 Dinah Dutta, chaplain at Lawrence Presbyterian Manor®.
Pause, Breathe, HOPE By Chaplain Dinah Dutta
I can’t help but share this beautiful song with you as my thoughts are wrapped around 4th of July as I Dinah Dutta write my love note to all of you: The patriotic song, “America the Beautiful.” In spite of all the chaos, hatred, fear, and much more, I want to sing this song with all my heart. Each word reminds me how privileged and blessed I am to live in this great country. Please join me in singing: O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee, And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea! O beautiful for pilgrim feet Whose stern impassioned stress A thoroughfare for freedom beat Across the wilderness.
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Get the latest on visitation and COVID-19 at our campus at TopekaPresbyterianManor.org/covid-19.
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Keeping connected – continued from page 2 for residents and their family and friends. “Keeping residents connected with family is a big part of what we do,” she said. Now that more regular activities have resumed, Alyssa is enjoying her favorite perk of the job: spending time with residents. “I get to see them being a little
more silly and a little more goofy,” she said. “And one of my favorite things is learning their stories.” In her new role, Alyssa has introduced some different activities and gatherings, and she has also focused on using technology during activity time. For example, residents might go on a virtual tour of a museum located thousands of miles away from Topeka.
Alyssa spends most of her free time raising her “absolutely wonderful” 10-year-old son Kaden, who will be a fifth grader in the fall. Her other charge is a lab and beagle mix. Her family is “outdoorsy,” and Alyssa takes Kaden on a big camping trip every year. This summer, they visited Melvern Lake. u
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Community Matters 785-272-6510 ◆ Fax: 785-272-0496 4712 S.W. Sixth Ave. Topeka, KS 66606-2284 TopekaPresbyterianManor.org
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COMMUNITY MATTERS | August 2022
is published monthly for residents and friends of Topeka Presbyterian Manor by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America, Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
To submit or suggest articles: dloftin@pmma.org Christie Patrick, executive director Danica Loftin, marketing director
OUR MISSION: To provide quality senior services guided by Christian values.
Get ready for National “Tell a Joke” Day You may not know this, but August 16 is “Tell a Joke Day.” No-one can quite figure out where or how the day started (or why it’s not a national holiday yet) but the idea behind it is quite simple – tell a joke and share a laugh. It’s good for you! Laughter is considered one of the greatest medicines – it can improve your heart health, release endorphins and reduce your stress, even work your abs. So, we wanted to take the opportunity to share a few jokes – as presented by an anonymous resident at one of our communities who enjoys walking around, making people laugh. Some of his jokes are good, some bad, some corny: Q: What do you call a pallbearer in Oklahoma? A: Karaoke (“carry-Okie”) Q: What resort’s grand opening received very little coverage? A: The nudist colony’s Q: Who wore the first Arrow shirt? A: General Custer Q: What do you call a cat that ate a lemon? A: A sourpuss Q: Why couldn’t they play cards on Noah’s Ark? A: Because an elephant stood on the deck
The history of the joke While the origin (and creator) of National “Tell a Joke” Day are a mystery, many “experts” have tried to find the origin of the “joke.” But as it turns out, that’s a difficult task as well. Some suggest that the joke was created by the Greek hero Palamedes, who outsmarted Odysseus during the Trojan War but there’s no evidence to support that claim. But there’s another claim for the Greeks. In 350 BC, the original Friar’s Club met regularly in the Temple of Heracles in Athens to tell jokes but “none have been passed down.” In the 1600s, Shakespeare included lots of humor in his plays, some funny one-liners, and many jokes that were actually insults such as “Thine face is not worth sunburning” from Henry V (Act 5, Scene 2). A classic joke that endured the test of time was first published in 1847 in the monthly New York magazine Knickerbocker: “Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side.” In modern times, stand-up comedians brought humor to clubs and on the radio, TV and the internet. In 2002, an English professor held a contest for the world’s funniest joke. The winner was from comedian Spike Milligan: “Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn’t seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps, ‘My friend is dead! What can I do?’ The operator says, ‘Calm down. I can help. First, let’s make sure he’s dead.’ There is a silence, then a shot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says, ‘OK, now what?’” The above dates and information are from Stop Me If You’ve Heard This A History and Philosophy of Jokes by Jim Holt. u
Topeka Presbyterian Manor | A PMMA COMMUNITY
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Pause, breath, HOPE – continued from page 1 America! America! God mend thine ev'ry flaw, Confirm thy soul in self-control, Thy liberty in law. O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved, And mercy more than life. America! America! May God thy gold refine Till all success be nobleness, And ev'ry gain divine. O beautiful for patriot dream That sees beyond the years Thine alabaster cities gleam Undimmed by human tears. America! America! God shed his grace on thee, And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea.
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I invite you dear ones to take time to pause, pray, breathe, and continue to live in Hope because hope, love, and JOY are contagious. Let us plant the seeds of HOPE all around us. Galatians 6:8: For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life (NKJV). Enjoy the Summer! u