C h ristade lph ia n A g e d C a re
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S P R I N G
N E W S L E T T E R
ASHBURN HOUSE Address: 20-34 Ashburn Place, Gladesville
For as the earth brings forth its sprouts and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations. ISAIAH 61:1 1
Phone: (02) 8876 9200
Email: admin@chomes.com.au
Manager’s Message Welcome to Ashburn House
Spring is upon us and everyone is enjoying the warmer weather! Season changes always mean it’s time to check your loved one’s wardrobe. Please check for some light clothes and purchase clothing labels from our reception area to label any clothes brought in for residents. Check lost property for any missing garments when you are visiting. The display of lost property is located in the Activity Room on the Lower Ground. Despite the warmer weather, flu and gastro outbreaks are still among the community. If you have been exposed to it or have any sick symptoms, please DO NOT come to visit the residents in Ashburn House until you are clear from the symptoms for at least 48 hours. Thanks to everyone for their understanding and patience for our planned renovation. Recently, we had two external contractors to audit our air conditioning system to source the best solution for the renovations. We will keep the residents and families updated with information at the residents/relatives meeting once we receive the report. We also had an interior designer look at our furniture in Kimberly lounge and all three dining areas. Some furniture replacement and upgrading is on the way. A regular reminder that security of the building is very important for the safety of our residents. Please do not open the door for anyone you don’t know, and be aware of who is walking out behind you. Ask staff for assistance if you are unsure. Kind Regards, Yan Li
News & Upcoming Events UPCOMING EVENTS SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
SEPTEMBER 1st - Entertainment: Chris Joret
5 Joan W
1 Margaret C
6 Heather M
5 Joyce G
1 Maria C
18 Nola B
15th - Entertainment: Miss Eleni
19 Jean B
20 Robert R
21 Gulbudean
25 Felicidad G
19th - Entertainment: Roseanna Gallo 22nd - Entertainment: Fiona
22 Naomi G
27 Prudence M
OCTOBER
28 Jaqueline H
13th - Entertainment: Mike Tasama
30 Cecily C
17th - Entertainment: Roseanna Gallo 20th - Entertainment: Fiona
NOVEMBER 3rd - Entertainment: Miss Eleni 14th - Entertainment: Roseanna Gallo 17th - Charles the Dance Tutor 24th - Entertainment: Fiona
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Activity Reviews ARMCHAIR TRAVELS JUNE 6 Our Armchair Travelling has again been very popular. The latest session was held on June 6 and was kindly organised by Sabi. It was a Nepalese theme that provided a very colourful afternoon. A few of our Nepalese staff got into the theme dressing up in their traditional clothing and provided music and dance for all to enjoy.
MASTERCHEF COOKING CLASS A Masterchef Cooking Class was conducted at Ashburn House where residents made Chai Lattes and sweet warm tortillas stuffed with Nutella, shredded coconut, honey and variety of fruits. This activity offered residents the chance to create something new and enjoy the tasty results. In previous Masterchef Cooking Classes, the residents enjoyed Vanilla Honey French Toast.
RESIDENT COCKTAIL PARTY JULY 27 On July 27, we held a cocktail party for the residents and family members. 
 The Cronulla Theatre was transformed into a vibrant party hall. The residents were able to sit in small groups with their family and friends, socialise and reminisce over a nice glass of wine and cocktail appetisers that our Chef Polash put together. There were laughs, stories and new friendships made. All in all, everyone enjoyed the evening together. It was just like the good old days when the residents could enjoy a social outing. NEXT COCKTAIL PARTY:
November 9, 2017
Activity Reviews A VISIT BY COPPER One of our friendly volunteers kindly brought her lovely puppy, Copper, in to visit with our Ashburn residents. Copper was very happy and well behaved. His visit brought smiles to the faces of many of our residents, who enjoyed patting and cuddling him. Copper also starred in a photo shoot with the residents.
TRAVEL DESTINATION: SOUTH AFRICA Each month, our residents and staff have been learning about a popular travel destination. This month we decided to learn a more about what South Africa has to offer. We watched a documentary about South Africa and discussed the culture, food, religion, and interesting attractions the country has to explore. Amy, one of our RAO team members, dressed up in South African attire which was kindly loaned by one of our nursing staff Regina for this event.
CHRISTMAS IN JULY This year, we celebrated Christmas in July by having a wonderful afternoon tea with warm hot chocolate and sweet winter snacks. Entertainer Russell sang some wonderful Christmas carols for gathered residents to help raise the Christmas spirits.
