Cherish the Journey: November Events

Life is a journey filled with lessons, celebrations and special moments that ultimately lead us to our destination, our purpose in life. The road will not always be smooth and we may encounter many challenges. Some of these will test our courage, strengths, weaknesses, and faith. Along the way, we may stumble upon obstacles that must be overcome. But, sometimes these obstacles are really blessings in disguise, although we may not realize it at the time. How we react to the situations we face will determine what the rest of our journey will be like.

This month Juniper Communities will honor our Families and cherish the journey we have taken together. November is all about celebrating the bonds we share and recognizing where we’ve been and where we’re going. We will do this through autobiographical journaling, reminiscing about family celebrations and breaking bread together in Thanksgiving. In order to support our families along this journey we will continue to develop our support groups and provide additional resources when needed. We will give back through our Annual Food Drive. From November 1 through November 30 all non-perishable food items collected will be donated to a local food bank.

Our fabulous activity offerings this month include our Annual Food Drive where you can drop off non-perishable food items for the Food Warehouse of the Shenango Valley anytime all month long; our Veterans Appreciation Luncheon complimentary meal for all veterans, spouses and their families to show our appreciation for all those who have served our country on November 10^th at noon; or our Giving Thanks Juniper Family Dinner Celebration for our family and friends to feast on the turkey, the taters, and the stuffing, as we sit around the table and count our blessings on November 20^th at 5:00 pm.

Look through our calendar and plan to join us for family celebrations, Thanksgiving dinners and many events and activities allowing us all to reflect and Cherish the Journey!

Shower our Local Shelter

Three Rivers Hospice and Family Home Health held a Puppy Shower for their new therapy puppy, Arianna at Juniper Village at the Shenango Inn on Tuesday.  The Humane Society of Mercer County were invited to attend the event,  where all donations collected were donated to the organization.  Gifts of food, pet toys, treats and food bowls were just some of the gifts donated to the local shelter, as well as, monetary gifts.   At Juniper Village our Alive in All Season theme for the month of September is, "Friendship," what better way to celebrate this months theme then with our pets that love us unconditionally and are our best friends!

Alzheimer’s Walk with Juniper Village at the Shenango Inn

This past September the team at Juniper Village Shenango participated in the Walk to End Alzheimer's.  The event was held at Buhl Park, in Sharon, PA.  Team Shenango consisted of staff, residents and their families.  There were 25 teams that participated in the local event with 289 walkers.  Total raised was $26,664.38!  A big thank you to all that helped make this local event a huge success!

Show Your Colors: October Events

October brings forth vibrant color in our foliage as well as our sports teams. Our high school football teams will be in full swing and hockey season will prepare to fill the stands with team colors and spirit. Juniper Communities will also be honoring our colors with many sports-themed activities and events. We will be enjoying the changing colors of the season as we transition from summer to fall and the crazy costumes of our annual Halloween celebrations.

While showing our colors we not only focus on our team colors, but also showing our true colors. We recognize that working together as a team, results in better coordination of care, better quality of care and as a result better lives for our residents. This is evidenced by our excellent clinical outcomes data. We are happy to see the results of collaboration resulting in decreased re-hospitalizations and better quality of life for our residents.

Our fabulous activity offerings this month include our Harvest Health Fair in our grand ballroom for an evening event featuring a physician from Primary Health Network to discuss the Flu, symptoms and treatments, as well as a pharmacist from Walberg Pharmacy to discuss the Flu shot with a light meal provided by Juniper Village and giveaways throughout the evening at this complimentary community event on October 7^th from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm (RSVP to 724-347-4000)!

Please look through our calendar to celebrate the spirit of autumn with us and Show Your Colors!

Welcome Karen Grope!

Everyone is working hard to make a positive impact at Juniper Village at the Shenango Inn!!  As a team, we are learning, growing and sharing so that we can provide the highest quality of professionalism each and every day.  The newest member to join our Leadership Team is Karen Grope, Wellness Director.  Karen has been a nurse for 19 years in a variety of positions including Wound Care Coordinator, Community Liaison, Health and Wellness Director and Medical-Surgical Nursing.  She resides in Youngstown where she enjoys spending time with her fiancé Jim and toy poodle MonAmi. She is an artist and loves to paint and draw.  Other exciting news at Juniper Village,  Executive Director Mary Bennett and Connections Director Meg Ferlin recently received recognition by becoming Certified Dementia Practitioners! Congratulations to them both!

Spread Your Joy: September Events

September signifies the end of summer with Labor Day celebrations and the Autumnal Equinox on the 23^rd. In this last month of our “Stay Connected” series we aspire to connect with our friends and embrace the theme of Spread Your Joy.

The Mayo Clinic tells us that friends are good for your health. They can help you celebrate good times, provide support during bad times, prevent loneliness and give you a chance to offer needed companionship, too. Friends increase your sense of belonging and purpose, boost happiness, reduce stress, and improve your self-confidence and self-worth. Friends can also encourage you to increase healthy habits – it’s always better to walk, run, swim or exercise with a friend. And friends don’t always have to be of the human kind either! Several studies have shown that heart attack patients who have pets survive longer than those without.

Our fabulous activity offerings this month include our “Sip and Paint” Fundraiser featuring thirst-quenching libations and artistic creations to support the fight against Alzheimer’s on September 3^rd at 6:00 pm; our National Assisted Living Week Family Luncheon where we share a delicious meal with our closest friends and loved ones on September 11^th at noon; our Musical Performance with Ed and Sandy Ceremuga presenting some of our favorite tunes on September 17^th at 2:00 pm; our For Your Health and Information Series with Karen this month discussing the benefits of friends and friendship on September 24^th at 3:00 pm; or our Best Friends Bingo Game where residents and associates play for bragging rights (and maybe a little something extra).

Please look through our calendar and join us for any events that can help you stay connected, cultivate friendships and Spread Your Joy!

Breathe in Life: August Events

Our Alive in All Seasons’ theme for August is The Environment. Our communities will focus their efforts on maintaining healthy environments through environmentally conscious activities. Our “Green Canopy” program emphasizes designing and operating buildings that meet new standards of environmental sustainability. We are proud to be the first long-term care company with a building in the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program.

According to research by Go Green, Americans throw away 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour; 25 billion Styrofoam cups and 40 billion soft drink bottles and cans each year. Eighty-four percent of the average American’s household trash can be recycled. If we recycled just 1/10 of our newspapers 25 million trees could be saved. Are we all doing our part?

Join us this month as we learn more about the environment, expand our wide-scale recycling program, learn more about environmental sustainability programs and work with our community Green Teams to promote our “Green Canopy” initiative. We encourage you to accompany us on this environmental journey so that we can all continue to Breathe in Life!

Our fabulous activity offerings this month include our “Birds, Our Little Feathered Friends” presentation by Family Hospice about avian species and their impact on our environment on August 5^th at 2:00 pm; our “Recycle the Music” event with Al Boles Karaoke featuring resident and staff requests on August 14^th at 2:00 pm; or our “Green” Apple Family Luncheon offering delicious foods with a creative twist on August 21^st at noon. Take a look at our calendar and join us for any and all activities that will help you make the most of these last few weeks of summer.