By Roberto Muñiz
This season, the “spirit of giving” that surrounds the holidays inspires me to be grateful for all the “giving” the Parker family does. It’s the “little things” we do that help build a warm environment where residents, participants and their loved ones feel valued, and meaningfully engaged. Sometimes the best way to see all that in action is through reflection.
We’ve compiled some of our best heartwarming moments in our annual holiday video, which showcases residents, participants, volunteers, care partners and staff from most of our homes and services.
I feel this video message rightfully captures the promise we make each day at Parker: to be Vibrant, Creative and Enriching.
I am truly grateful to my Parker family. I hope you enjoy watching the film as much as I did and that it starts your season off right, putting you in the mindset of holiday cheer! “Let it Snow!”
Wishing you and yours Merry Christmas, happy and healthy holidays, and a prosperous New Year!
Sincerely,
Roberto
Sing along with Parker as we share photos and video clips from the holiday season!
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
By Danielle Woodruffe
Parker recently donated 25 wreaths to be laid at the gravestones of Veterans at Elmwood Cemetery in New Brunswick this holiday season. The donation is part of the national Wreaths Across America program, which started at the infamous Arlington Cemetery in Washington D.C. in 2007.
The purpose is to lay a wreath by every fallen hero.
“Wreaths Across America’s core mission is to remember the fallen, honor those who serve and teach our children the value of freedom,” said Eleanor Molloy, President, Elmwood Cemetery Association. “With Parker’s help, we were able to place wreaths at the grave sites of every World War I veteran in Elmwood. These military men are our hometown heroes and we are pleased to be given the opportunity to thank them and be grateful for their service to our nation.”
With many veterans living at and participating in Parker programs, Parker was honored to make the donation.
The wreaths were laid as part of formal ceremony and each branch of the military was represented.
By Richard Eisenberg for Next Avenue
(Credit: Adobe Stock)
You’ve probably heard about age-friendly communities; maybe you even live in one of the 305 cities and towns with the AARP “Age-Friendly Community” designation. But what you might not know — and what I learned attending the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) conference in Boston last week as a Journalist in Aging Fellow — is that a few states are now designated as age-friendly, too.
So far, New York, Massachusetts and Colorado have been granted the age-friendly state designation by AARP, joining AARP’s new Network of Age-Friendly States. On November 14, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued an executive order to “improve health and well-being of New Yorkers across the lifespan.” Other states, such as New Hampshire, Rhode Island (which has the highest proportion of residents over 85), New Jersey, Tennessee, North Carolina and Oregon may follow.
What It Takes to Be an Age-Friendly State
“It’s not so much a designation as enrollment in a program,” said Danielle Arigoni, director of livable communities at AARP. “It’s a commitment to growing in an age-friendly way, not a certification that we stamp and then you’re done.”
To get the AARP designation, a state needs to complete an application and the governor must commit to a process including an assessment, surveys, an action plan and implementation. In Colorado, Arigoni said, part of the commitment is to enroll 100 more communities in the AARP Age-Friendly Network within five years.
At the GSA conference, Alice Bonner, Secretary of Massachusetts’ Executive Office of Elder Affairs, told me that making a state age-friendly is partly “about ageism, so people don’t look at an old person as someone who’s frail and has cognitive impairment or a disability.” That’s a major concern in her state since more than 30 percent of Massachusetts residents are over 60; in the next 20 years, older adults are expected to make up 30 percent or more of the population of most of the state’s 351 cities and towns.
When States Have Huge and Tiny Communities
I have to admit I was a little dubious when I first heard about the idea of age-friendly states. After all, the needs of residents in a place like New York City (population: 8.6 million) are, in many ways, much different from those in, say, the upstate New York village of Esperance (population: 341). As Bonner told me about making Massachusetts age-friendly: “There is no one-size-fits-all,” adding that “transit issues in the Berkshires [a rural, artsy area in western Massachusetts] are completely different than in Boston.”
What I learned from a variety of state officials and AARP, however, is that the designation doesn’t mean every community in a state must adopt the same age-friendly programs and policies. Instead, states designated as age-friendly share resources and expertise; then, individual communities put into place what makes the most sense for them.
“There is no shortage of great ideas. The challenge is figuring out how to use the resources we have in the most effective fashion,” said GSA speaker Jody Shue, executive director of Age-Friendly Rhode Island.
