Seniors

= Working with older people =

{list the name of organization or center at the top of your entry}
** Brooke Tyborowski 2011-2012 ** ** Foulk Manor North-- Assisted Living and Nursing Home **   ** Journal Entry ** Today I volunteered at Foulk Manor North for two hours, so that I am now at a total of nine hours for my project. It was a lovely day outside, and just as I’d arrived some of the residents were about to go on a walk, so I went with them to help out with the group. The group I traveled with was the memory care group, so of course, we had to make many stops to be sure everyone was alright and could keep up. I made sure the residents were out of the way from cars and such, as well as had nice little conversations along the way. They especially liked to play with my hair, and they told me it was new to have a “young one“ around. I thought that overall, it was a good little adventure that we embarked on. After we returned back from the trip outside, I ran into a couple of ladies who were not from memory care, and they’d remembered that I played flute and wanted to hear me. Of course, I played for them, and after I think they’d had enough, I went up to play flute for some of the other residents in memory care. That went a lot better than usual, as they are normally quite irritated, but today they weren't really bothered by me at all. Well, there was actually one lady who came over, looked at my sheet music, and cursed me out, but I've kind of learned to ignore that sort of thing at this point. Overall though, I think that the weather truly did brighten the usual mood of the residents, and it was really nice to be able to see that. This was my experience one day after volunteering at Foulk Manor North, which is a full service retirement community with apartments for independent seniors, those who need assisted living, special healthcare, or memory/dementia care. I chose to volunteer here specifically because it is close to my house in Wilmington, Delaware, but for the majority of students at Westtown you may want to work with a nursing home in Pennsylvania. If you do live in/near Wilmington, though, I definitely recommend volunteering at Foulk Manor North. You can contact Mitzi Burnett, who is the assisted living program coordinator, by email at Mburnett@5sqc.com, by phone at 302-478-4296, or by easily going in to talk with her and filling out an application in person like I did. If you choose to volunteer at a nursing home there are always plenty of activities you may be asked to participate in. For my specific project, most of the time I played flute for the residents. Of course, playing flute for fifteen hours total would be a bit too much, so I was also asked to do other things such as: lead a sing-a-long (not as horrible as it sounds), take the residents for walks, wheel them within the nursing home, and do room visits. No matter what activities you may participate in, you will always be talking to the residents. It was so nice to see how happy it made some of them, just by doing the tiniest little thing like talking with Emily about her meatball recipe and other cooking, or playing a super easy song like Yankee Doodle on my flute for about the thousandth time. It really is the little stuff that counts, and it goes a long, long way. That is my main reason for choosing this type of a project; because instead of working with animals or cleaning up the side of the highway, you get the satisfaction of seeing someone else’s satisfaction. Advice I have for those who would like to do this type of service work, is to expect the unexpected especially if you are volunteering alongside residents who live with Dementia, Alzheimer’s, etc. If they do anything that may seem rude, like in my case: throwing your music books across the room and telling you to leave, try not to take it personally. I know it sounds bad, but I’d gotten so much positive feedback about what I was doing, that the tiny little negatives didn’t even matter. My last piece of advice is to be sure you are enjoying yourself and smile, while being serious/mature about your service project at the same time, and if you look like you’re having fun, chances are other residents around you will be too. Kitty, myself, and Louise-- after I finished playing a song for the residents in memory care. **Leonardo Petit** For my service project I helped an elderly lady in my neighborhood with things that she could not do on her own. The contact number is 205-332-9790. They are no farther than two houses away. I will not need any transportation from my parents. This was fun to do because I could see that I had saved her hours of work. For somebody doing something like this I would recommend making sure that you can meet with them at a specific time, and to not be shy. (2011-2012) Excerpt 29, October 2011 This was my second service day. I went over to my neighbor’s house again and this time I found her outside trying to rake. Since there were a lot more leaves this time she thought she could start the job for me. I was surprised that she would help when I was trying to help her. She said that she had come out earlier but her back had hurt too much for her to get anything right. This time it took me an hour and a half to rake. Again when I told her I was done she was so happy ad surprised that she started crying. She thanked me and told me that this would have taken her all day because of her back. She was just admiring her leafless yard when I realized how much it meant to her what I was doing, and it was so easy for me. She thanked me again and she said that she had to pay me. I immediately reject her offer of money and said that I didn’t want any money.  **Rebecca Wortmann 2011-2012****Friends Home in Kennett (specifically: Linden Hall)** October 5th, 2011 Today I did a few different things. I started out by talking to a resident on the large porch. It tool a while to convince hime that I wasn't hiking and that the backpack that I had was infact my __school__ backpack, not hiking. After that, three residents and I decorated mini pumpkins for decorations on the dining room tables. Later, I helped with wheeling some residents into the dining room where it was time for dinner.
 * How?** (to contact) Phone #: 610-444-2577 (ext. 211) Address: 147 West State Street, Kennett Square, PA 19348
 * What?** For my service hours I helped with the actvities and talking to the residents. I got to do activities such as; painting pumkins, making suncatchers, and reading letters to residents.
 * Why?** This service project was really fun because I got to know that I was making a difference in people's lives in a way that I never thought of.
 * Advice-** If you choose to help at Friends Home in Kennett or a different senior living place, one of the best things to do with the residents is to just talk with them. Since there isn't much they can do, it is really all about the little things that make them happy. Also, when helping at any service project, it is always important to think about how many hours you want to stay, and think about what is a reasonable amount for yourself. Once over Thanksgiving break, I went in for 5 hours to try and get the required hours done. It was way too long to stay and soon I lost focus and found myself looking at the clock a lot. You always want to be enjoying yourself while you are helping anywhere because if you don't it will make people think that you are bored which will make them feel bad.
 * Excert from Journal-**

