Search Results for: bingo night at the mansion

I showed up a few minutes early for our weekly Mansion Bingo Game (Maria and I are the callers, sometimes I sing the numbers). One of the Mansion aides, came over to me and told me there was a new resident at the Mansion, she just came earlier this week.

I knew there was a problem by the look on her face.

The aide, who I work with often,  was helping her get into bed and she noticed that she had only pair of socks, and they were not heavy enough for winter.  She needed help in getting the socks.

I appreciate the aides trusting me with this information.

It has made it so much more possible for me to help the residents quickly and efficiently.

We both decided the new resident needed knee length winter socks, medium size, preferably wool. I found them on Amazon quickly, they will be  her Monday. I got six pairs of “winter warm” kneed socks, three sets for $47.

I gave Matt two large print medical mysteries, the genre he likes. I gave Winnie one of my books – she is a fan – Dancing Dog, my collection of short stories. She asked for it.

I am a whiz now at navigating Thrift Stores and online retailers to find high quality clothes for the residents.

Another resident came up to me and asked if I find her a velcro wallet. I did, for $14.99.

My months- long effort to help Jackie be able to read comfortably may be nearing a successful conclusion. She needed very large print books to read, and even most large print books were not big enough for her to see.

I suggested a magnifying glass, but she said she wasn’t able to hold the glass in her hands. She and I went online and looked through several websites until we found a magnifying glass with a stand, I ordered it this evening. This will be a huge benefit for Jackie, who loves to read but can’t most of the time.

We found the perfect magnifying glass for the visually impaired, the lens is atop a stand with a moveable gooseneck arm. Jackie thought it would be perfect for her. She was wide-eyed at the thought she might get it and be able to read. She is quite bright and a sweet spirit.

The magnifying glass and stand cost $89.

Jackie never asks for help, it took a couple of months for us to get here, and I was very pleased and lucky to be able to help do this, and thanks again to the Army Of Good.

I was greeted by a stern Sylvia who reminded me that I had forgotten to bring her stamps. Sylvie always needs stamps (11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. I’m bringing her some Saturday afternoon.

Several residents took me aside to tell me of their medical issues – a hip replacement, a hand infection, arthritis pain, knee surgery.

In a sense, to work at the Mansion is to witness continuous decline and struggle. This is hard on the young aides, who attach to the residents very powerfully at times.

No one there is getting younger, everyone gets sicker over time. They go to nursing homes to be sick or die.

Small acts of great kindness help them manage their lives. People can have some very good years at the Mansion, they feel safe and cared for there.

I am learning how to help, with much help from the staff and the Army Of Good.

Real action in real life. Every day.

I got the list of Mansion aides so I can prepare the cards for their gift boxes, which they are getting next week.

Wayne was the Bingo Master of Friday night, he won three games.

If you wish to contribute to the Mansion work, please consider a donation in any amount, via Paypal, [email protected], or my P.O. Box, Jon Katz, P.O. Box 205,  Cambridge N.Y., 12816. Please mark the contribution “The Mansion.”

You can also send a contribution at any time by going to the Support The Army Of Good button at the bottom of every post. That money goes directly to the Mansion/refugee fund.

Today, the Mansion aides were each given their $50 Amazon Gift Cards, purchased last month by the Army Of Good. There are 13 aides at the Mansion, and they each got a card.

I got a lot of thank you’s tonight when I went to the Mansion for Bingo, and I soaked up their stories of being able to buy an extra gift for one of their children, or a coveted heating blanket one was saving up for, or flowers for a sick grandmother at Christmas, or a video game for a young and computer-savvy son.

One was taking her parents out to dinner, another would buy a turkey for Christmas. There were all, I was told, things that could not have been purchased without the gift cards from the Army Of Good.

It made me feel specially wonderful to hear these stories tonight, these people – mostly young women – work incredibly hard and under difficult circumstances.

They love the residents and care for them with much love, gentleness and sensitivity. It is a calling in many ways, I was so  happy to be able to recognize the hard work these people do.

I wish I had more money so they could buy more things for them over the holidays, they are special people, and I have come to know and love many of them. They do so much for the residents, it is far and beyond what they could ever be paid. But the gift cards  were great, and much appreciated.

Their holiday cookies from the AOG are still coming right through Christmas each week, and I’m dropping off buttons from Battenkill Books with funny sayings on them during the holidays.

I’ve also given each of them specially engraved pens thanking them for the work they do.

The photo is of Megan and Tia, two aides on the evening shift, I see them frequently, they are wonderful,  and they wanted me to be sure to thank all of you for the gift cards, it was exciting for them to have an extra $50 during the holidays. It made a huge difference.

I thank you as well. I hope we can recognize the unheralded angels often.

A setback for Red yesterday and today, my fault.

I misunderstood our vet, Dr. Suzanne Fariello. She told me that the only exercise Red could have for a while would be running out runs in the side pasture with no sheep. She meant (she said) in the future, not in the next few days.

I misunderstood what she said and took Red out yesterday to run along the fences with Fate. This is often how I exercise the dogs on a busy or rainy day.