One idea being piloted there: integrating behavioral health services at a Providence, R.I. senior housing facility by adding a full-time mental health clinician. Another: Community Table Night, where restaurants in one town provided free glasses of wine at dinner to older people looking for others with whom they could have a meal together.
In the Age-Friendly New York announcement for his new executive order, Cuomo said: “As the nation’s first age-friendly state, we are committed to incorporating health needs and smart growth initiatives among all state agencies to ensure all New Yorkers lead their best lives.”
Age-Friendly Rhetoric and Reality
That kind of rhetoric sounds great. But it’s easy for politicians to say they want their states to be age-friendly — or that their states are age-friendly. It’s something else entirely to make that happen in a meaningful way.
It means getting state and local agencies doing more to serve older people. For instance, “How do you leverage the ice skating rink so 80-year-old guys have access?” noted Bonner. In New Hampshire — where 70 percent of communities have populations of 7,000 and under — Goffstown (pop. 17,651) has launched a pilot program to provide bus service for older residents.
Making a state age-friendly often means getting outside funding. For instance, the Tufts Health Plan Foundation just invested nearly $270,000 to accelerate age-friendly efforts in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire. All told, this foundation has funded $3.7 million for age-friendly communities in those three states.
Becoming age-friendly also means finding out what older residents want and need. In Massachusetts, “we started with listening sessions across the state and asked people what are the biggest issues in aging for them,” said Bonner.
How Interested Are Businesses in Age-Friendly States?
Employers and businesses, sadly, often seem to be slow in jumping on the age-friendly train.
Bonner said one of Massachusetts’ age-friendly goals is that when employers see job applications from older people, they say: “That’s somebody I want on my team.” But Marianne Raimondo, a Rhode Island College professor who founded Age-Friendly Rhode Island, said at the GSA conference: “We met with CVS [the largest company in the state with headquarters there]. We didn’t get too far.”
The state government officials I heard speak at the GSA conference said it’s not the size of the state that determines whether it will, or can, become age-friendly. Small states just have to find their own ways to get it done.
“Our approach is very different than Massachusetts’,” said Laura Davie, co-director of the Center on Aging and Community Living at the University of New Hampshire. “We don’t have a state infrastructure or a Secretary of Elder Affairs… We have the New Hampshire Alliance for Healthy Aging (a statewide coalition of 170 organizations).”
Added Bonner: “What you need is a critical group of champions to say ‘This is important. We have to act now.’”
Those champions can include retirees, volunteering their services and expertise on state age-friendly efforts.
“We need to figure out how to care for one another as we get older,” said Bonner. “This is not about somebody else; a bunch of 90-year-old people over there. This is about you — however old you are — and it’s about us.”
This article was written with the support of a journalism fellowship from the Gerontological Society of America, Journalists Network on Generations and The Commonwealth Fund.
By Danielle Woodruffe
Visiting nurses from China recently spent some time at our Monroe and Highland Park campuses to learn from Parker caregivers. The group of ten are in the process of opening a continuum of care home in Southeast China that will include assisted living, nursing care and more. It’s a model that is still very new to their region.
“There is more of a need now because, for a long period of time, there was a one-child policy in China. It’s become very difficult for the (now grown) children to take care of all four parents (a set from each side, including in-laws). Before it was frowned upon, but parents are more open to this now because they know their child has a huge burden and they want it to go well for them,” explained visiting nurse, Lun Fang Huang.
The nurses spent five days viewing Parker homes, two days in orientation, one day of targeted time at our Health & Wellness Center and observing rehab and physical therapy programs. Within the three months of their visit to the United States they saw a total of eleven aging services providers, but spent the most time at Parker.
The connection was made possible through a partnership with Rutgers University and the medical staff there who work with Parker.
”From my point of view, this is the best place to model,” remarked Dr. Karen Lin, RWJ Family Medicine. “Parker is always my model for a long-term care facility so when they expressed interest to learn about this, I said this is a perfect fit since it’s so close to Rutgers.”
During the visit, the group split up into teams of three so that they could “cover more ground.” Qiong Zhang was able to observe residents receiving memory care at Evergreen Way and was most impressed with the team responsible for their care.