Activity Reviews ALICE IN WONDERLAND MORNING TEA MAY 22 On May 22, our gardens magically transformed into an Alice in Wonderland tea party. With the help of management, care and kitchen staff and RAO Team Members, we were able to put together a beautiful garden tea party. Alice, The Mad Hatter, Queen of Hearts, Mr Rabbit and Cheshire Cat all made an appearance when RAO staff members dressed up in character for the event. A lovely morning tea and cakes was served to the residents all in the Alice in Wonderland theme.
Activity - Photos
Happy Birthday
Resident Story - Betty Johnson AO Betty Dorothy Johnson was born in Sydney on July 21, 1926. She spent a total of eight years of her early life in the Children’s Convalescent Hospital in Collaroy, because she had contracted TB of the hip at the age of four. The doctors did not believe that she would be able to walk without assistance when she finally left hospital, but she proved them wrong. Her will-power and resilience have characterised how she has faced challenges all through her life, as has her personal warmth and her concern with social issues and making a difference to the lives of others. Betty undertook her education in the school attached to the hospital. She was taught the curriculum of the School of the Air correspondence course, but did not complete formal schooling because of her lengthy visits to hospital. At the age of 14, she was fortunate to be employed by what was then called the Crippled Children’s Society and this organisation arranged for her to undertake secretarial training. She married Brian Johnson in 1945, and while her three children, Lesley, Pauline and Terry, were still young, was a full-time mother. But she quickly got involved during this time as a volunteer in the canteen and then helping to organise the library of local primary school at Denistone East, as she also subsequently did in the library of Ryde High School. In the 1960s, Betty began working as a secretary at the University of Sydney where she stayed until her retirement in 1991. While there, she became involved in the Health and Research Employees Association, a union that worked for the interests of the general staff including clerical, administrative and technical staff at the University. She was elected by the general staff to the Senate, the governing body of the University, and rapidly gained the admiration and great affection of the university executive, academic staff and general staff across the university. She was a member of the Senate from 1984 to 1991. In 1992, she was awarded an honorary Masters Degree in Industrial Relations by the University in recognition of her huge contribution. Betty never really retired but moved from paid work at the University of Sydney back into a dedicated life of voluntary work in 1991. She became involved in the Older Women’s Network (OWN), an organisation established in the late 1980s focused on older women and the issues that specifically concerned them. She was President of both the NSW branch and OWN Australia at various times. It was her work in this organisation that led to her becoming increasingly involved in health consumer issues and advocating for the active involvement of health consumers in their own health care. She worked with several others to persuade the NSW Government to fund and establish a not-for-profit organisation called Health Consumers NSW in 2010 and she chaired this body for a number of years, only stepping down from this role in 2015. She became widely known and respected as a leader in the area of health consumer activism in NSW and more broadly in Australia serving on as many as 20 committees at any one time in this area and in other health related areas including quality and safety. From 2011 to 2016, she was a member of the Board of the Northern Sydney Local Health District, appointed to that position by the then Minister of Health of NSW, Gillian Skinner.
Resident Story - Betty Johnson AO Betty Johnson was appointed an Officer of the General Division of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2000 “for service to the community as a consumer advocate in the areas of aged care and related health issues�. She is also an Honorary Fellow of the College of Nursing. As well as her interests in OWN and various health policy organisations, Betty has always been a great lover of books, movies and music of a wide variety. She still regularly attends concerts in Sydney and the occasional opera performance. She is immensely proud of her children who all graduated from universities in Australia and have led busy professional lives. Her sister, Patricia, step-sister, Audrey, her children, and her grandchild, Harriet, regularly visit Betty at Ashburn House and are enjoying spending this somewhat quieter life with her.
Staff Profile - Anu Sharma Anu Sharma is one of Ashburn House's Registered Nurses. She was born in 1993 and raised in a family with two siblings; one brother and one sister. She attended high school in Nepal before moving to Australia in 2012 with her husband Bikash to study and pursue a career in nursing. She enrolled in Western Sydney University in Sydney and worked as an Assistant in Nursing until she earned her Bachelor Degree in Nursing. Anu is an active person, she enjoys her social life and will never pass up the chance to travel. Her favourite destination is to visit her country of birth to spend time with her parents and extended family members. Anu recently went for an overseas vacation to Japan which she thoroughly enjoyed. Anu loves experiencing the culture of other countries and is fascinated by the deferent cuisines she has discovered. Anu uses her love of world cuisines to explore local restaurant offerings around Sydney, She can often be found trying out new places with friends on weekends. Anu is also rather artistic. She really enjoys painting with water colours and sketching in her free time. She loves to read and is lucky enough to speak three languages, English, Hindi and Nepalese, which allows her to enjoy novels and stories from each. She is particularly fond of drama novels. Â Anu is involved in her Nepalese community here in Australia and she is happy to be able to celebrate her cultural festivals and practice her religious days with friends. She has recently undertaken a new stage of her life and is on her way to becoming a mother after learning that she was pregnant. We here at Ashburn want to wish Anu all the best with her coming child and are very happy to have her among our staff.
