Golden Living Center, Superior, WI (06/15/10)

6/15/2010 Outreach Visit to Golden Living Center in Superior, WI (by Paula Moore)

“Don’t take her away.” “She can’t go.” “Stay here.” “She is part of us now.” Of course the Golden Living residents are talking about Magic.

The staff said this was the biggest turnout ever for a program by the residents living in the Golden Living Center. Nobody was left in their rooms except one man. The community room was already full with 30 people as I overheard Carole say, “They keep on coming. The halls are full.”

What a day! A staff person best described it with this comment… “You brought so much joy today.”

It WAS a very joyful place. Residents and staff were thrilled to have us come and visit even though most did not know about us or about the horse we were bringing in for a visit. “You have got to be kidding…. would you repeat what you just said!” When they found out what I said was true, the excitement level grew exponentially.

There was a reason for such surprise at the Golden Living Center. When I called the Friday before Tuesday visit, to assure the activity director I had met and made plans with 2 months ago, that we were coming, I was stunned that she did not remember about our visit. Well how could she, it was her first week on the job. This new activity director had just transferred from Hayward. I explained what we do. “Are you really bringing a horse?” “Well let’s go through with it.” she said.

The staff adapted well to the surprise visit. A call went out over the intercom for staff to come help in the community room. Ten residents were having a snack where I originally planned to set -up and I hated to move them so I set up in a different spot. However the staff very efficiently moved them and all the tables for a better set-up.

We had a nice rounded row of about 30 patients and I was told to start my WindChill presentation… however more people kept coming in so I stopped. I was told to start again but I stopped as more kept coming. I waited and a 2^nd row of 20 was also formed and more kept on being added. There were visitors too. I heard one resident yell from out in the hall, “I am going to see a horse! Where is it? I’m coming. I am so excited.” We ended up with about 75 people squeezed in but actually with enough space so Magic could get to everyone.

One staff member said she could not believe it. “We cleared out the whole place except for one, he’s sleeping.” (Magic went to visit him in his room later.) What was so funny was that there was a shift change while we were there. Carole and Betty could hear the new staff members going into rooms and coming out puzzled looking for their patients and wondering where their patients were.

I finally began. All the lights went out. It was so quiet. I could not believe it. WindChill’s story had their full attention. Most of these people were not horse people but they were animal lovers. They loved the story of WindChill. Some cried…. One woman cried for WindChill. It bought back memories of her dogs that passed away. A few months ago she had to give up her new 6 month old puppy when she had to come into the nursing home. She said the puppy went to a good home but it just broke her heart to lose him. She followed Jeff and Magic around the room and many times she got to pet Magic and 3xs she gave Magic kisses. “I love her so much.” She said. She cried the whole time.

One man I talked to had been a horse wrangler out West. He broke horses and herded cattle. We had a good conversation. He wondered about the shoes we put on our horses at Raindance. He talked about having to be the boss while on the horses because the horses would look for ways to take advantage of him if he was weak. He loved Tennessee Walkers. He said when he was a bronco rider it was all about balance while being on a bucking horse and feeling the horse under you to know when the horse was done bucking and finally realized you were the boss.

One woman said she often had taken her horses on a walk. She loved walking her horses but one day they spooked and became a bit much for her to handle. Her husband was worried she would get hurt. She did not walk them again.

One resident did horse patrol in the service. During the day he patrolled alone but at night he always had a partner.

One woman told us how the horses on her father’s farm were only used for plowing but each day one of the children got to ride one of those horses ½ mile to get mail. After all those years she still is mad that her brothers got to do it and because she was a girl she hardly got to do it.

One woman remembers as a child, her next door neighbor having two Shetland ponies. She brought them over and they got to pet them and brush them but never got to ride them.

When Magic walked in, people just gasped. There were smiles galore. Some people said to Jeff to bring Magic over here while others just made an over here signal with their hands.

Jeff is so patient. He stoops down to get on the patient’s level who are in wheel chairs or just sitting. He goes slow giving each resident his full attention. Jeff says so many of the residents have private conversations with Magic. They bend over and whisper in her ear. Sometimes it is an I love you…Jeff calls them secrets and he usually stands back so they can have their privacy.

