Engaged & Productive!
By Susan Meny, Shepherd’s Center
Recently I had the pleasure of visiting Carter House at Bermuda Village. This is their adult day program … yes, folks with different kinds of dementia being lovingly cared for by the staff and their overseeing doctor, Dr. Golnosh Sharafselah, who practices Geriatrics at Lewisville
Family Medicine.
Sewing for Children
What a joy! In a world too prone to throw away our older adults in favor of the needs of children, I was so happy to see a group of ladies actively engaged and productive, despite limitations that tend to scare us all into false beliefs about a life with this diagnosis. Three residents and Cindy Furr were hard at work making pillow case dresses for little girls in Uganda, Africa. The hand-crafted dresses to be given to these little girls, and also britches for the little boys, offer hope for a better life for these children. When worn, the dresses and the britches go as ambassadors sending signals to the community and to the children who wear them that they are worthy. During distribution of the garments through villages and schools, simple lessons are taught on nutrition, clean water and sanitation.
While volunteers are sewing all across the world for this worthy cause, it struck an ironic note that these women were no different in their hearts despite what may be going on with the mysterious physiology of their brains. Their activities assistant, Cindy Furr, explained to me that after a lifetime of cooking and mending for their families, these ladies still had a need to continue to share their love in their way to others. Such compassion! Such devotion!
Offering Other Talents
I asked Cindy if they enjoyed cooking as much as sewing and got a resounding yes! It was soon arranged that the ladies would make casseroles for the Shepherd’s Center, store them at their facility, and allow me to offer them for a new Munchinar health education series being launched at Lewisville Family Practice (see below for more information).
While planning programs for older adults at the Shepherd’s Center and coordinating collaborations throughout the County is my full time gig, it is the intelligence of the care providers and their dedication to their clients, such as Cindy Furr’s and her supervisor, Hallie Troutman, as well as Pamala McNeill, Director of Health Services of Bermuda Village, which continues to impress me and reminds why I love this job so much. Some folks just do things right! It is a joy to find this and to share such good news for a change. Too much of dementia care and the entire topic is negative and anxiety-producing. To me, it is just another disability that the soul works diligently to get around, while we have the most productive and engaged life we can in the short time we get to be here.
Thank you Cindy, Hallie, Pamala, and Bermuda Village residence for the good you do, not just in my heart, but to the hundreds of children and now, older adults whose lives you will continue to positively impact. Way to go!
Susan Meny is the Vital Living Program Director of the Shepherd’s Center of Greater Winston-Salem.
Munchinar Health Education Series
Munchinar Health Education Series will be held at Lewisville Family Practice beginning on June 18 from 6 – 8:30 p.m. The first program is Welcome to Medicare, led by Sam Matthews, director of the Shepherd’s Center of Greater Winston-Salem. This session is for individuals turning 65, as well as those who already have Medicare and are looking for updated information. For more information or to register for this seminar, please call the Shepherd’s Center at 336-748-0217. There is limited seating, so plan to register early to guarantee your spot and enjoy the no-cost offering of food and education!
