Spirit Valley Assisted Living Outreach (04/17/2009)

April 17, 2009 Outreach Visit to Spirit Valley Assisted Living

Now Hiring: Inquire within for Assisted Living Administrator position

When the Administrator, Michelle, told the owners that she was bringing a horse into the home, she overheard the owners say to each other, “It is time to get a new administrator. This one’s going bananas.” Well even the owners were there today to greet Magic. They were there and taking pictures. Michelle kept her job.

Our outreach was at 10:30. It was 10:37 and no Jeff. I was getting worried. What I did not know was that Jeff got there on time but parked where I could not see him. However the staff did see him. They went outside to take pictures. I finally went outside and found Jeff. With a sigh of relief, I told the residents that the cowboy and the horse had arrived. I told them it would be a while longer because Michelle was out there taking pictures. One resident said, “Go back out there and tell her we have cameras in here too.”

As I came in the door, a resident named Dorothy was sitting at the table drinking coffee. As the cook told me that Dorothy had been sitting there all morning, Dorothy confirmed saying, “I am not going to miss this for anything.” She and I talked. She had many stories about horses in her past. She said her horses had been multi-lingual. Her father spoke to them in Swedish and everyone else spoke to them in English.

Spirit Valley Assisted Living is 2 buildings. One resident in the other building was vey allergic to horses so she could not come. Those residents were transported to the other building to see Magic.

Magic got to visit the residents in a spacious living room. It was so nice and cozy. The couches were very comfy. It was a very relaxing atmosphere.

This group of residents had all grown up on farms. Magic instinctively knew they were horse people. They were so good with her. Magic was the star and knew it. There was so much love flowing back and forth.

Michelle, the administrator, had followed the WindChill’s story and got teary-eyed several times while Magic was there. A resident also cried while petting Magic. It brought back memories. Jeff was so in tune he kept Magic by her for the longest time. He could not leave her.

Several of the residents talked about horses pulling a cultivator that built up dirt mounds to cover the potatoes they planted. Many of them were put to work with horses when they were between the ages of 7-10 years old. They remembered riding the horses as their fathers plowed the fields.

One woman talked about how she was 3 years old and her farm horses came running straight towards her at a gallop. They parted as she stood still. One resident told about bending over at a stream and a horse jumped over her. She told Magic she could jump over her any time. Another resident said she would love to take Magic home and put her in her bed anytime. One resident talked about how anything scares horses and had a few tales to tell of runaway horses.

The 2 boys who came for a visit were afraid of Magic. One boy said Magic looked mean. He would not come in the building as long as Magic was there.

Cookies were made specifically for Magic. When I had gone there for a preplanning meeting, the cooks had just taken out fresh chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. I told them how Magic likes sugar cookies. They made a batch for Magic. The staff and residents laughed when they saw the container and were told by the cooks “No you aren’t getting any. They are specifically for the horse.” The cooks got to feed Magic two cookies. Magic did not drop a crumb. Everyone remarked what a mannerly lady she was. The cowboy took the rest home.

People wanted a picture taken with Jeff. The staff and residents made Jeff wear his hat. It is so cool looking. Jeff does wear it well. It was really hot and we were all sweating.

Jeff went around in circles so many times. The residents could not get enough of Magic. Magic treated each individual resident with such respect. They just loved her so much and wanted lots of petting time.

I have to thank Trish Polio for helping me today. She was a great help. Outreaches are a lot of work. We like to make it as personable as possible, and keep Magic and the residents safe. There are a lot of subtle things that we do. Trish caught on fast.