Community Village

Senior Assisted Living

Updates

Randy’s Salsa Factory

This time of year you’ll find Randy – our resident gardener – outside digging in the dirt getting his “salsa factory” up and running once again. And he loves every bit of it! His sister always helps him with the plant shopping, making sure he’s got at least one of each favorite pepper (Randy’s got several of those)! From Cayenne to Jalapeño and even the Habanero! Sizzle! Keith – our grounds guru – works up the plot of garden… then Randy’s in his glory. The very hardest part is waiting. And waiting some more.

Finally, when all that green starts turning red, Randy dons his chef hat and creates his very own salsa concoction that he’s always happy to share.

Fair warning, though: make sure you know if it’s his hot or mild version before you taste test!

How You Can Help: May 2018


Community Village is operated for the purpose of making assisted living affordable to frail elders with limited means. Supplementing the modest resident fees, Community Village is sustained by charitable gifts from churches, businesses, professionals, community groups, and generous people like you.

Pantry Products We Could Use

  • Peaches
  • Rice
  • Spaghetti Sauce
  • Cream of Chicken Soup
  • Desserts (e.g., cake mixes)

Thank you for caring!

You are Beautiful!

Tim is a very intelligent man, always a hard worker, and successful at every endeavor. Being a sociable guy who enjoys interacting with residents and other Daycare participants, Tim always carries a deck of cards in his pocket to never sit idle – unless he wants to take a nap. Then he turns off his hearing aid and tunes out as he catches some zees. Ask anyone at Community Village what they like the most about Tim: his compliments. No matter who steps into his path, Tim tells that person how beautiful they are… and he means it! His sense of humor brightens our daily routine and he helps others whenever he sees a need. Several years ago, Tim suffered a brain aneurysm that caused him to need help in his activities of daily

living. His wife, Sue, enrolled Tim in our Adult Day Care and we are blessed to have him as part of our extended family.

Tim, you are beautiful!

Oh Where Is My Hair Brush?

Marjorie walked toward me with a hair brush in her hand. I smiled and took it from her and began to brush her thick brown hair back away from her face. I thought of my mother who is long gone now. When I was a little girl, I would stand at the end of the davenport as my mother lay there resting. With the old bristle brush I’d stroke her hair back away from her high forehead. The memory left a lump in my throat and I hugged Marjorie and my mother all at the same time. Hand in hand, Marjorie and I made our way down the hall and I began to sing the old song “Margie”. Marjorie has difficulty at times forming the words that she wants to say. She tried her best to sing the song that she has owned for many years. When we were done, we stopped a minute and I asked Marjorie, What’s my name?. She looked at me so lovingly and tenderly tapped me on my bosom: Pretty, she replied. I laughed a hearty laugh and told her that my name means “pretty” in Scotland. So, you see, Marjorie knew my name all along!

– Contributed by Bonnie Rowley, Activities Director

Margie

My little Margie
I’m always thinking of you, Margie
I’ll tell the world I love you,
Don’t forget your promise to me
I have bought a home and ring and everything
For Margie, you’ve been my inspiration,
Days are never blue,
After all I said and done,
There is really only one,
Oh Margie, Margie, it’s you
Margie
I’m always thinking of you, Margie
I’ll tell the world I love you,
Don’t forget your promise to me
I have bought a home and ring and everything
For Margie, you’ve been my inspiration,
Days are never blue,
After all I said and done,
There is really only one,
Oh Margie, Margie, it’s you

Songwriters: Benny Davis / Con Conrad / J. Russel Robinson

Facility Manager Promoted at Saginaw Township Fire Station

Newly promoted Lieutenant Keith Hebl has been serving as a Saginaw Township Firefighter for 17 years!

He got his start a little unintentionally when he picked up a job working with fire extinguishers and one thing led to another. When asked why he’s worked in this field for so long, those who know him well are not surprised to hear it’s because of the community service, finding a hands-on way to live as a community servant.

What does his promotion actually mean for him? More responsibility that can include some firefighter training. When you leave with the fire truck, someone is always in the right seat – most often an officer responsible for his crew at the fire or accident scene. A lieutenant could very well be first on the scene and therefore in command with responsibility for determining how to approach the emergency, making decisions on how to fight the fire, where it’s going, where it’s coming… doing this expertly enough to keep your crew safe and protect the township or resident’s property. My responsibility is not only to the crew, but to my community… keeping everybody safe.

Keeping Everybody Safe at Community Village

In addition to his promotion to lieutenant, Keith recently received his 25 year service award for employing his skills as Facility Manager of Community Village. In all, he’s worked at our current facility for 36 years!

For reasons far beyond preparing for a fire marshal’s inspection, Keith is driven to keep the Community Village facility and family safe for all emergencies. As a longstanding firefighter, I tend to see things a little differently when I walk into a room that has items blocking a window. There’s a constant awareness everywhere I go.

Without hesitation, when asked if there’s one thing he’d like people to know about Community Village, his response: from a safety standpoint, even though ours isn’t new, it’s one of the safest facilities around. It boils down to experience. I’ve been in a few local facilities that have serious infractions from the fire marshal. This concerns me.

The value of Keith’s experience and expertise at our facility cannot be overstated. Thank you for your diligence, Keith, and congratulations on your well-deserved promotion!

I Love Giving the Ladies Manicures at Community Village


Seven or eight ladies will gather around my table with an announcement that they have just entered “Bon Bon’s Beauty Salon”. What happens in the salon stays in the salon! They laugh at the thought of having anything risqué to say. With each customer I ask things like, “Do you come here often?’ or “Stiletto, coffin, or regular?” Thank goodness for smart phones and Pinterest where I can show them exactly what I mean. We talk about our children and grandchildren, but never about men. “Men, schmen!”, I say. “No boys allowed!” They laugh because they remember feeling like that a time or two. We all know I’m kidding. We all loved our men.

Today, I sat with a new resident who is just a little older than me. She told me a little about her life and some of the hardships that she’s faced. When she mentioned missing her husband she began to cry. My heart stung because the loss is familiar. In that moment, I became more than an employee or a manicurist, I became her friend. The ladies are always required to pay me for their manicure… with a hug! My new friend got a long hug today and I whispered that I’ll be praying for her and if she needs to talk, I’m right here. I love giving the ladies manicures at Community Village.

Contributed by Bonnie Rowley, Activities Director