Red went out and started his outrun, and halfway across the field, I saw him start to hobble a bit, I called him off and he came and went to the back door, I saw him struggling as we can in the house.

He went to my study to lie down, and he wouldn’t take any food, I realized right away I had taken him out to soon. He has barely moved in 24 hours, although he has gotten up to go out with me.

I called Dr. Fariello and told her what happened and she told me to take Red out once or twice a day to eliminate, and otherwise, no exercise at all, no stairs, running, walks longer than a few years.

We upped the anti-inflammatory medication today, Red is very still, but does not show any outward signs of pain, although he never does. I’ll try feeding him later.

The episode reminded me how fragile Red is right now, and how seriously I have to take his rest over the next few days. He should be all right in a day or so, but it is step backwards, hopefully a short-lived one. And I need to write Dr. Fariello’s recommendations down.

From Red’s eyes, I would say he’s getting better. No Bingo at the Mansion for him tonight, the Mansion residents will be upset.

This week, Ruth and Wayne  asked if I could get them “matching” fanny packs, it seems they are spending a lot of time together. The fanny packs, one grey, one black, arrived today and I’ll bring them to Bingo.

I’m taking a good-sized and varied load of Bingo Prizes and special gifts for the Mansion residents tonight. Friday is the time when Maria and I call the weekly bingo game, it gets pretty intense and competitive sometimes.

I thought the Army Of Good might like to see some of the things I’m bringing tonight, since you paid for almost all of them (I pay for some whenever I can).

It’s also a time when I try and fill some of the orders and special requests I’ve been working on during the week.

The baby doll is for Alice, who is feeling lonely and a bit empty these days.

The magnifying glass is an experiment to see any of the residents want to use this reading tools to help them see print clearly, it’s getting hard to find large print novels. Matt is looking for medical mysteries.

I tried some new books as Bingo Prizes.  There is a “Doggist” book of puppies, the Wonky Donkey, When You Love A Dog, and The Wild Family, a book that celebrates animals in the wild.

Someone also send me three cute small stuffed animals, we’ll bring them to use as bingo prizes.

I also got a journal for Sylvie, a place to write her Biblical references and her own thoughts and observations. I got this idea watching her at her Jehovah’s Witness service the other night.

I’m trying especially hard to meet everyone’s particular needs over the holidays, I see this is a tough time for many of the residents, which is not surprising.

They often feel left behind, but on the holidays, it is the literal truth for many of them. Wednesday the 28th is our first Karaoke Concert. Can’t wait.

On Fridays, Maria and I go over to the Mansion every week to call the Bingo Game. Every game is different, last week the residents were all up joking and teasing me and laughing and singing. Tonight, perhaps because of the gloomy weather, everyone was a bit flat and down.

Next week, we’ll get a sense of whether Joan can return to the Mansion, Mansion staffers will go to the nursing home to evaluate her and see how much help she will need. She is missed.

Fridays are barter night for me at the Mansion I bring things and take orders for things. It was a busy night.

I brought Sylvie some writing paper, she wants to write a note to her doctor about the soreness in her back. (Sylvie is a passionate letter writer, she loves getting letters,  she always tries to answer them,  you can write her c/o Sylvie, The Mansion, 11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

I also brought a comfort doll for Ellen, two books for Wayne, one for Matt, pens for the Mansion aides.

At some point during every Bingo game, an aide will come and hand me a slip of paper. It is a weekly list of the things they have noticed the residents need and either  aren’t able to get or don’t have the money to buy. Some of the residents get visitors, some never do.

Some of the residents have some money in their Mansion account, others have nothing.

When the seasons change, as they are now, that’s when the clothing needs of the residents seem at their sharpest. In addition to the list, the residents will often approach me directly now.

But every Friday, some of the aides meet and compare notes, and there is always a “Jon Katz” not on a post-it for me.

My list for this week is long. A flannel nightgown (Amazon), a women’s flannel Robe (Thrift Store), another comfort doll for Helen (Amazon), six pairs of women’s underwear (Amazon), for pairs of men’s underwear,  two large print “Medical Drama’ books, a large-sized desk calendar for a resident who is visually impaired, also two pairs of tights, seven more pairs of compression socks, five pairs of white tube socks for men,  two pairs of women’s tights.

The residents and the aides rarely ask for anything expensive.

I’ll have all these things by the next week. I had to decline one resident’s  request for a comfort doll, the aides and I agreed she didn’t really want one, she just wanted to have something the others had. I asked the aides, and we all agreed: I told her it wasn’t a good time for her to have a comfort doll. It wasn’t, they said, something she would ever pay attention to.

I’m a whiz now when it comes to  online or Thrift Store shopping, especially for older women. There are two thrift shops I know of that will have a good women’s flannel robe.

I think it’s important to buy the most personal garments new. I think I owe them that.

I don’t buy personal clothing like underwear or socks or nightgowns at Thrift Shops. The residents have a lot of pride and dignity about what they wear, they never see themselves as poor, even if they are. I try to be sensitive to that.

On Tuesday, we’re setting up the Karaoke Machine. Five of the residents have signed up.