Something to celebrate

America's abundance of holidays and quirky observances is perfect fodder for the creative activity professionals at Heritage Park. Whether it's Christmas or Bugs Bunny's birthday, there's always something to celebrate.

Theme days and seasonal celebrations abound at Heritage Park, a full-service continuing care retirement center that offers a variety of living options. Staff members are committed to making every day enjoyable for the nearly 300 people who call Heritage Park home, and they're not afraid to get a little silly in the process.

Debbie Hackman-Blacketer, director of marketing at Heritage Park, says residents have enjoyed some pretty off-the-wall festivities. On Penguin Day, for example, residents and staff tipped their hats to our cold-climate friends by wearing black and white. Another time, they celebrated all things Mars: Moon pies and Mars Bars were among the delectable treats offered that day, and many residents and staff members wore red in honor of the Red Planet.

"We really try to be creative and fun and get the residents involved," HackmanBlacketer says.

Heritage Park's monthly activity calendar boasts an impressive lineup of smallerscale activities as well. There are worship services, sing-alongs and lively games of cards. Baking, bird-watching and crafts are other options for residents who want to hone a specific skill or just spend some time with friends. Those who like to be at the height of fashion can get their nails done a few times each week.

Hackman-Blacketer says the activity calendar at Heritage Park is updated regularly. Residents can suggest favorite pastimes, and the six staff members who coordinate activities for various parts of the Heritage Park community do what they can to honor such requests.

She also points out that residents can participate in as few or as many events as they like. While there are often more than a half-dozen activities to choose from each day, residents can opt for more independent activities if they're in need of some quiet time. The social butterflies of

the bunch are more than welcome to flutter from event to event as well.

Heritage Park's bustling social calendar is just one of its many benefits. The community offers a full range of services to its residents, who can choose to live in several unique environments based on their individual needs and preferences.

The Heritage Park campus includes 48 independent "garden homes," designed for seniors who want to enjoy the privacy and comforts of home. At the same time, they can live in an environment in which they do not have to tend to yard work and other household maintenance. One- and two-bedroom floor plans are available, and the homes come with attached garages and a full kitchen. Residents can paint and decorate as they wish.

Others choose to live in Heritage Park's 32 assisted-living apartments, which provide independent living arrangements for those who may need some assistance bathing, dressing or administering medication. Studio and one-bedroom floor plans are available, and residents are welcome to fill their apartments with personal belongings. Although each apartment has a small kitchen for the convenience of the residents, meals are provided by Heritage Park.

Heritage Park's 180-bed nursing care facility provides care to those adults who may need more regular medical attention. Divided into several wings, residents are able to form friendships with those who live nearby. Care in the nursing facility is overseen by Kim Hughes, executive director, Rob Woods, director of nursing, and Dr. Mark Burkett, medical director. Together, they have combined experience of more than 30 years in long-term care.

Hughes and Woods start each day at Heritage Park reviewing the ever-changing care needs of every resident. They continually seek ways to improve communication with residents and their families. One way is through the use of nurse practitioners. Heritage Park is unusual in that a nurse practitioner or physician is on site six days a week and on call 24 hours a day.

Moving Forward, one of Heritage Park's newer programs, provides a combination of therapies for those residents who hope to restore abilities lost to conditions such as stroke, cardiovascular problems and orthopaedic surgery. Programs vary in frequency, intensity and type. The area, which can accommodate 40 residents, has its own dining room, lounge and courtyard. Outpatient therapy also is available to adults who are still able to live at home but require some degree of ongoing care. Heritage Park also includes an on-site fitness center, specifically designed for the needs of the older adult.

Another plus for the community's residents, Hackman-Blacketer says, is that its entire therapy team is employed by Heritage Park and not sub-contracted, which ensures consistent and high-quality therapy for its residents.

The Auguste's Cottage Memory Care Center is specifically designed for residents with Alzheimer's disease and other memory impairments. The center, which

can accommodate 26 residents, provides a safe and secure environment. Residents are able to walk freely around the area, which includes a private dining room and courtyard. Visual prompts are located throughout the center, and staff members are specially trained to work with those who are memory-impaired.

Residents requiring other kinds of long-term care live in the building's remaining wings, including a new 24-bed unit built in January 2003. The new wing also includes a separate dining room and lounge area.

Hackman-Blacketer says staff members strive to make Heritage Park feel like home to its residents, and that visitors are welcome at any time of the day or night. "Their families certainly are welcome in their homes," she says.

Residents who are able are encouraged to leave the Heritage Park campus for meals with loved ones and family gettogethers on an occasional basis. Staff members also make a special effort to get to know those residents who don't have nearby relatives, becoming an extended family of sorts, Hackman-Blacketer says.

Pets are another fun part of the Heritage Park community. Residents seem to enjoy the four-legged creatures who roam the building. Several cats and a dog have called Heritage Park home over the years, and there is no shortage of laps on which to snuggle. Fish aquariums and aviaries also are part of the landscape at Heritage Park, but perhaps the most unusual pet is a chinchilla named Wanda who rolls through the building in a brightly colored clear plastic ball.

Hackman-Blacketer says many residents and visitors get a kick out of seeing Wanda make her way through the building. "They just love seeing her come down the hallway," she says.