Summer 2013 - SCMRF · • Do not use your oven to heat your apartment. • Do not smoke cigarettes in your apartment if you have an oxygen tank. • Unplug electrical appliances

Born and raised in Oakland, California, Priscilla J.Haynes brings 23 years of affordable housing experienceto her new position as the Executive Director of theSanta Clara Methodist Retirement Foundation. With abackground in business administration, Priscilla ispassionate about serving younger and older adults in asafe and dignified living environment. After working 15years as a site administrator, Priscilla was promoted toOperations Manager, overseeing six Bay Area housingcommunities serving hundreds of residents for a largenonprofit organization. Priscilla has been active at thestate and national level with LeadingAge, an advocacyorganization expanding the world of possibilities foraging, by travelling to Sacramento and Washington DCto lobby politicians on behalf of affordable housing.Priscilla was also selected to participate in the nationalleadership development program run by LeadingAge.

Possessing a positive, spiritual demeanor, Priscilla’s approach to life is to treateveryone as you would like to be treated. Coming from a large family of eight children,Priscilla is a devoted mother of three sons and a daughter and a doting grandmotherof four. Priscilla also enjoys a large extended family and attends an annual familyreunion in Hillsboro, Texas. The July 2013 reunion of approximately 250 relativesrepresented the 63rd anniversary of this longtime gathering. The family compound andlocal church (founded by Priscilla’s grandfather) are two of the locations featured atthe three-day event. The celebration culminates with a large meal at Mt. MoriahCollege.

During the month of July, Priscilla has observed a well-organized operation with anexcellent and committed staff that work together to further the Foundation’s mission.Priscilla hopes to enhance and promote programs to improve the quality of life forLiberty Tower and Wesley Manor residents so that these individuals can age gracefullyand thrive in their respective communities.

Priscilla Haynes, the Foundation's newExecutive Director.

Summer 2013

In addition to new front entrance carpets, new exteriorawnings brought shade and aesthetic beauty to both sites.Liberty Tower received five new royal blue awnings on thepark side of the building, and the Fellowship Room and themaintenance driveway storage area donned bright greenawnings at Wesley Manor.

The anticipated Liberty Tower plumbing system upgradeproject will commence soon. These necessary improvementsto the building’s piping system will include roof and groundfloor pipe replacement and isolation valves at the top andbottom of each of the building’s ten risers. Along with newpressure and temperature gauges, the current hot waterpumps will be replaced with variable volume pumps.Additionally, a new 130-gallon expansion tank will beinstalled to supplement the existing water tank. Funding forthis physical plant project will be provided by the City ofSanta Clara.

Wesley Manor management and residents were very appreciative of the excellentresponse received from the many Campbell City departments during the spring andsummer months' fire restoration work which was completed in July. Physical plantactivities also included the completion of ground floor door and frame painting, a mailcounter facelift, replacement of additional common area artwork, and thefabrication of new lounge and dining room window sheers. A state-of-the-art surveillance camera system, monitoring the ground floor common areasand parking lots, was also installed to assist Management in maintaininga secured and safe environment for its residents and visitors.

Technicians from San Jose Awning duringthe Liberty Tower installation.

Summer is always a great time to volunteer and Heart of the Valleycurrently has the following volunteer opportunities: transportationproviders, board members, event volunteers, drivers for Veterans, 5Dprogram manager, speakers bureau volunteers, fundraisers, and

marketing, social networking and public relations volunteers. Heart of the Valley isalso accepting basic necessities for seniors. If you have extra paper products,toiletries or cleaning products you can donate, please give us a call.

For those who are looking for help with transportation, handyman projects, yardwork, paperwork, house projects, computer assistance, or other services, please giveour office a call at 1-408-241-1571 or email us at [email protected].

Why must we be advocates for Senior Housing now?

Housing is a basic human necessity that growing numbers of seniorscannot afford. Despite the rising need for affordable housing for low andmoderate income seniors and people with disabilities, funding to increasethe supply has been severely constrained or eliminated.

The senior population, ages 65 and over, is expected to double from 35million to 70 million by 2030. Nearly 50% of today’sseniors are over 75 and there are 3.5 million over theage of 85. The 85-year-old group is expected to doubleby year 2020 and double again by 2040. The numberof disabled or frail seniors over 85 is projected todouble by 2030.

There are 3.6 million seniors living below the povertylevel. The HUD 2009 Worst Case Housing Needs studyreported that 1.33 million seniors paid more than

50% of their income toward housing costs.

Our residents at Liberty Tower and Wesley Manor are fortunate that thefederal policy trends protect seniors who are already receiving assistance.However, the same federal policies do not address the needs of thousandsof seniors requiring affordable housing or who are homeless.

