Search Results for: bingo night at the mansion

Sylvie is a person of great faith. A Jehovah’s Witness, she waited in the Mansion lobby for someone from the church to come and pick her up, she was marking the death of Jesus Christ tonight.

I knew she was sick, and didn’t feel well, I asked her if she was strong enough to go to Church, she said she had to go and wanted to go. She told me she couldn’t come to my Meditation Class any longer because it conflicted with her faith. I didn’t ask her why, it’s not my business..

Whenever meet, she hands me envelopes to check for the right address and that sometimes need extra postage. Sylvie has friends all over the world, you can write her c/o The Mansion, 11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

She loves getting letters and writing them, and I am helping her get the addresses and zip codes right.

I asked her if I could take a photo of her from the other side of the window, she said of course, she likes being photographed.

Easter weekend can be a lonely place at the Mansion, many of the residents are home with their families. Tia and Kelly, two aides, are both working on Easter, I hope to come buy and bring them some flowers and cookies.

My personality buttons are a big hit with the aides, they’ve gone through three rounds of buttons, I need to get some more. Buttons bright up things.

Only four people came to Bingo tonight, it was quiet and peaceful.  I gave Ruth a new wrist watch, it will go with her wedding dress. It cost $7.89 at Wal-Mart, and is guaranteed for more than a year. She likes it.

I brought Ellen some socks for her baby dolls, she loved them, they came in a 10-pack with six different colors. Wayne got his new power recliner earlier in the week, he thanks everyone who  helped me to get it.

We ran into one of the residents making a beeline for the front door, which is locked. I told her there was corn bread waiting for her in the dining room and she turned around with a big smile.

Sylvie explained to me that she doesn’t play bingo because a young man she loved played it. He died a long time ago, but she doesn’t play to honor him.

Thanks for your support of my Mansion work. If you wish, you can contribute via Paypal, [email protected] or by mail, Jon Katz, Mansion, P.O.Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

I have happy news from the Mansion. Ruth and Wayne, two happy and loving residents who have fallen in love, have decided to get married in May.

The wedding, they told me today, will be held at the Mansion. Wayne asked me if I would be his Best Man, and I accepted. Ruth asked if Maria would be her bridesmaid, she said she would be delighted to accept.

At their request, I  brought them an address/phone book so they could begin collecting addresses and phone numbers of people they want to invite.

I’ve know these two for a couple of years. They both attend our Friday Bingo games faithfully, and Wayne has been to every one of my readings and all of my Meditation Classes. He is an avid reader, and has devoured countless large print novels and picture books.

Wayne suffered some debilitating health issues a few years ago and came to the Mansion with little more than the clothes on his back. Ruth and her husband Ken, also in need, came to the Mansion about the same time.

The Army Of Good to help both of these people in many ways, especially in purchasing a full compliment of clothes and shoes and nightclothes.

Ken died in 2018 and Ruth and Wayne became a couple some months later. Ruth and  Wayne can be seen all day at the Mansion holding hands, or going into one or the other of their rooms to watch TV. They are always together.

Wayne can’t walk, he is wheel chair bound. He is one of Red’s favorites, they are close.

Both of them have a sly sense of humor and have become inseparable. Their total support for one another is uplifting. Love and life can thrive anywhere, if people are brave enough and strong enough to look for it.

I hope to help them with their wedding, especially in getting some flowers and food and music for the occasion. They might need some clothes.

Love amongst aging, sickness, struggle and death is especially beautiful and precious. I think it is sacred. Good for Ruth and Wayne, courageous enough to fall in love and celebrate it with their peers and friends. We are also their family.

I’d appreciate any help people want to offer. The wedding is scheduled for about one month away, I don’t think it should be lavish, but I would like to make it lovely and memorable. They have asked for my help.

Wayne asked if Red and Bud could come also. I said Red will surely be there, I have to think about Bud. I can see him eating the flowers.

If you wish, you can write the couple and congratulate them c/o Ruth and Wayne, The Manson, 11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

If you wish to support their wedding, you can donate via Paypal, [email protected]. Please mark the donation for “Wedding.” Checks can be sent to Jon Katz. The Wedding, P.O. Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

This is a very touching and happy announcement, the Mansion staff and aides were thrilled. So am I.

This is the third time in my life I’ve been asked to be a Best Man, perhaps the most important. I’m very pleased and humbled to be asked to participate, so is Maria.  I wish these two a long and happy life together.