One resident petting Magic, who loved cowboys, was kidded by the staff person for not paying any attention to the cowboy (Jeff) but only to his horse.

One man said that Magic was “the perfect horse—except for her height.”

As Magic was yawning to her audience, people started laughing. One resident tried to hush everyone, “If we laugh too much you will scare her.” We assured them the more they laughed the more she does the yawning and she did.

Another man was petting Magic but then he got this far away look. The staff member with him said, “Horse memories are going through his mind. He has been around horses all his life.”

Jeff and Magic had another woman following them around the room. She loved the feel of Magic’s forelock. She loved twirling, twisting, shaping it. When she went crazy fluffing up Magic’s hair, Jeff said to the woman, “That’s how all the kids are wearing it now a days.”

Many of the women played with Magic’s mane and especially her forelock. They wondered why Magic wanted to hide her pretty face and beautiful eyes. They kept on pulling the forelock to the side and patting it down to stay but it never stayed.

Residents loved our t-shirts. WindChill’s eye just caught their eye.

One resident and her husband, who was visiting her, rescued greyhounds. He had a greyhound at home. He volunteers, at the nursing home. He said we are doing a fantastic job and was impressed with the quality of our program.

A staff member’s neighbor rescues horses. She has a group of volunteer women that call themselves the HORSIES.

One visitor had a little hairless dog with a big handlebar mustache. She asked if Magic would be scared of her dog. We said no. Then she thought it over and thought her dog would be the one to freak out instead. She and the dog stayed in the community room and petted Magic anyways.

While Magic was going around, individual alarms were going off as people stretched to pet Magic. It did not bother Magic in the least. An oxygen tank needed a quick adjustment when it started squealing just as Magic was being petted by that person using the oxygen tank. The staff person tried to adjust it slowly so as not to scare Magic too bad but when she saw how the short screeches did not phase Magic, she just did it normally and out came this very loud screech. Magic did not even budge an inch. She is a rock.

One gentleman said that he raised dogs, Springer spaniels. Horses were his next favorite animal but they were too expensive.

A doctor, complete with white coat and stethoscope, got out his cell phone and begged a staff member to take his picture with Magic.

While I was talking about WindChill, Jeff was waiting in the entry way. The minute Jeff walked in with Magic, he was surrounded by staff. They took pictures of themselves with Magic. Trish said the staff enthusiasm was contagious.

The manager wanted his picture taken with Magic to send to his granddaughter. “She will be in heaven!” Then he asked Trish if we were violating any rules or did he need to do any paperwork. Trish assured him that I had checked into all that. I had. 2 ½ years ago in preparation for the outreaches, I called up the Douglas County Health Dept. They transferred me to the most experienced person there. She said she knew of nothing preventing us from bringing Magic into the city or schools or nursing homes in Superior.

Trish asked if she could take pictures. The answer was yes but not of people’s faces. She did hands instead. It is wonderful work and I hope she will share the pictures at the BBQ.

A Social Services person said she had received 2 miniature goats for her birthday and now was hatching a new plan of attack for her next birthday… hinting for a miniature horse… “and since one can’t be by themselves…. 2 are needed.” She said gleefully.

We kept on hearing from staff and visitors, “So nice you do this.”

Just as we were leaving, the bird aviary caught the attention of Magic. She sure can move her head in different angles when very interested.

Trish and Betty W. also made the comment that when we first came in, the staff had the look of question marks all over their faces looking at us with ???????? but when we left after our outreach, they watched us go with !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!…. meaning flushed with excitement.

Before we left, the activity director said you will definitely be back and I am calling my Hayward connections so they can see your program too. Sure enough I got an email later that evening from the Hayward Nursing Home.

Carole, Betty W., Trish, and I will always remember, a 20 something grandson who adored his grandma. He made her laugh so much. When he had to leave while Magic was going around, he yelled to her, “Grandma…Don’t ride the horse!”