Hill-Murray High School Honors Ecumen Lakeview Commons Resident Honor Hacker
Ecumen Lakeview Commons resident Honor Hacker (pictured above during an interview on Capitol Hill discussing new technology) remembers the day she slumped over the desk in her classroom of Hill-Murray, a Benedictine prep school in Saint Paul, closed her eyes and died . . . . it was part of Honor's "Living with Death" course, which looked at life's greatest mystery. It was a class, and Honor a person, who has had a tremendous impact on many. The most recent edition of Hill-Murray Today Magazine, has a great article on Honor and her commitment to lifelong learning. You can read it here, just scroll to page 10 and 11.
Beacon Hill Village Model Expanding
Thanks to Michelle DeBace of Ecumen for the heads up on a National Public Radio story on the Beacon Hill Model on National Public Radio’s Marketplace, which is being adopted in Washington, D.C., and hopefully you’ll see it in full force here in the Twin Cities soon … a couple of groups are working on it.You can listen to the NPR piece here. To see the Beacon Hill web site, go here.
Awakenings Featured on Canadian TV News
Ecumen is empowering residents and their families to enjoy the highest possible quality of life through our Awakenings initiative. "400 kilometers south of the Canadian border there is a sea change underway," says 16:9 reporter Carolyn Jarvis in a recent Awakenings feature on "16:9" television news . The 16:9 feature describes the dramatic difference between calming and controlling dementia residents through antipsychotic chemicals versus the Awakenings model of behavioral support and personal attention to individual needs.
Ecumen Bethany Community Receives Major Gift: $340,000
In an honoring testament to Ecumen Bethany Community's culture of caring, former residents Leonard and Irene Kalina included Bethany in their estate plans -- to the tune of $340,000! The Kalinas lived together at Ecumen Bethany Home since 2006, until Irene’s death in 2009, followed by Leonard’s passing in January 2011. Read more about the Kalinas and their gift in the Alexandria Echo Press.
Senior Housing - A Part of Aging With No Regrets for Many
In an earlier blog post, we highlighted a new book - 30 Lessons for Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans, authored by Karl Pillemer, the head of Cornell University's Legacy Project, I found this item below interesting from N.Y. Times health columnist Jane Brody in her look at the book.
ON AGING: “Embrace it. Don’t fight it. Growing older is both an attitude and a process,” an 80-year-old man said. The experts’ advice to the young: “Don’t waste your time worrying about getting old.”
Most found that old age vastly exceeded their expectations. Even those with serious chronic illnesses enjoyed a sense of calm and contentment. A 92-year-old who can no longer do many of the things she once enjoyed said: “I think I’m happier now than I’ve ever been in my life. Things that were important to me are no longer important, or not as important.”
Another said, “Each decade, each age, has opportunities that weren’t actually there in the previous time.”
Maintain social contacts. Avoid becoming isolated. When an invitation is issued, say yes. Take steps to stay engaged, and take advantage of opportunities to learn new things. Although many were initially reluctant, those who moved to a senior living community found more freedom to enjoy activities and relationships than they had before.
You can read Brody's full column here. And for insights from Ecumen customers and staff on aging go to 50 Tips for Aging Gracefully from Ecumen.
Ecumen Salutes Medal of Honor Recipient Mike Colalillo
Mike Colalillo, pictured above, received the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military honor for bravery, from President Harry Truman on Dec. 18, 1945. On Friday, Minnesota's last surviving Medal of Honor recipient Mike Colalillo passed away at Bayshore Health Center, which Ecumen operates in Duluth.
Hero. It was a word that accompanied Mike Colallo's name continuously. He didn't quite see it that way, though. He told a reporter after the war:
"I never wanted to kill anybody, and I never had any particular yen to be a hero. Heroes are a dime a dozen in my book."
The Army private was a rifleman in the 100th Infantry Division and stationed near Untergriesheim, Germany, on April 7, 1945, according to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.
According to the Medal of Honor citation:
Colalillo and others in his company were pinned down during a battle. He stood up amid heavy artillery, mortar and machine-gun fire, shouted to his comrades to follow and ran forward as he fired his weapon.
"Inspired by his example, his comrades advanced in the face of savage enemy fire," the citation read.
When shrapnel disabled his weapon, Colalillo "climbed to the deck of a friendly tank, manned an exposed machine gun on the turret of the vehicle and, while bullets rattled about him, fired at an enemy emplacement with such devastating accuracy that he killed or wounded at least 10 hostile soldiers and destroyed their machine gun."
A salute to Mike Colalillo. May he rest in peace.