PARMA, Ohio -- Throughout the globe during the coronavirus pandemic families are finding unique ways to communicate with their loved ones who are quarantined in senior facilities and nursing homes.
In Parma, Mount Alverna Village residents flipped the script by sending messages out into the world.
“We have everything we need here and the residents are in good spirits, but they miss their families,” Mount Alverna Village Sales and Marketing Director Beth Baszuk said. “Our activity assistant Jackie Craig came up with the idea of asking seniors to send messages to their families.
“She visited with each of them, asked them what was on their heart and what they’d want to share with either their family or the world at large. There definitely were some tears when Jackie went around, but a lot of them have such positive outlooks and such great faith.”
Roughly 30 assisted living community residents took part in the exercise with the results posted on Mount Alverna Village’s Facebook page.
Blanche Brown, 94, wrote to her family, “They say God put you on your back for you to look up once in a while. Remember Him when this is all over, not only in times of trouble.”
She also noted while people are fearful they should follow what the doctors say “but also pray.”
Alan Weilacher, 87, had this message: “Relax, it will be over. I hope everybody comes out of this thinking of life as it should be.” He commented that the country is the best in the world and will overcome the coronavirus.
As for being quarantined, Weilacher put the experience in perspective.
“In the Korean War I was isolated in a tent for two years,” Weilacher said. “This stay-at-home order is a piece of cake.”
Mount Alverna Village Executive Director Patrick Welsh said Craig’s efforts epitomize the spirit of the facility.
“Our associates are always striving to live our mission, which is ‘Celebrate life and serve with joy,’” Welsh said. “This is just one example of how we help the residents celebrate life even during these trying times.”
In addition to sending out messages, Mount Alverna Village directors are doing their best to keep residents in contact with their family via Facetime and Skype, as well as sending pictures or short videos.
As for their Facebook messages, Baszuk said the seniors are loving the feedback.
“Jackie went around reading all of the comments,” Baszuk said. “There were more tears, but they were happy tears. Some of the residents said they didn’t think anybody would look at their messages or would care.
“They loved seeing what people had to say. The staff also thought it was really cool for them to be able to have someone kind of notice of what they were saying.”
The entire endeavor ended up being a learning experience for the Mount Alverna Village staff.
“It’s something we should do in the future with other topics because these seniors do have so much wisdom they can share with us,” Baszuk said. “We can all learn from the experiences they’ve had in their lives.”
Read more news from the Parma Sun Post here.
https://www.cleveland.com/community/2020/03/mount-alverna-village-seniors-send-messages-of-love-and-faith-to-families.html
2020-03-25 12:12:16Z
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