“To see the staff serving the food to residents and how they encouraged them during the eating process, which can be challenging for residents with dementia, was inspiring,” says Zhang.
Others were greatly impacted by their time at the Parker Adult Day Club and Health & Wellness Center.
“I noticed everyone at the Adult Day was engaged in whatever activity was taking place and they were encouraging and worked as a team,” says Bin Lin Wang who was part of the group that observed our programs at the Pavilion.
“I’m mostly impressed with the atmosphere in the Health & Wellness Center,” says Guo Fei Wang. “The staff is very enthusiastic. They invite the participants to take part in all activities and even exercise with them.”
Jing Li, who spent time at Parker at Stonegate assisted living, was inspired by the many choices residents have. This experience will, without a doubt, have a lasting impression on her. She witnessed the love caregivers at Parker have, which was something she felt she needed to see in person rather than hear about.
“I love how Parker at Stonegate’s neighborhoods feel just like home,” explained Li. “One CNA there was very helpful. She explained to me that she looks at the residents like her mother. We all will become older but people should be taken care of for that. She treats them the way she’d like to be treated.”
Parker wishes this team much success as they pave the way for providing exceptional care in aging services in China.
By Fern Marder
On Friday, November 9th, John Leland, award-winning New York Times journalist and author, visited Parker to speak about his latest book, Happiness is a Choice You Make: Lessons from a Year Among the Oldest Old, to an audience of Parker residents and program participants, staff, and aging services professionals.
In 2015, Leland was given a year-long assignment to chronicle the lives of six New Yorkers, aged 85 and up. As a self-described “grumpasaurus,” John was initially daunted by what he thought would be a disheartening series about illness, depression and isolation. But, his six elders took him in an unexpected direction and taught him about living life to the fullest, despite the physical and emotional stresses of aging.
“As much as our culture fetishizes youth, older people are more content than young adults,” remarked Leland. “They are less stressed, less afraid of death and better able to accommodate mixed feelings. They know that things that seem to be the end of the world usually aren’t,” he added.
John Leland spoke for an hour and then spent time answering questions from his engaged audience, where attendees shared their own experiences and thanked the author for his truthful and empathetic portrayal of elderhood in our culture. His book reiterates what the people who live with us already know—that older Americans defy stereotypes, both individually and collectively, by living their best lives. We have a lot to learn from them.
By Danielle Woodruffe
Parker recognized close to four dozen men and women who had served our country at special Veteran’s Day ceremonies held at Parker at River Road and Parker at Landing Lane. Veterans from Parker at Stonegate Assisted Living and Parker Adult Day Center joined the ceremonies, as all were honored with a special plaque of appreciation and an American flag.
Each celebration began with a color guard march by the Piscataway Elks Lodge and a short speech on the importance of appreciating those who have fought for our freedoms.
The Piscataway Elks Lodge were enlisted by Joe Mazurek, Chef de Cuisine at Parker at Stonegate and a former Exalted Ruler of Elks Lodge #2262 in Hamilton.
“It’s so important to honor those who have given us what we have today,” said Mazurek. “There’s no greater hero than someone who steps and puts their life in front of yours in protection.”
Parker is proud to raise the visibility and awareness of our residents and participants who have dedicated their lives to serving our country. After each ceremony dining services offered refreshments for all to enjoy.
By Roberto Muñiz
The Parker team just returned from the LeadingAge Annual Meeting & Expo held in Philadelphia last week. It was a powerful time of sharing and brainstorming around how to make the world a better place for those who need aging services and the caregivers who help them.
For Parker, this was the perfect time to launch our #WithIt Movement and introduce attendees to what will be a focus for us for years to come. The #WithIt Movement shares stories of people living their best lives. We are celebrating the beauty of aging at every stage.
I was encouraged as I conversed with people from all over the country at our booth and watched light bulbs go on as they recognized what we are doing with this movement. I heard many stories about people who are #WithIt and are doing amazing things. Let me tell you about my friend, Bob, for example. Bob required assistance getting around the conference, yet at almost 100 years old, he is an active learner eager to take part in all that the conference offered. He learned about the movement and enjoyed snapping his #WithIt photos at our photo booth. Bob is #WithIt! Because above all, #WithIt is a mindset.