FRIENDS ARE LIKE FLOWERS
love
1 John 3:18
Pastoral Care
Let us not with word or speech but with actions and in truth
Friends are like flowers, beautiful flowers Friends are like flowers in the garden of life
Many years ago, in my youth, I heard and learnt a song about friends being like beautiful flowers in our life. That song, at the time and still to this day, touched something in me and I find that I often look at a good friend and picture them as a beautiful flower. Friends can be a blessing that many of us take for granted as “just being there”. No matter what the occasion, an afternoon at the theatre, catching up for a quiet lunch or a quick coffee, a warm and familiar shoulder to cry on, friends are those people in our life who enjoy our company, never judge us and are always there for us. “The heartfelt council of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense” - Proverbs 27:9 But sometimes, due to circumstances beyond our control, friendships can end all too soon. Circumstances such as relocation, ageing, illness and death can leave us hanging like autumn leaves on a windy day – very sad and quite vulnerable. So where am I going with this? Working in aged care and spending a great deal of time having one on one visits with many a lonely resident can give a pretty good perspective as to how important friendships have been in years past. There are quite a number of residents who have little or no family visitation due to numerous reasons, but what they do have are precious memories which can be encouraged and brought forward. Memories not only of family but of friendships formed in the school yard, at the workplace, in the armed forces, with neighbours and with social groups. Some friendships would have been made at mother’s groups, during overseas travel or even at the local pub. Some were made easily while others took time, some were fleeting while others lasted a lifetime. But with every friendship created comes the memories of that creation. I recently had the privilege of spending forty very rewarding minutes with a resident who was feeling down and lonely. When I came into her room she said, “Oh, thank God, someone I can talk to that will talk back to me”. I felt both humbled and most thankful that I had turned left rather than right in the foyer that day. This dear lady sat and cried for a short time about her loneliness and told me how much she missed her family and friends. When I felt that she was ready, I diverted her to tell me about some of her memories as a child and teenager. I heard her tell of being raised by hardworking parents who loved their five children, of how they were raised with hand-me-down clothes and shoes, home haircuts, lard sandwiches, and shared bath water, that started with the youngest child and dad as the last. How they sat on the floor of the lounge room every night after dinner to listen to the radio shows they loved, and how on a Saturday night once a month a block of chocolate was passed around and shared. She recalled a special friend from school who Our deepest sympathies have loved to sleep over at her place so she could have a lard gone out to the families who sandwich as she never had them at home.
Bereavements
After 40 minutes of crying, reminiscing, laughing and hand holding I left my resident rather reluctantly because I felt as though I had been taken on a short journey and I wanted more. Taking the time to listen and encourage memories can be a rewarding experience for all parties, it can take such little to give so much. By Jan Murray, Pastoral Carer, Courtlands Village <— P.S. I saw this lovely lady as a Pansy – pretty, bright eyed (after the tears) and smiling.
“Friendship is the instrument by which God reveals to each of us the beauties of others” - C.S. Lewis
have lost their loved ones over the Winter period.