Thanks for your help.

Winnie was the Bingo Queen at the Mansion Friday Night, she won three games in a row. She loves the new duck whistle, she said it sounds like a bird who has had too much wine.

In a few hours, I’m heading to Bennington Vt. with Maria and Red, I’m going to do a short monologue, “Red And His Story,” as my project for the acting class I  just completed with the actor Christine Decker at the Oldcastle Theater in Bennington, Vt.

I love everything I am seeing and feeling at the Oldcastle, there is so much energy and creativity coming out of the place, and they just announced their are buying the theater building, a great vote of confidence for their future. I have agreed to do a photo show for the Oldcastle sometime this year, and if Christine teaches another class, I will apply again.

This one was good for me. I learned a lot about who I am and who I am not, it buoyed my own creativity. You can learn from any teacher, even a bad one, and Christine is a great one.

I’m going to talk about Red’s life, and also his illness tonight. Red and I saw the vet, Dr. Suzanne Fariello today, he had his regular acupuncture treatment. Red had a good week, he was more active and seem in less pain.

His heart is still weak, his cataracts are spreading and I know his spine could fracture at any time. Other than keep him quiet as much as possible, there is nothing much we can do. Red seems at peace to me, this week, he is the King of Radical Acceptance, he has, through our work together, taught me much about mortality and acceptance.

I took him to the Mansion this afternoon. I told the residents Maria and I can’t do Bingo tonight, and I told them about his illness the other day. No one mentioned it today, death and sickness are not things the residents dwell on, they see enough of it all the time.

I’m looking forward to the talk tonight, and not just because of Red. I see it as a triumph of creativity, an affirmation of the chance to learn and grow. I was supposed to read a poem by T.S. Eliot. Instead, I’m telling the story of Red. There is surely some meaning there. Hopefully, I’ll return with some photo.

Thanks for your love of Red, it always lifts me up, and I’m sure he senses it as well.

It was a very happy visit.

Maria and I returned tonight to our first post-evacuation Bingo since New Year’s Eve. We had a full house tonight – Peter, Jean, Mary, Ruth, Wayne, Peggie and Tim (Matt couldn’t make it). We were glad to see all of them, and they were glad to see us – they even made us a Valentine (see below).

Tim was tonight’s Bingo King, he won three games, although I’m happy to say every single person in attendance won one game, a first. Tim is back from rehab on his amputated leg, he will be walking soon. Tim is an avid reader and creative, he asked if I could get him some water-color pencils, and I have, and a big water-color pad to go with it.

I ordered it tonight., along with some water color paper.

And I gave Peggie her new pink “Shark” wristwatch, she loved it. I also brought Matt a large print Tom Clancy book, he loves Tom Clancy.

I can’t wait to see Tim’s painting, he is always making something or writing something, or reading something. The new TV we ordered – a 55 inch Samsung – has arrived, and it is waiting to be installed in the Great Room, everyone is quite excited about it.

The Mansion looks great – bright lights, new carpet, new roof, renovated, spit-spot and comfortable rooms, expanded baseboard heating, the residents are very happy.  So is the staff.

This week, on Thursday, I’m buying (The Army Of Good is buying)  a Chinese food lunch for the staff, to thank them for all their hard work during their difficult month. I’m hoping to take seven or eight residents on a cruise on Lake George in May and June, and then again in September or October. They are still talking about the last one.

Julie and I are meeting next week to talk about some Spring outings for the people who are ambulatory. We are still looking for a handicapped-safe horse-drawn wagon to take residents on a ride through town. They have wanted to do this for years, it isn’t easy to find a wagon that would be safe for them.

It was very satisfying to be back in the Mansion with everyone there. Many hugs and happy faces, residents and staff. And the place sparkles.

If you wish to contribute to the Mansion Fund, your help will be appreciated. You can send contribution directly to me via Paypal, [email protected]. Or you can send a check to Jon Katz, Mansion Fund, P.O. Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. You can also use the to the Support The Army Of Good button on the bottom of each blog post.

I hope to start making Spring plans shortly.

Also, thanks for the soap and shampoo. Boxes and boxes have arrived at the Mansion (thank you!) and lots of soap and shampoo have been purchased on the Amazon Mansion Wish List. There are still some items left. We will shortly have enough soap and shampoo to last awhile, this helps the residents more than you might imagine. The aides were distributing them over the past few days.