Greetings from “The Home” front …

Is this snow EVER going away!!!. Again – a big thank you to all the staff that stayed late, worked extra shifts and helped out wherever needed during this latest snowstorm. All of you deserve Employee of the Month recognition. Speaking of Employee of the Month – congratulations are in order to Alexis Franco and LeeAnn Strand who were chosen for that honor in January and to Trina Thykeson and Nancy Bjerke who were our Employees of the Month for February. Best wishes to all of you!

A big thank you goes out to Joan Simengaard who keeps the activity dept supplied with lap blankets to distribute to our residents. With the recent cold weather these extra lap blankets come in very handy. Thanks for thinking of us!

March is National Social Workers Month and we have two exceptional social workers here at LMH -Jessica Edwards and Olivia Becker. Both Jessica and Olivia go out of their way to help our residents any way they can and are wonderful problem solvers. It is great to have you here!
And Wednesday March 14 is Registered Dietician Day -Stacy Nosbusch makes sure that all our residents receive healthy and nutritious meals three times a day – not an easy task with many of our residents having dietary restrictions, swallowing difficulties and allergies. We appreciate your hard work Stacy.

We started out this week with newscurrents and then played card and board games in the afternoon. We also served coffee and treats during our Veterans Social. This was a chance for the veterans who are residents here to get together and visit. Tuesday brought Sit & Be Fit followed by Rhythm Band. Resident Council met on Wednesday morning and we played I Spy in the afternoon. Elaine was here for Reading on Thursday and the Peter Boe 3rd Graders came to visit their “adopted” grandparents in the afternoon. The weather kept Pat and Vanna away but we still played Wheel of Fortune later on and of course there was bingo in the evening. Friday brought Mass and Church in the morning. There was a farewell party for our Maintence Director Lee Brenna who is moving to Willeston. Lee was very active in the community as well as here at LMH – he will be missed. Best of Luck Lee on your new adventure. On Saturday morning the residents will be coloring St Patrick’s Day pictures and then playing bingo. We have Kaffee Hus from 2-3:30 on both Saturday and Sunday.

Happy St Patrick’s Day - On Sunday there will be puzzles and word search games with a St Patrick’s Day theme and Molly will be here in the afternoon to share some St Patrick’s trivia. Monday brings newscurrents and card and board games. We have a special treat later on when Nancy plays the bells for our residents to listen or sing to. It’s Sit & Be Fit on Tuesday morning and Rhythm Band in the afternoon. There is Name That Tune Wednesday morning and Mary and her quilting gang will be here to work on a project with the residents in the afternoon. We plan to order dinner out from Paula’s on Thursday – residents need to sign up by Wednesday the 20th. Pastor Diane is here for Bible Study in the morning and then we have pretty nails and men’s club in the afternoon. It must be getting toward the end of the month as the American Legion/VFW will be playing money bingo with our residents on Friday afternoon. There is mass and church in the morning.

We have three resident birthdays next week – Chris Larson on the 19th; and Betty Holkesvig and Gene Gehrke on the 22nd. Also, four staff birthdays – Meagan Karolus and Jennifer Haakenson on March 16th, Skylar Straight on March 19 and Kayla Whetzel on March 21. Happy Birthday to all of you and enjoy your special day!

Until next time … a thought for the week … we do not quit playing because we grow old – we grow old because we quit playing …