Grassroots advocacy campaigns are so critical now; calling your state andfederal representatives, letter writing, and contacting congress are wayswe can all help. One organization of stakeholders that advocates forsenior housing programs is Elderly Housing Coalition c/o LeadingAge,2519 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.20008-1520.

Enabling seniors to remain in the communitycould be a cost-effective alternate to prematureentry into nursing homes while also allowingseniors to age in place with the ability to liveindependently with dignity.

Wesley Manor residents are enjoying oscar-winning hit movies on Tuesday nightsthanks to resident Araya Yohannes. Arayawelcomes requests for future showings.

Beginning in May, residents were invited to attend aCatholic prayer/mass in the library at Liberty Tower.Father George Aranah, Pastor at Saint Clare’s Parish inSanta Clara, presides over the mass one Thursday eachmonth. Organized by resident, Kathleen “Kitty” Weimer, this in-house activity allowsresidents to participate in a devotional service without having to leave the LibertyTower community. Wesley Manor residents also take part in a monthly communionservice on the third Tuesday of each month at 1:30 p.m. in the Fellowship Room. Theservice is now generously offered by Ed DeGregorio, Eucharistic Minister from St. LucyParish in Campbell, who started conducting the services after Father Robert Passalacquapassed away last fall.

Tom Lewis of Lewis and Associates visited each facility in the spring to give a talk aboutthe low-cost personal property insurance offered to our residents. Upcoming eventsinclude Town Hall Meetings at both facilities in early August to provide residents anopportunity to meet our new Executive Director as well as on-site flu shot clinics forresidents coming to each building in September.

Over the past year and a half, residents havebenefited from the excellent management andculinary skills of Charles Hawes, Morrison's Directorof Dining Services. His attention to detail andresponsiveness to resident comments have greatlyimproved and enhanced the dining experience.Residents and Foundation staff wish Charles wellas he starts his new position with Morrison in

August. Leslie Thompson, the new Director of Dining Services, started training withCharles in July. Possessing a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition, Leslie is excitedto serve as the new Director and bring her fresh ideas to the evening meal program.

The Annual Resident Dining Survey conducted by Morrison was completed and resultswill be available in September. Survey topics included Overall Quality of Food, Varietyof Food, Visibility/Responsiveness of Management Team and Overall Satisfaction withDining Service. Survey highlights will be presented to residents at the monthly FoodCommittee meetings, and also to the Board of Directors at a future Board meeting.

Residents continue to enjoy the food service summer barbecues.The final summerbarbecue will take place on Labor Day in September.

Liberty Tower Mass.

Charles Hawes (centered), Foundation staff and residents attendthe Liberty Tower Food Committee Meeting.

Fire evacuation drills were held at both Wesley Manor and LibertyTower in late May. An encouraging portion of residents at each facilitytook part in the unannounced drills, and staff members appreciatedeveryone’s cooperation and patience during the process. Annualevacuation drills are not only mandated by law, but they serve animportant function for both residents and staff to refresh their memory

of the evacuation protocol at each facility.

Additionally, staff took the opportunity after the drills to provide some timelyreminders to residents about building evacuations. In the event of a buildingemergency, elevators will not function and residents are asked to evacuate down thestairs if it is safe to do so and report to the nearest evacuation checkpoint. Residentsare asked not to take any canes, walkers, or wheelchairs into the stairwells. Residentswho are unable to evacuate down the stairs are asked to remain in their apartmentsor the hallway and call 911.

Fire safety in our communities is a major concern. In the United States, seniors over65 have a fire death rate of nearly twice the national average, and the rate for thoseover 75 is three times the national average! An alarming statistic to be sure, but itserves to illustrate that for the age groups represented in our communities, safepractices to avoid fires are of critical importance.

Here are a few fire safety tips that management encourages residents toobserve in their apartments:

• Do not leave food unattended on the stove. If you have to leavethe kitchen, take a spoon or potholder with you as a reminder.

• Do not line your oven, stove burners, vent hood or walls with aluminumfoil.

• Do not use your oven to heat your apartment.• Do not smoke cigarettes in your apartment if you have an oxygen tank.• Unplug electrical appliances such as toasters and space heaters when you

are not using them.• Do not use candles. They may be pretty to look at, but an open flame is a

fire hazard.• Keep all curtains, clothes, fabric, and other flammable items at least one

foot from any heat source, including lamps.• Do not store any paper, plastic, or other flammable items inside your oven

or on top of your stove, even if you do not plan to use the appliance forcooking.

Management is committed to working with residents to continue improving firesafety measures taken at both communities.

Santa Clara MethodistRetirement Foundation, Inc.890 Main StreetSanta Clara, CA 95050www.scmrf.org

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