HEALTH & FITNESS
SWEET HOME from page A31
Above: At the Brain Busters memory group meeting, Frank
Machlis is shown with residents Clara Dubin and Beatrice
White, and social worker Rachel Green.
Right: Regent street activities director Cindy Kashdan of
Southfield and resident Shirley Willens of West Bloomfield
dren; the people are very helpful; I enjoy
some of the activities and I'm close to
the Jewish Center."
activities director at Regent Street.
"Part of my job is to reach out and
taking meals and showering and dress-
ing," says Rachel Green, social worker
"She has slowed down a little, but
sometimes I still have to make an
help the small community of Jewish
According to Dr. David Rosenberg,
a family physician with a geriatric sub-
specialty, a common occurrence that
residents feel comfortable here," says
Cindy. We provide programming for the
Jewish holidays. We observe Shabbat
at Meer Apartments. "Most do well, but
decided to move because they felt iso-
lated in their homes."
appointment to take her out for lunch."
Harry Ellman of Bloomfield Hills
recently moved his mother, Bluma,
motivates moving to a senior residence
is when one spouse finds it getting too
difficult to care for the other.
every Friday and we're connected with
the Hadassah Doll Project," which
When looking for a residence, it's a
good idea to talk to the residents them-
from a senior residence in Southfield
to Sunrise Senior Living on Telegraph
selves, to the activities director and to
people working in the beauty salon.
Road, south of Maple, in Bloomfield
Township. Ellman was interested in
"The spouse believes they can handle
it by themselves; but the task becomes
overwhelming and, with support from
Kashdan also works with the activ-
ity directors at both Jewish Community
Center of Metropolitan Detroit build-
They will provide a more broad perspec-
tive on the community.
placing her in a residence that provided
dementia care.
their family, they make the decision to
move."
ings so that Regent Street residents are
invited to programs and events. She
stays connected with both Temple Israel
Lester Satovsky, age 93, had help
from his son, Neil, when he selected the
Rosenberg recommends families first
assess the parent's level of function
because different types of senior hous-
ing provide different services, from inde-
pendent to skilled nursing care.
"I also recommend that families and
the parent visit the residence at different
times to check for signs that the facility
is not run well. I tell people that, if they
need to make a choice between two
makes dolls for children in hospitals.
in West Bloomfield and Temple Beth El
in Bloomfield Township for services and
cultural events.
Michelle Chekan, director of commu-
nity outreach at West Bloomfield-based
Jewish Home and Aging Services, is
Meer Apartments. "My parents lived in
"I had been looking for a new place
and made some inquiries," says Ellman.
"I watched the construction of the new
a condo and my mother's health started
deteriorating," says Neil. "I wanted to be
Sunrise Senior Living facility and was
among the first to tour the facility. The
prepared for a place where they could
receive more care, so we started touring
the various facilities.
place is lovely and the third-floor loca-
tion for patients with dementia is ideal.
"My parents have friends elsewhere,
but they wanted a Jewish environment
Kashdan's primary source for Jewish
programming. "There are 1,100 Jewish
and selected Meer. My mother wanted
a two-bedroom, which put them on
a waiting list. Unfortunately, she died
facilities, select the one that is closer to
residents living in 100 non-Jewish facili-
ties in the area," says Chekan. "My job
them because proximity simplifies family
support."
is to make sure those facilities receive
cultural, religious and spiritual program-
before they moved. My dad is very out-
going and loves chumming around with
all his men friends at Meer."
Shirley Willens, 87, has lived in
American House Regent Street on
Orchard Lake Road in West Bloomfield
for six years.
ming for their Jewish residents."
Jewish Apartments & Services (JAS)
Blanch Haas, 93, decided she wanted
to live at Trowbridge in Southfield.
has a waiting list for elderly who want to
live in one of its West Bloomfield build-
"My mother had a very active life in
Florida, but after some discussion with
ings. One of the services JAS provides
to keep residents in their apartments as
her children, she decided to move back
to Detroit because she still had rela-
tives here," says Rissa Winkleman of
"I had a stroke before moving here
and managed fine until my late husband,
Bob, was struggling with Parkinson's
disease," says Willens. "I needed help
to look after him and also get more help
for me.
Our children helped us select Regent
Street. We rented a three-room apart-
ment and had a small office in one
room."
Cindy Kashdan of Southfield is the
A32
April 30 - 2009
long a possible is Jcare, a personal care
service that enables residents to contin-
ue to live independently but with some
It's bright and well lit; the staff is very
caring and my mother is happy. I feel so
much more comfortable with her living
at Sunrise.
"Once we sell my dad's home, we'll
try to get him a place on the first floor at
Sunrise, and he won't have to drive any-
more to visit her."
A commonly held belief is that a
person is aging well if they're relatively
healthy. A study released last year found
that people who socialize and par-
ticipate in hobbies and cultural events
show a high degree of happiness,
healthy or not.
Birmingham. "My siblings live in other
cities, so I was in charge.
Finding the right senior residential
community for elderly parents is all
about finding a place where they can
assistance as needed. This may include
medication reminders, meal preparation
and housekeeping services.
"We made the tours of the facilities
that were relatively close to me. She
liked Trowbridge and wanted a two-
make a home and continue living.
The right community offers them a
sense of self by maintaining cultural
"When someone applies to our apart-
ments, we first assess how well he or
she can perform daily tasks, such as
bedroom apartment with a washer and
dryer. We had to wait several months
and family ties and providing opportu-
nities to make new friends. —
before one was available.