Volunteer Corner Our residents really benefit from the activities put on by our volunteers, including the regular bingo, games, chat groups and movies. The shared experiences not only provide an activity to attend for the morning or afternoon but also promote conversations around the meal tables. August 14-20 is National Student Volunteer Week and our Volunteer Profile for this newsletter is one of our regular student volunteers, Tiana. A big thank you to our two musical volunteer groups during June. The KISS group (Keep It Simple Singers) came on a Thursday morning and their choice of songs and friendly manner made them an instant hit with our residents. They all enjoyed the chance to join in and sing, as well as chat afterwards. A concert on Saturday, June 10 was also run by volunteers, led by Maree. Music provides a great opportunity to share memories and have a lot of fun! The next one will be August 26. We have had our first Flower Arranging morning run by Liz, Lauren and Sophie. It was great to see all the colourful flowers on tables in t h e C r o n u l l a Th e a t r e . Residents e n j o ye d a chance to work with nature and have the sights and aroma of the flowers around them. Each resident who participated was able to take a small vase with their arrangements back with them to their rooms. Some kindly placed them on the dining tables to share with their friends as well. We hope this will be an ongoing event each month. If you are interested in joining the Volunteer program, please do not hesitate to contact me:
Nerida Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Neill on 0434 946 184 or noneill@chomes.com.au Volunteer & Pastoral Care Coordinator
Volunteer Corner SPOTLIGHT ON A VOLUNTEER Tiana I've been volunteering at Ashburn House since 2015. I initially begun volunteering as part of my Duke of Edinburgh certificate, but I've continued to volunteer after finishing the award. As a senior student in high school, I'm often very busy and I find volunteering at Ashburn House every week to be a welcome change of pace. Volunteering has been a constant part of my routine for nearly three years now and although my roles have changed, I've been able to spend time with a few of the same residents through my entire time here. The experience of volunteering has been truly invaluable to me. I’ve really been able to grow thanks to Ashburn House - in responsibility, maturity and as a whole. Interacting with the residents is my favourite part about volunteering here, especially as I get to know each one better. I hope to continue my volunteering past high school. Living in the area, I find Ashburn House to be the perfect place to give back my own community. At Ashburn House, I run the library cart and deliver books to residents’ rooms on a fortnightly basis. I really enjoy talking to the residents about the books they read each week and love to be able to pick out different books to bring around. One of the most valuable experiences I’ve had in my life was a community service trip with my school in 2015, where I was able to travel to Ti Tree, a remote Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory. Here I was able to help the children at the local primary school in their classes. Being able to help these children who were all around six or seven years old was an enriching experience and one my prized memories. Another experience I have had is volunteering at an orphanage in Saigon, Vietnam, where my family is originally from. Despite lacking skills in Vietnamese I quite enjoyed playing with the toddlers at this orphanage and learning about their everyday lives. Outside of volunteering, some of my hobbies include baking and cake decorating. When not doing one of these I love to spend time with my cocker spaniel; Lexie. After finishing school, I hope to study Medicine or Biochemistry in university.
Read, Rest & Relax! SPRING CLEANING TIPS Finally, springtime is knocking at our door! After winter, we’re ready to swing open the windows and let the fresh air flow in. Spring is a season of renewal. Symbolically, it’s when nature comes alive again: blooming flowers, baby animals and cleansing rain showers! Many people grew up with a seasonal tradition: the spring-cleaning. It’s an annual reminder its time to clean house and de-clutter. For seniors, it’s a great way to shake the winter blues and reminisce. Many older adults are rejuvenated by the warming weather and sunshine. A cleanup confers health benefits as well: reducing symptoms of respiratory illness and risk for falling. A good cleaning is beneficial both physically and emotionally! Spring Cleaning To-Do List: Clean out bedside drawers and sort books/ magazines Open windows to circulate fresh air
De-clutter; remove objects that obstruct the flow of movement through the room such as unnecessary furniture Bust dust - don't forget photographs and art on walls, blinds, vents & light bulbs
FATHER’S DAY JOKES Q: What did the daddy tomato say to the baby tomato? A: Catch up! Q: Why are Fathers like parking spaces? A: The good ones are already taken! Q: Why did the cookie cry? A: Because his father was a wafer so long! Q: What did daddy spider say to baby spider? A: You spend too much time on the web. Q: Why did the baby strawberry cry? A: Because his dad was in a jam!
Lemon Delicious Slice • 50g unsalted butter, chopped • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract • 1/3 cup caster sugar • 1 tablespoon cornflour • 1 1/3 cups plain flour • Icing sugar mixture, to serve • • • • •
LEMON TOPPING 4 eggs 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind 1/3 cup plain flour 1 1/3 cups caster sugar 2/3 cup lemon juice Makes 24 pieces
1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease a 3cm-deep slice pan. Line with baking paper, allowing a 2cm overhang on all sides. 2. Place butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on MEDIUM for 1 minute or until melted. Set aside to cool. Stir in vanilla and sugar. Sift flours over butter mixture. Using a wooden spoon, stir until a soft dough forms. Transfer to prepared pan. Press into pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven. Set aside to cool. 3. Make topping: Whisk eggs, lemon rind, flour and sugar together until smooth. Add lemon juice. Whisk to combine. Pour over base. Bake for 15 minutes or until just set. Cool completely in pan. Dust with icing sugar. Cut into pieces. Serve.
Spring Riddles Find â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Spring relatedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; rhyming words that match the clues. 1. What flowers do that rhymes with mud
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2. What flowers do that rhymes with room
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3. What plants do that rhymes with pout
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4. A spring blossom that rhymes with hairy
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5. A spring flower that rhymes with hill
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6. What birds lay that rhymes with legs
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7. What a bird builds that rhymes with best
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8. What eggs do that rhymes with match
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9. What farmers plant that rhymes with weeds
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10. A month in spring that rhymes with remember ________________________
Disclaimer: All photos and stories have been published with consent of relatives and residents involved. Thank you for your submissions.