The vision of LeadingAge is An America Freed from Ageism. #WithIt is a positive way to view aging– it’s loving and celebrating life at every stage. Together we can Make Aging Part of Life. Join the movement!
WeAreWithIt.org is now up and running. People are joining the movement from all over the country. Join us! Check out our website and follow #WeAreWithIt on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. On these sites you’ll see some of the #WithIt photos taken at the conference. Share the information with your social media followers and ask them to join the movement. Start conversations about #WithIt and reach out to us with any ideas or questions. Together we can make a change and it starts here.
In less than one week, Parker leaders will be attending LeadingAge’s National Meeting and Expo and unveiling much more about our #WithIt Movement. As an exhibitor at the Expo, we are hoping to inspire people to rise up against ageism in the USA by joining #WithIt. Now you’re invited to join the movement at WeAreWithIt.org!
Last month, I explained why we created #WithIt—to reverse the trends that allow, accept, and enable ageism. A recent Forbes article reports that only six percent of Americans over the age of 60 discussed important matters over the past six months with someone younger than 36 who is not a relative. #WithIt is a way of connecting generations, inspiring all of us to drop our biases and open ourselves up to shared experiences with people of all ages.
As part of the Movement, we’re launching a new website called WeAreWithIt.org and WeAreWithIt social media pages on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. Check out our website and follow #WeAreWithIt on social media. Share the information with your social media followers and ask them to join the movement. Start conversations about #WithIt and reach out to us with any ideas or questions. In this way, we hope you’ll become a treasured #WithIt Movement Ambassador!
While Parker is launching, inspiring, and sponsoring the #WithIt movement, we do not own the movement. It is bigger than one organization and we’ll be inviting other organizations, companies, public institutions and individuals to join #WithIt, so it can become a vital national movement against ageism and become its own entity.
This will not happen overnight. We are committed for the long-term since change will be incremental. Click here to learn more at WeAreWithIt.org.
Change is needed on behalf of elders. It starts with you. Join the #WithIt movement online.
My sincere thanks, and I’ll be updating you soon on #WithIt after the LeadingAge’s National Meeting and Expo.
By: Danielle Woodruffe
Spectators of residents and staff make their way in and out of the Solarium at Parker at Stonegate. Each day they monitor the progress of something that has them all a ‘flutter’: butterflies – Monarchs to be exact.
“We’re raising them from larvae to butterfly and all the stages in-between,” says Lee Shahay, Parker Horticultural Specialist.
Shahay, along with Parker residents and Adult Day participants, have nurtured these fluttering beauties with everything they need to survive. Their eggs are housed on milkweed, they are supplied with fresh food daily, and their cages are changed regularly. It takes a lot of work and many cleanings to make sure their environments stay sanitized and that the butterflies survive their metamorphosis.
Yet for many of these insects, they’re getting a better chance at survival than nature would normally allow. New Jersey’s construction boom around Parker’s River Road campus, has altered the habitats for the Monarchs.
“I felt strongly that it was our obligation to try to encourage the Monarchs to come to our garden,” explains Shahay.
Many don’t realize that Monarchs are becoming fewer and fewer. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reports their existence has declined by more than 80 percent over the last two decades.
Parker is in the process of registering all its gardens with the Monarch Watch. The first official registered Monarch Garden at Parker, Flight of Fancy, sits outside of Parker at Stonegate Assisted Living Residence in Highland Park, NJ.
Parker has also tagged 23 of the Monarchs raised with registration numbers given by the Monarch Watch. The purpose of this is to generate migration data and monitor overall Monarch numbers.
“We’ve made a commitment to the Monarch population and the Monarch Watch that we are going to be advocates for the butterfly population,“ says Shahay.
That commitment paid off as Parker just released seven Monarchs to the wild this week.
Roberto Muñiz, Parker CEO, joined Adult Day participants to bid them farewell.
“This project is closely aligned with Parker’s goal of creating purpose and spontaneity in the lives of our participants and residents and allowing them to interact with animals and plants – and in this case butterflies,” explains Muñiz. “We have made a difference and hopefully saved some Monarchs, and the experience has also positively impacted many who have chosen to age with us.”
The butterflies have the potential to fly as far as Mexico to mate and back again.
So far this year Parker has released 75 Monarchs and 25 Swallowtails (which are the official butterfly of New Jersey) to the wild.