After a life of caring for family members, dashing from work to social engagements and participating in community events, sometimes a person’s Golden Years can be a bit too quiet, especially if they’ve outlived most of their loved ones. That’s when volunteers in assisted living homes can make a difference.
Julie Snyder is among a group from St. Monica’s Catholic Church in Sunbury trained as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. She leads weekly Communion services for Catholic residents at Nottingham Village, in Northumberland.
“These were avid Catholics, men and women who would be going to church on a regular basis, and then they come to a nursing home and they can’t get out,” Snyder said.
Before moving to Nottingham Village, Ann Hunt, 97, used to welcome the Extraordinary Ministers to her Northumberland home, where she often offered them cake or sandwiches.
“I was raised in the Catholic faith. When holidays come around, I don’t want to say you feel neglected, but you’re used to your own services, you know,” she said. “Some people have families that pick them up and take them to church. Well, I’m just one.”
Hunt came from a family of 11. Her brother, 93, is recuperating from a stroke. Her son, 71, lives in the area but has health problems. Her niece visits her.
Snyder has seen residents who seem like they’re not listening to the service or even appear to be sleeping.
“You don’t think they’re paying attention, but as soon as you start the Our Father or another prayer, they join right in,” she said. “I get emotional. It inspires me. All of them are so faithful, and they miss that connection that they used to have.”
In Nottingham’s dining room, Brianna Reid, 27, of Sunbury, works as a waitress. One day, during a Bingo game, she noticed a woman sitting off by herself. She asked why the woman wasn’t playing, and was told she had vision problems.
“I said, ‘Well, hey, I’ll help you play.’ So I help her play Bingo now. She loves it,” Reid said, adding that they now sometimes play two or three times a week.
Another time Reid got to talking with one of the residents who offered to teach her how to knit. Reid now joins with Nottingham’s Knit-Wits every Thursday to make hats for needy children and Merchant Marines.
“I’ve got it down. I’m really good at hats,” she said with a laugh.
Reid visits with one woman who “just likes company.” Another woman loans her books when she’s finished reading.
“It’s a little sad sometimes to hear everything they’ve done and experienced, and some of them are just alone,” Reid said. “And I don’t want them to feel that way.”
Kathy Keiper, 66, is in the interesting position of living at Nottingham Village and volunteering at a slew of places, including Brookdale Grayson View, in Selinsgrove. Blind since birth, Keiper understands the challenges seniors face in losing levels of control in their lives.
“I just try to use, with God’s help, my sense of compassion,” she said. “With my sense of hearing, often it’s easy to detect a person’s intonation or inflection, the way they make pauses between words. They’re telling me something very different from what they’re saying.”
Mary Ann Severt, 90, agreed that moving into a senior living facility can be challenging.
“There’s mixed feelings,” she said. “You’re leaving something you’re used to, you know, you liked to be there.”
Keiper nudges individuals to join in with planned activities. On the day she met Severt, Grayson View was hosting a St. Patrick’s Day party complete with whiskey brownies and pretzels with green beer chip dip.
“We have a lot of nice activities here,” Keiper said to Severt. “And I want you to come, Mary Ann.”
“I’ll be there,” Severt said with a bright smile. “With bells on.”
A former nurse, Severt might have had a smoother adjustment to senior living than others. She was five years old when her mother died, forcing her to be independent at an early age.
“I really like the people (at Grayson View). I think it’s really got a warm feeling,” she said. “I try to be happy wherever I am.”
Keiper carries huge Braille volumes of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s “Little House on the Prairie” books with her and often reads aloud to residents. She hosts sing-alongs, sets tables for birthday parties and visits with people.
On the day she met resident Lynn Askew, 83, from Selinsgrove, Keiper asked Askew about her life. By the end of the visit, the two headed off to the dining room together for lunch.
“I just love people,” Keiper said. “I receive more from the folks I interact with than I could ever possibly give.”
Nearby nursing homes that could use volunteers
Northumberland County
Nursing & Rehabilitation at The Mansion, Sunbury, 570-286-6922
ManorCare Health Services-Sunbury, 570-286-7121
Northumberland County Area Agency on Aging, Sunbury, 570-495-2395
Mountain View, A Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Coal Township, 570-644-4400
Maple Leaf Personal Care, Shamokin, 570-648-3895
Emmanuel Home, Northumberland, 570-473-0500
Eyer’s Manor, Northumberland, 570-473-9472
Nottingham Village, Northumberland, 570-473-8366
Kramm Healthcare & Rehab, Milton, 570-742-2681
Milton Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, 570-742-2681
Watsontown Nursing and Rehabilitation, 570-538-2561
Union County
Heritage Springs Memory Care, Lewisburg, 570-522-3671
RiverWoods, Lewisburg, 570-522-6234
Buffalo Valley Lutheran Village, Lewisburg, 570-524-2221
Buffalo Valley Assisted Living, Lewisburg, 570-524-4451
Elmcroft of Lewisburg, 570-524-7999
Rolling Hills Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, Millmont, 570-922-3351
Montour County
Emmanuel Center For Nursing, Danville, 570-275-6100
Grandview Health Homes Inc., Danville, 570-275-5240
Maria Joseph Manor, Danville, 570-275-4221
Nazareth Memory Center, Danville, 570-275-8701
Holy Family Convent, Danville, 570-275-3141
Meadows At Maria Joseph, Danville, 570-271-1000
Emmanuel Nursing & Rehab, Danville, 570-275-6231
Vintage Knolls, Danville, 570- 275-1824
House of Care, Geisinger Health System, Danville, 570-271-8600
Snyder County
Brookdale Grayson View, Selinsgrove, 570-374-2923
The Manor at Penn Village, Selinsgrove, 570-374-8181
Richfield Healthcare and Rehab, 717-694-3434
