Message from Kae Santos, Regional President, Chelsea

February 20, 2023

Dear Residents and Families,

I hope this message finds you well and enjoying the generally mild winter we have had so far. It is so great to see our residents out and about, enjoying restaurant trips and fun activities around the campus. As the days grow longer, it really seems like spring is right around the corner.

This month has been very busy for our residences, with Cohen Florence Levine Estates, Florence & Chafetz, and Katzman Family Center for Living all reaching 100% occupancy and Leonard Florence Center for Living continuing to have a long waiting list for its specialty services. We are thrilled with this accomplishment as it means we are truly living our mission and serving as many people as we can in the community. At Cohen Florence and Florence & Chafetz, we celebrated this milestone by having a party to thank the staff. I encourage you to read more about this event and view the pictures in this newsletter.

We are truly fortunate to have amazing employees whose warmth, dedication, and compassion are unrivaled by any other senior care organization in the country. It is because of them that our residents are happy and thriving. This month, we were pleased to celebrate a select group of employees who were recognized as employees of the month in 2022 by their colleagues, residents and their families, and our leaders. Each of these wonderful employees truly embody the vision that Lena Goldberg, our founder, had when she started caring for the elderly in a small wood-framed house on Lafayette Ave in Chelsea – to combine a warm, inviting, heimish atmosphere with kind, compassionate caregiving. From this exemplary group, 2 employees were recognized as the Lena Goldberg Employee of the Year. Congratulations to Joseph Leblanc, a nurse at Katzman Center for Living, and Paula MacKay, a Shahbaz at Leonard Florence Center for Living, for earning this tremendous honor! I can’t wait until next year to celebrate another wonderful group of staff. If you see them, please give them your best wishes.

If there are staff throughout the year who you feel have positively impacted your and your loved one’s experience at Chelsea Jewish, please let us know. We would love to recognize them for their hard work and compassion. We look forward to hearing your stories.

All the best,

Kae

Kae Santos
Regional President, Chelsea
Chelsea Jewish Lifecare

Look What’s Happening on Our Peabody Campus

February 14, 2023

There’s a lot going on in Peabody this month. Kaplan residents and congregants from Peabody Synagogue’s Sons of Israel prayed jointly in our community room. The Service was also Zoomed so that even more congregants were able to take part in the service. Led by Cantor Seth Landau, Sons of Israel’s spiritual leader, congregational members jointly participated in readings and aliyot. The day marked the first joint service between the two and we are looking forward to more in the future.

Our Sweethearts Day celebration was a huge success! Residents enjoyed a medley of songs from Ann Lamphear, followed by delicious homemade strawberry shortcake layer cake. There were a lot of laughs, smiles and satisfied appetites!

In addition to Kaplan Estates daily fitness program that focuses on flexibility and strength training, every Friday fitness trainer Rachelle Bruzzese provides exercises for cardio and strength training. Rachelle also leads residents in Zumba Gold, great seated Cardio workouts, and strength training for seniors, which increases stamina, muscle, and bone strength. Residents have so much fun they forget they are taking an exercise class!

Thank you to our local Trader Joe’s for their generous floral donations. The company frequently donates flowers to Brudnick Center for Living for our flower arranging activities on our memory care units. These types of craft classes help residents create seasonal arrangements that decorate both our common spaces and residents’ rooms. Ceramic craft pieces add bursts of vibrant colors and are perfect for gift giving. Items like bird houses will grace our garden patios in the spring as well as help attract local birds for visits to our campus.

Many of our residents enjoyed camping when they were young, so we recreated their experiences with a Campfire Party. This event brought back cherished memories that they were eager to share with others. Singing songs around the campfire, playing Charades and telling stories from our past resulted in a most enjoyable time. The s’mores made it even better!

Behind the Scenes at Katzman Family Center for Living

February 13, 2023

It may still be winter but here at Katzman Center spring is in the air! Residents on our Specialized Memory Care Unit were presented with beautiful fresh flowers for their flower arranging program. This activity stimulates three senses: touch, smell, and sight. The residents love participating in the class and enjoy the fact that they get to keep their creations in their rooms.

We have a myriad of activities taking place this month. In our art classes, residents were very creative and “let their inner artist out.” What a talented class! On the gaming front, Bernice Berman was excited to win at Bingo yet again. Bernice displayed her winnings for all to see when she won the jackpot prize in “Bingos Coverall.”

Musicians are always welcome at KCL, so residents and staff were excited when musicians Linda Darcy and Jeff Cheffro stopped by to perform. A recent lunch outing to Applebee’s proved that good food and great company make for an enjoyable trip. In our culinary department, our residents, who have years of experience under their belts, were excited to have an assortment of baking ingredients on hand. We sampled a variety of cakes, muffins, and cookies in different combinations. The overall consensus: Audrey Maggioli’s blueberry, banana and sour cream muffins won top honors. They were delicious!

With the older population thriving, we’d like to recognize our centenarians at the Katzman Center. Anna Bellino, Mary Carroll, Rosalie Sussman, Rose Quarato and Lena Labella all range in age from 100 to 103. Congratulations to all of you. What a remarkable accomplishment!

What’s Happening at the Leonard Florence Center for Living

February 13, 2023

Residents, staff, and visitors are excited that Betsy’s Bakery-Café is now open! On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 8:30am to 4pm delicious muffins, cookies and other treats are available, along with hot and cold beverages. It’s an encouraging sign that life at the Leonard Florence Center is returning to normal.

This month is chock full of activities. For starters, restaurant outings to Friendly’s and The Marina at the Wharf are on the schedule. Inside activities include a Tai-Chi exercise class, bowling and a variety of musical concerts. Lin Darcy, Jimmy Honohan, and Jody Ebling will all be performing. To celebrate Black History Month, we will be holding two additional concerts on Fridays. Looks like February will be filled with muisc at the Leonard Florence Center.

On February 28, we will hold a special art class in conjunction with “Paint the Town.” The popular company hosts lively paint parties. We can’t wait to see the finished works of art!

For book lovers, we are starting a book club on Wednesdays. The first book selected is the highly acclaimed “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus. The book has been on the New York Tines best seller list for 40 weeks.

Wishing a very Happy Birthday to Shauna B. (February 14) and Irving F. (February 15). Enjoy the celebrations!

New and Improved Chelsea Jewish Lifecare Website!

February 7, 2023

A new version of the CJL website (www.chelseajewish.org) launched in mid-January. It is user friendly, informative, and easy to navigate. Our goal: to give you all the information you need in one place.

You’ll notice there are more videos and photos than before. Our organization is special because of our residents, families and staff members, so visual aids are a wonderful way to show who we are and what we are all about. We also tried to simplify the site by using less copy.

Take a look at resources such as activities, care options, scheduling resident visits, staff member videos and more. There are also contact phone numbers and emails, so please feel free to ask questions and or provide comments. We want to hear from you!