Your Treasure is Within: March Events

Our Alive in All Seasons program is alive and well at Juniper Village. This quarter’s seasonal theme is on Creative Expression: “Explore Your Creativity” and serves to promote our philosophy of encouraging an active body, an engaged mind and a fulfilled spirit. For March, we will turn our focus to Performance: “Your Treasure is Within”.

This month on March 2, 2014 we look forward to the 86^th celebration of the Academy Awards. As we watch popular comedian and talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres host the festivities while the beautiful stars dressed in their finery walk the red carpet we can’t help to stop, to pause and reminisce of all of the great performances of past years. Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis, Marlon Brando, Robert DeNiro, Tom Hanks, Jack Nicholson, Vivien Leigh, Meryl Streep, Peter Ustinov and Dustin Hoffman; the list goes on! In addition to guessing who might win the Oscars for 2014, this month we will be learning about and experiencing all different types of great performance art, enjoying cultural events and trying our hand at acting in drama club.

It’s going to be a theatrical month at Juniper Village at Lebanon filled with creativity, great experiences and memorable performances! You are cordially invited to attend a performance of “Oscar Winning Songs” by Bonnie Koons on Piano on March 5^th at 2:30 pm, our Family Night Corned Beef and Cabbage Supper and Joyful Noise Singers Irish Songfest on March 17^th at 5:15 pm (please RSVP), a presentation of Classic Country Music with J.R. Wehner on March 25^th at 2:30 pm, or any of our other activities (see our Newsletter for a complete listing).

So come in, and join in on the act to find that “Your Treasure is Within”.

Uni the Weather-Prognosticating Groundhog

Just in time for Groundhog's Day we had a rare visit from "Uni" the
Groundhog. The members of Groundhog Lodge #17 held their monthly
meeting in the Village Lobby and allowed us to listen in. The entire
meeting, called a versammlung, or gathering, was held in Pennsylvania
Dutch. Luckily they also brought along a translator. It was amazing
to hear them speaking to our residents in a language that is a local
tradition here. We know you are really from Lebanon if you speak
"Dutch." Many of the residents laughed aloud at the jokes and stories
told, and replied with their own anecdotes in PA Dutch.
There are many groundhog lodges across central Pennsylvania and they
are dedicated to the preservation of Pennsylvania Dutch language and
culture. We enjoyed getting up close and personal with the
weather-prognosticating groundhog, but we really loved hearing the
language of our youth.

Lebanon Valley Nursing Homes, Care Facilities Breathe Easy Amid Few Flu Cases This Season

Excerpted From an Article by Marylouise Sholly for The Lebanon Daily News

With their residents at risk, nursing homes and long-term care facilities across the Lebanon Valley and beyond dread flu season each year.

This year, however, local administrators are cautiously optimistic that they've dodged a bullet — the number of confirmed cases has dropped dramatically when compared with other seasons.

***

Well into the new year, Juniper Village has had no confirmed cases of influenza, also attributed to a proactive stance, according to Joan-Marie Norman, executive director.

"For our residents, we do a couple of things: we have them see their own doctor for a flu shot, and we keep a log of who receives the shot, and we have two doctors come here in September and October to give shots," Norman said. "We like to have that done early in the season."

Last year, the South Lebanon Township facility encountered only two cases of flu, both mild and neither requiring hospitalization.

"We had prepared the staff that we might be hit with the flu, and we took preliminary measures, so if the flu did hit us, we'd be ready," Norman said.

Educating residents as well as staff is another form of prevention, she added.

Diane Byrne, vice president of Juniper Communities, said the entire staff is trained to know procedures that will prevent the flu from spreading.

"Whether it's the environmental team or the housekeeping team, everybody is educated on stopping the spread of the flu," she said.

A few years ago, the flu made a significant appearance at Juniper, and the staff reacted quickly, serving meals in the residents' rooms to prevent the spread of the virus.

"We will actually use surgical masks if necessary," Byrne said.

In the main building, hand-sanitizer stations and hand-washing areas are strategically placed to prevent the spread of disease.

"We never let our guard down with infections," Norman said. "We have residents with compromising illnesses, and we always have to be aware ... even when it comes to allergy season."

Thorough housekeeping procedures are key to preventing the spread of infection, Norman said.

"Housekeeping is so important," she said. "The department is on more of a high alert, constantly cleaning things like door handles and hand rails along the wall. Things like that get wiped down on a daily basis."

Juniper has a wellness team that supports and looks after the health of the residents, she said. That extra attention can identify a potential health problem earlier, so treatment can be started quickly.

"It's imperative if they begin to feel ill that they be isolated if necessary," Byrne said. "We're also on a high alert to identify symptoms. We look closely at the symptoms exhibited. That's an additional key factor."

The flu season seems to run its course from October through April, Byrne added.

"When May comes, we do kind of breathe a sigh of relief," Norman said.

Love is in the Air!

Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate all kinds of love, not just
romantic love. So, this month we are celebrating the love between Best
Friends. Our very handy and ingenious Environmental Services team
created a beautiful heart that we embellished with the names of our
Best Friends. Each day as we walk by, we are reminded of the special
bonds of friendship that we nurture at Juniper Village at Lebanon.

Friends Forever

Lebanon High School Class of '48 is back together again!
This vibrant group of Juniper Village at Lebanon residents have known
each other since the "good old days" and are still having fun
together. Whether it's reminiscing over their yearbook, chatting at a social, or
playing shuffleboard, these Lebanon Cedars are living life to the fullest.