** Jaydon McGoldrick ** ** 2011-2012 ** ** I spent my hours at The Hickman pushing the store cart around for people to buy things off of and playing guitar for the residents. I went every Saturday at 9:30 AM and usually stayed 2-3 hours. When I played my guitar I would stop every couple of songs to talk to the residents that were listening to me. Here is an excerpt from my journal that will help you get a better understanding of what it is like volunteering at the Hickman: ** “ **// Today I brought acoustic guitar to play for the people. They enjoyed that a lot. There were only about 5 people listening but that is a good amount of people if I’m only playing acoustic guitar. I play all of my favorite songs but I turn them into acoustic songs so older people will like them. I wanted to stay and get as many hours done as possible so I asked after I played my guitar if there was anything else I could do and Meredith told me I could push the store cart around. The store cart is like a heavy, long, double-decker shopping cart that people buy things like soap and food and other things off of. I did that, and now I’m scheduled to do that every Saturday morning until my hours are done.” //**
 * The organization I volunteered at is called The Hickman Friends Senior Living Community of West Chester. It is located at **** 400 N. Walnut St. West Chester, PA 19380. The Hickman is no more than 5 minutes away from Westtown. The phone number is 484 760 6306. If you call ask for Jen Mitman the volunteer coordinator. You can also contact her by E-mail at **** jmitman@thehickman.org. The Hickman’s website is [|www.thehickman.org]. The Hickman is a Quaker nursing home that was established in 1891. Their mission statement is: **** “As human beings we treasure our potential for a long and productive life, for some older men and women limited by physical or financial constraints, this hope is often diminished. Guided by Quaker traditions valuing all life and welcoming diversity, The Hickman offers older individuals opportunity to seek the richness of life’s possibilities.” **


 * Volunteering at the Hickman has many benefits. You become more comfortable around elderly people, you learn about them, you make their lives better because they truly enjoy you being there and you have an overall good feeling because you know that you are making other people feel genuinely happy. **
 * If you are interested in Volunteering at the Hickman, I have some advice for you. Before you go, have some sort of idea of what you want to be doing. It is normal to be shy around older people but try not to be, because they will like you better. If you have any questions for me or if you want to know more about my time with the Hickman, my Email is NDfan49@gmail.com. **

Jordan Crowe - 2011-12
I also volunteered at The Hickman senior home, located on 400 N. Walnut St. West Chester, PA 19380. If you want to volunteer there, you can call Jen Mitman @ 484-760-6306, or e-mail her at jmitman@thehickman.org. She is very nice (about 35) and approachable. To learn more about The Hickman, you can also visit their website: thehickman.org.

For my service project, I helped seniors with learning how to use computers, fix simple problems on them, or teach them to use their iPad, Kindle Fire, iPhone, etc.. This would be a fun project if you know enough about computers to teach other people (how to turn on and use the internet, how to download apps). I am still volunteering there every other weekend for an hour, just to help the residents with problems or the occasional new comer. The best time to volunteer (at least at The Hickman) is before lunch (10-12) or before dinner (3:30 - 5). The rest of the time they sleep! (sort of). At least that's what I've been told by good sources...

__For Extra Hours__ -> The Hickman also has other activities, that once you talk to Jen, she can help you with extra hours that you need (2-3 hours each, setting up stuff).
Working at The Hickman taught me a lot about talking to older people, and how they also sometimes just want someone to talk to. It also helps you be comfortable with them, and you can become better with talking to adults.

