awalden

One new event we just tried this month was a Classic Car Show. We had about 12 or 13 classic cars parked in the parking lot on a nice, sunny day. I work in a health care unit in a retirement community, and our independent living has a group that formed a classic car club, so some of the cars came from there. We also had staff who had a personal connection to a classic car group who shows their cars regularly. We had ice cream, oldies music (beach boys were a big hit!) and chairs for residents to sit in and enjoy the sunshine. Residents were also given a voting slip to vote for their favorite car which was a nice touch they enjoyed. We have a lot of trips and events that cater to women's interests, but this was geared specifically to the men. A few who had expressed interest from our unit originally did not end up coming out on the day, but we did get quite a few men from other units--and ladies as well! On a more regular basis we do a "Men's Coffee" weekly, where men can get together to chat and have coffee.

I just wrote one for the MEPAP1 course I'm taking: Together we create individual and group spaces for residents to engage physically, spiritually, mentally, socially, altruistically and creatively through purposeful recreational activities that contribute to the holistic well-being of residents.

Hi, my name is Ashley and I work in a 54-bed health care unit of a retirement community. I am the only full-time activity staff. I have a part-time assistant who helps in the afternoons 4 days a week. We also have three part-time high school students who do evening activities daily and morning activities on the weekends. They work 4-8pm at night and 8-1:30 and 4-8pm on the weekends. I tried to make the evenings easier for the students because we were getting a lot of bingo and manicure nights over and over I gave them a "theme" for each night (monday is crafts, tuesday is white board games, wednesday "have a ball," etc.) and that has helped a lot. Our budget is a little over $500/month to cover materials, entertainment, etc. Hope that is helpful!

Hello there, my name is Ashley Walden and I am the Life Enrichment Coordinator for the health care unit of a retirement facility in a suburb outside of of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I just started the job in October of last year, so I have been in the position for about seven months. Prior to that, I had four years of experience as an Activity Assistant on a health care unit, a secure dementia unit, and in personal care. I covered three maternity leaves in that time! I am starting to get my feet on the ground in this new position, making the calendar my own and getting to know my residents well. I am also taking the MEPAP1 course on the path to getting my ADC. Looking forward to learning from you here!