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Mazel
Toy!
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Home Suite Home
Unique "Coville at Prentis" assisted living floor
opens for 12 senior citizens at Prentis
Jewish Apartments in Oak Park.
SHARON LUC KERMAN
StajrWriter
11 ewish Family Service has created a special
floor in Prentis Jewish Apartments in Oak
Park that gives frail seniors an opportunity to
live independently.
On Oct. 7, JFS celebrated the opening of the new
Coville at Prentis second floor that offers an assisted
living environment.
One-hundred guests, including Margot and Warren
Coville of West Bloomfield, JFS and Jewish
Apartments & Services leadership, members of the
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit, the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD), Coville residents and their families attended
the opening festivities. Rabbi Daniel Syme of Temple
Beth El installed the mezuzah at the new entrance.
"Imagine a frail senior who, wanting to maintain
her independence and dignity," instead of heading for
a nursing home, "gets to live in a private apartment, in
a warm communal environment," said Suzi Mulka,
Coville program director.
Though JFS and the Covilles have supported assist-
ed living for 22 years, this is the first time they've
extended their model to more frail adults. Two years
ago, JFS received the only grant in Michigan for an
assisted living conversion program from HUD.
The agency teamed with JAS and the Covilles to
convert the second floor of the Prentis I Apartments
tower for 12 seniors who needed more care.
"Several residents subsidized over the years would
have been forced into a more restricted living environ-
ment due to the [high] cost of assisted living housing,"
says Mulka.
Jean Moore, 88, who recently moved out of her fam-
ily home in Huntington Woods and into a Coville
apartment, said of her new home, "It's just wonderful,
just wonderful."
Mona Lipson, 91, of Oak Park added, "It's still new
to me. I'm still adjusting, but it seems to be well-coor-
dinated and I like having the people around."
The converted floor provides each resident with pri-
vate living space, bath and kitchenette, says Peter
Wurdock, marketing director of JAS. The residents
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share a kosher communal dining room and communal
lounges. Support staff prepare and serve meals and pro-
vide laundry and housekeeping services.
"You'll see seniors sitting around watching a movie
in the TV lounge on their floor, with four other resi-
dents nearby playing canasta," Mulka says. "Across
from the dining room, in the fireplace lounge, two
more residents sit with their feet up in front of the fire
reading the newspaper. Its Friday, and caregivers are
preparing a kosher Shabbat meal for the residents,
including matzah ball soup, in the communal
kitchen."
Personal care assistance for the 12 residents is part of
a monthly service fee package. It includes bathing,
medication reminders and 24-hour protective over-
sight.
Coville resident Stanley Herman, 82, is enjoying the
camaraderie at meal times and in the lounges. He's also
staying up later because of the company, he says, but
appreciates the privacy of his own room, too. O
Clockwise, from top:
Rabbi Daniel Syme places the mezuzuab
as Margot and Warren Coville look on.
,Coville At Prentis Apartments resident Ida
Rubinstein, with son Fred Rubinstein of
Farmington Hills, in her new apartment.
Residents Bea Dworkis and Belle Weisman
enjoy the second floor communal lounge.
10/18
2002
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