PAID
MAIL MOVERS
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE
Salisbury Star PO Box 1000 Seaford, DE 19973-1000
Complimentary
Vol. 2 No. 6 September 2015
New Aurora Senior Living owners work to ensure high quality of care By Carol Kinsley
SHOREBIRDS SPOTLIGHTThe Salisbury Star wraps up its exclusive Shorebirds Spotlight series with a story on lefty Brian Gonzalez. Page 19
Alyvia McDonald of Parsonsburg takes her turn petting one of the bunnies in the small furry creature room at last month’s Wicomico County Fair. Photo by Tony Russo
This month’s Star highlights businesses that provide the important service of keeping us healthy and well. Pages 11-15
of the Wicomico County Fair
Health and Wellness The sights, sounds and smells NEW CHIEF- Barkley settles in as new Delmar Chief of Police. Page 5 DOG DAYS- 3rd Friday goes to the dogs in August. Page 6 REVIVAL- Delmar looking to organize a downtown artisan revival. Page 8
INDEX Bulletin Board .....................43, 46 Business Digest ....................... 26 Business Directory..............40-41 Business Profile ....................... 27 Church ....................................... 38 Community ................................ 39 Dining on Delmarva.................. 44 Gee Dunsten ............................. 29 Education ................................. 33 Entertainment ........................... 42 Personnel File ........................... 28 Real Estate ................................ 29 Salisbury University ................. 35 Sports ...................................18-23 Student Profile .......................... 33 The Great Outdoors ................. 22 Veronica Correa........................ 15
By Tony Russo
There was gunfire, a lot of it, but no screaming or running. In fact no one even flinched. Kids and adults alike posed before antique tractors, ate popcorn and generally wandered around taking in the county fair. If you’ve never been, let this serve as fair warning. There is gunplay, and everyone there is fine with it. Art Williams of Felton, Del. galloped on horseback, executing balloon after balloon in a demonstration of horsemanship. He and a half-dozen or so other riders were part of a show and competition at the extreme west side of the Wicomico County Fairgrounds at Winterplace park. Held, appropriately enough, in the ring nearest the Wicomico County Equestrian center, people lined the fences watching as rider after rider shot as many balloons as he or she could while riding as fast as they dared. And it never got tedious. One rider would slalom through the balloons, or circle them, or ride straight up and down the aisles they created, but the spectacle of shooting and popping bal-
loons from horseback captivated the crowd time after time. It is easy to point to false nostalgia as the primary reason people were drawn to the different exhibits at the Wicomico County Fair, but that doesn’t appear to get at it. Fascination is a better description. Many people have little contact with the visceral part of agriculture. Sure, the riding was cool and the shooting was fun, but the horses were running and sweating rather than just standing in a field, which is how many people usually see them. A different diversion- Chloe Dixon of Goldsboro and Morgan Meekins of Townsend, Del., took turns lassoing a plastic steer head. They were showing off their rodeo skills while also spreading the word that there was such a thing as a high school rodeo team. The team members are high school aged, but the team isn’t located at a particular high school. In fact, the team that represents the region has members from Parsonsburg to Goldsboro, Del. The Eastern Shore team competes against other Maryland region teams to Continued on page 4
Since acquiring Aurora Senior Living of Manokin in Princess Anne in 2011, the new ownership and management have made significant improvements to ensure the highest quality of care for the residents and patients of the skilled nursing community. While maintaining the primary focus of excellence in patient care, there have been significant improvements made to the building as well. Aurora Senior Living of Manokin is one of only three skilled nursing facilities in Maryland to receive an Advanced QAPI (Quality Assurance Performance Improvement) Accreditation from Providigm, an organization that helps health care providers achieve success in quality management. According to Providigm, the Advanced Accreditation recognizes nursing centers that go “well above and beyond” the standards required for Basic Accreditation and is awarded to facilities that strive to improve the lives of residents with evidence-based quality improvement work. In the most recent annual survey by the state — a week-long look at all areas of focus within nursing facilities and their operations — Aurora Senior Living of Manokin fared much better than the statewide average. Judging by a recent Family Satisfaction Survey sent to all resident family members, the efforts are paying off. Aurora’s family satisfaction score determined by the Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC) is five percent higher than the statewide average. To enhance the environment of the facility, many upgrades have been made throughout the building, including new flooring, new furniture, a newly remodeled dining room, new beauty salon and a new patio in the courtyard. There is also new rehab area, which includes an ADL (activities of daily living) suite. There patients and residents can practice skills such as cooking, in a place that reminds them of home. Aurora Senior Living of Manokin is happy to announce that over 20 percent of its staff has worked at the facility for 10 years or more. They also have Continued on page 13