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A Newsletter for St. John's Skilled Services May 2019

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“ I knew St. John’s was special.”

Sarah’s Discovery of St. John’s Choosing a nursing home can be an emotional and difficult decision. For Sarah Monthany the choice was made simple during her tour when she observed an exhilarating St. John’s activity, “Now We Drum.” “Throughout the chords of my life I have always heard different genres of music that played upon the strings of my heart, mind, soul, and spirit,” states Sarah. She believes the melodic notes encourage her that life is worth living and pursuing creative outlets. Her first few steps into St. John’s were accompanied by the songs of “Now We Drum,” vibrating the atmosphere- and the rest was history! If you find yourself near the auditorium at St. John’s Home on a Friday afternoon, chances are you too will hear the undeniable sounds of hand drums, specifically djembes and congas. Our residents lead the show with an array of other instruments ranging from tambourines and shakers to wooden blocks and bells. “In my life I had journeyed to many similar places, but instinctively knew St. John’s was special,” Sarah says with a smile. After her tour,

Go to stjohnsliving.org/story/sarahmonthany-story/ to read the entire feature. Sarah was driving around town with her daughter Kat, and the idea of living at St. John’s filled her heart with nothing but love. Sarah recalls at this point she knew she wanted no other nursing home but St. John’s. “The songs created by Now We Drum, seemed to be a creative sanctuary. The art created would blow your mind; it was the calling card and the easel upon which I wanted my poems to unfold,” explains Sarah. By the end of that day, she had reserved her room on Hastings 2 and was eager to attend her first “Now We Drum” session! Sarah’s experience after moving in has lived up to her high expectations of life at St. John’s. She notes that meal times have been handled with such individual care and a “loving therapeutic touch.” Sarah enjoys the wide variety of items to choose from the menu, both drinks and food. During meal times the staff eats alongside the residents creating a truly home-like environment. According to Sarah her experiences have made each day feel special. “I hope and pray I live here for as long as I live; sitting at the tables of laughter and love watching my next door neighbor breaking bread,” says Sarah.

Families Friends from Nate Hello Friends and Families, I have been lucky enough to share my thoughts with you this past year about the St. John’s Brand Characteristics and how I have seen them in action. For this issue, I will be sharing some observations about the Brand Characteristic of Compassionate. Each day there are acts of compassion between staff and residents; in providing care, in connecting, and in expanding choices. Compassion often happens in small moments, but these moments make up a day and encompass an environment. Compassion is seen sharing a peaceful prayer together, the patience to complete a task, or pausing with someone to be present in a challenging moment. One place where compassion truly shines at St. John’s during the difficult time of end-of-life. Certainly none of us know when our time will end, but for seniors who have entered into hospice or end-of-life care, the likelihood of death is more pronounced. During this unnerving time, the staff at St. John’s excels at compassion. I have encountered so many stories of staff taking extra steps to ease the transition not just for the resident, but for family and friends as well. Residents and loved ones have received kind notes, words, hugs and even personal time off of work from staff. This is one of the many reasons that we are constantly looking for new ways to show appreciation to St. John’s staff members. It takes a very special type of person to confront so much loss and yet still renew their hearts to open again and embrace a new journey. Finding empathy for suffering and the will to find solutions to ease pain requires a deep well of compassion. I am truly grateful to the renewing hearts of the entire team here and know as they support and surround a resident with love that the journey is not made alone. Death is not something we generally talk much about in society, but when you know that you are surrounded by people with compassion, some of the fears subside. Every day we seek to provide this comfort, so when the time comes, these final moments can bring peace.

Residents cheered during laughter yoga and perfected their swings during the second annual Par Fore the Course Golf Event. With Paris as a backdrop, residents and loved ones reveled in a romantic three course meal for our fourth annual Date Night.

It Takes Many Hands to Make a Community Bloom Our residents, special guests, employees and volunteers helped get over 270 hands painted and scanned to construct a giant lilac mural. The banner will be displayed on the front of the Hastings building during the Lilac festival, May 10-19. A uniquely creative idea, proposed by vice president of skilled services Nate Sweeney links our residents to the Rochester community in an impactful way. “This is a way to show that we’re still connected to the festival, to the community, and inviting people to check us out,” said Sweeney. A special thank you to Generations Child Care and SWBR Architects for joining our community to create this banner. During the Lilac festival residents enjoy visits to crunch delicious kettle corn, shop at vendor tables, and inhale the sweet aroma of bloomed lilacs. This festival is unmatched in North America, beginning in 1908 with 25,000 people in attendance. Today, these numbers have grown to exceed 500,000! St. John’s is proud to be a part of these growing numbers. See the news coverage from 13 WHAM here: https:// bit.ly/2In2w1S.

Throwback Thursday Celebrated in 1950s Style Our League Night and Greasy Spoon event had residents and employees smiling in style. Hand-crafted bowling lanes turned the auditorium into an old fashioned bowling alley-- equipped with a bar and root beer float station. “I used to set pins in a bowling alley in high school,” says resident Lloyd Oldham, while taking a turn on a lane. We turned the tables on him as our employees took shifts as pin setters for the four lanes. “It looks like everyone is having so much fun,” resident Jane Cayford says through a grin, admiring the enjoyment by the root beer float station. The fireside lounge lit up with authentic skeeball, pinball machines, darts, and a human claw game reminiscent of a true arcade setting. Breaking for lunch, the Bistro became the Greasy Spoon, a ‘50s inspired diner. The staff happily served up burgers, hot dogs, onion rings and fries while wearing diner-inspired uniforms. View event photos on our Flickr gallery: https://bit.ly/2VRredM.

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Socialize at Skalny Day Break Utilizing a holistic approach, our adult day program meets clients’ needs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. “There are many benefits for clients: the ability to leave the house, socialize, and utilize medical services to stay out of the hospital,” states Linda Reid, guide RN. Meals and activities are all done in the beautifully sun-lit Day Break room. As the first medical model of an adult day care program in Monroe County, our clients receive individual attention in many aspects of their day. Care coordination and transportation to medical appointments are happily provided by our caring staff members. If you stop in and visit our clients you are sure to receive a warm “hello!”

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Also follow us on: Editor Meghan Little mlittle@stjohnsliving.org

Vice President of Marketing Jennifer Lesinski jlesinski@stjohnsliving.org

Marketing Communications Manager Tom Harner tharner@stjohnsliving.org

President and CEO Charlie Runyon

Vice President of Skilled Services Nate Sweeney

Calling all Volunteers! Become a transporter for St. John’s Volunteer Services and help wheel residents from their room to daily activities and appointments in our building. For more information, contact Sandy Ferguson at 585760-1293.