Families & Friends November by stjohnsliving

Families Friends

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

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“Everyone should try this at least once.”

Carol Takes the Ride of a Lifetime Carol Laniak a resident of the St. John’s Green House Homes, took her first motorcycle ride at the age of 82. The idea kept popping up while her son Mark was visiting from Tucson over the summer. Carol had never been a fan of motorcycles, but something changed and she had the itch to give it a try. Mark drove his motorcycle from Arizona to spend a few months visiting Rochester. Knowing Mark was headed back earlier this fall Carol made him commit to a date for her inaugural ride. Care Partners at St. John’s Green House Homes assisted Carol as she donned the proper gear for her ride. With added safety components, Carol was positioned onto the backseat of her son’s motorcycle. With her fellow residents outside cheering her on, Carol went around the block with a smile on her face. While slowing down back to the starting spot, Mark said, “She wants to go for another lap,” and off the two went!

See the 13WHAM Bright Spot Feature: https://bit.ly/2olfftw As she came back around cheers erupted from both residents and staff members, Carol said, “Everyone should try this at least once.” What started as a simple request for a ride became a memorable moment in Carol’s life. She posed for multiple photos with her son, staff members, and group shots with her household. Carol’s many connections and friendships with both residents and staff made her motorcycle ride exciting for everyone. Her own house-mates came outside and lined up in the front yard to watch her thrilling experience first-hand. Her neighboring residents sat in their screened in porch cheering and clapping. Carol has found her niche at the Green House Homes and is still discovering dreams and desires into her 80’s. Our dedicated team members enjoy making those visions come true and encouraging residents to never stop dreaming.

An Autumn Filled with Seasonal Celebrations From pumpkin decorating contests to fall fashion shows, this has been an autumn to remember here at St. John’s. Each department and neighborhood received a pumpkin in the beginning of October to decorate any way they would like. On October 30, judges toured around the community and assessed each creation. The judges voted to name The Welcome Center the winner of the contest! All of the pumpkins were displayed on Halloween day in the Bistro for our spooky Monster Ball. Residents and employees donned creative costumes to celebrate the day. The annual fall fashion show had our residents strutting their stuff down the red carpet to some lively tunes. Neighborhoods collaborated on themed costumes and received goody bags and coupons to the newly renovated ice cream parlor and bar for their participation. Community trick-or-treating, an annual tradition, was held around the neighborhoods of St. John’s for family members and employees. We had dozens of children attend and receive candy from excited residents. To see more of our activities, see our Flickr albums here: https://bit.ly/36aGOH7

Volunteer Spotlight: Sue Shifley “Interacting with the residents brings me so much joy, and I find volunteering with them very rewarding,” says Sue while sitting next to Helen, a resident she is assisting. After volunteering for almost a year, Sue Shifley has helped in multiple capacities at St. John’s Home. Since losing her mother she greatly missed their weekly visits. Sue loves being around older adults and knew she could give back in a meaningful way. A unique opportunity for Sue is “friendly visits.” These one-on-one sessions with residents allow for mutual companionship and help to combat loneliness. She explained that the staff makes known to Volunteer Services when a resident might not see too many visitors during the week in order to connect them with a volunteer. “It is a chance to go deeper with them, and find out more about the residents past and personality.” While chatting in the courtyard, Rose, a resident at St. John’s says, “It’s all about love,” while smiling in Sue’s direction. “I enjoy coming here, the residents are amazing and the staff goes above and beyond,” says Sue. We are very fortunate to have volunteers like Sue who make a positive impact on our residents’ quality of life. Volunteer opportunities can look different for each person at St. John’s. We all have unique abilities and talents that benefit our seniors. If you are interested in making a difference like Sue, please go to our web site to complete an application at stjohnsliving.org/about/volunteer.

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Families Friends from Nate

Outings and Events

Hello Families and Friends, As the year comes to a close I would like to reflect on the brand characteristic of FUN. One thing that really interested me about coming to St. John’s was the company-wide commitment to the brand characteristics, so I decided to take a deep dive into how St. John’s embodies these. The ageism in our society stops us from thinking about how older adults like to have fun, but at St. John’s adding fun into our days is one of the ways we continue to embrace living. We are very lucky and grateful for our Therapeutic Recreation team, which leads the way in setting up incredible events, parties, concerts, and festivals throughout the year. They are incredibly skilled at taking an idea and making it a reality. However, creativity is not just limited to themdifferent departments and leaders throughout the year work together to create amazing opportunities for our residents to have fun. These have included: hand-crafted bowling alleys, arcade games, miniature golf courses, and game shows. Offering a wide variety of options allows residents to find ways to have fun that are most meaningful to them. At Laughter Yoga, which taps into the healing power of laughter without having to stretch into poses, we talk about how smiles and laughter are contagious. When we can find joy in each other, we find the sweetest joy there is. That joy keeps us young at heart.

Fall Fashion Show

Water Wars with Nazareth Students

Alpacas Visit St. John’s Home

To view photos from these events and more, visit our Flickr galleries here: https://bit.ly/2XGIpim

Food Truck Festival

Reserving Family Room Spaces St. John’s Home welcomes families of residents to reserve large group, common room space for holiday gatherings, parties, or just enjoying special private time together. With this privilege, we ask that families follow some considerations. We cannot permit that any decorations be taped on the walls, including signs, balloons, streamers, etc. In addition, before the room is vacated we also ask that family guests dispose of brought-in party supplies, refuse, or food remaining at the conclusion of the gathering. For more information on room reservations, please call our Concierge Desk at 585-760-1300.

Flower Arrangements Available! Surprise your loved one with a fragrant floral arrangement. These beautiful vases are sure to brighten anyone’s day. Stop in the Hastings Lobby to purchase one from our selection of arrangements in our flower cooler. Be sure to look for the lucky St. John’s penny at the bottom of each vase.

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Also follow us on: Editor/Marketing Coordinator 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

Save the date for December 8! Mark your calendars for the annual Illumination of Love event at St. John’s Home. You can purchase a light through the Foundation in remembrance of a loved one. On Sunday, December 8 we will light up the courtyard and have refreshments in our newly renovated auditorium. For more information call Anne McKenna at 585-760-1333.