Also, how to interact with them to get on their good side (helpful when trying to sell you services (lawn mowing) for a future job). Just saying...

Working at a senior home is a great way to get hours in, if you need them fast. I finished mine in a month. All you need is the ability to talk, and you got your service project (its 80% of what you do!).


 * Photos and Journal Entries Coming...

Charlotte Ells 2011-2012
I did my hours at Plush Mills at 501 Plush Mill Road Wallingford, PA 19086. I contacted them through the activities director's email, mtoogood@sageseniors.com. You can also call the front desk at (610) 690-1630 and ask to speak with the activities director. In addition, you can contact them through their website at []. Maryanne Toogood, the activities director, is very nice and accommodating and is happy to have volunteers. I primarily had one-on-one conversation with the seniors, most of whom will talk readily. I feel like it's important to keep ties with the elderly and not shut them away in isolation, so that's why I visited with them. Many of them had no more family, or if they did, they were rarely visited. Some were clearly very lonely. I also assisted with activities like dice games where the seniors bet quarters on the outcomes. This was helpful because when the usual assistant is absent and they don't have another person to assist, they can't do the games, which is one of the few activities in a long and monotonous day. I would advise that someone doing this project assist with more activities or work at a bigger senior home, because at times when most seniors are sleeping or at meals, volunteering can be boring. For this reason, doing longer stretches of work is difficult.

Journal excerpt: //I ended up spending most of my time with an older Italian-American woman with dementia, whose name was Mrs. Purcell. We talked a lot about family (she has five sons, eight granddaughters and four grandsons), Thanksgiving (at her daughter-in-law’s house), and her childhood (mostly in an orphanage). She also invited me up to her apartment, where she showed me around and presented photos of her family. At 4:30, she gave me a hug and told me I was like another granddaughter before I departed, and that I should come and visit her next time. Apparently, her family doesn't visit her much, although she says she is grateful that they took care of her by putting her in Plush Mills.//

**Terran Garrettson 2011-2012**
===I worked at Barclay Friends in West Chester by playing my cello for them. I contacted them through my mother who knows Heather Huberty, the director of activities at Barclay. Barclay's address is Barclay Friends 700 N. Franklin St. West Chester, PA 19380. They can be contacted at (610) 696-5211 or at their website, []. Playing cello for them was good because it is undisputedly the most beautiful instrument in the world and it really made them happy. I would say that anyone who wants to do this in the future to prepare tons of music and bring other musical friends. Parents have to be pretty willing to drive and preferably musically capable. I would like to thank Elyse and Hannah for their help in volunteering with me.===

Rachel Blackman 2011-2012 I worked at Sunrise Assisted Living in Media, Pennsylvania. I played table games with the residents and I did all kinds of arts and crafts with them. The address for Sunrise is 247 North Middletown Road, Media, PA 19063. Their main phone number is 610-566-3535. I enjoyed volunteering at Sunrise because the people were very sweet and I loved to make them happy. It was surprising how I could make their day just by talking to them. For people who want to do this in the future, my advice is to find a retirement home that is near your house, or school. That means it's easier for the parents to drive you to and from the senior home. Journal Entry-

Saturday, January 20th

When I walked to my work, my Beverly was carrying boxes full of beads to a long table. “What are we doing today?” I asked while helping her carry some of the boxes. “Today is a free day,” she replied, “They can draw, paint, or do this,” she said while picking up a perler bead design. “They put the little beads onto each of the pegs until they filled it up with a design. Then we iron it and they get to keep a little design.” “That seems like fun!” I said, “I used to do that all the time when I was little.” “That’s great,” Beverly replied, “Then you can help the people with this. I’m trying it out as an activity for the first time.” When the residents started piling in, I showed them how to do it. Eager to begin, they picked up the beads and started on it. In just a couple of minutes, someone complained, “The beads will not stay on. No matter what I do!” “It’s okay!” I comforted, “Those beads fall off pretty easily. Just keep on trying and you will get used to it.” After twenty minutes of persuading, she got used to it. When the design was finished, she had a smile on her face that stretched a mile at least. “Thank you for helping me,” she said. “No problem,” I replied, “Here, I’ll iron it right now and give it back to you.” I walked over to the iron. After pressing the iron lightly on the design, I lifted up the finished product. This was a heart that was surely filled with all of the colors of the rainbow, because reds, yellows, and oranges dotted on the outside of the heart, and in the center the beads gradually became darker until there was a black dot in the center. After handing the heart back to the resident, I looked at the clock. It was time to go unfortunately. I learned many things when volunteering here that I will never forget. I still volunteer here every weekend I have free.