Commun ty Matters Salina Presbyterian Manor
December 2018
Mary’s Musings By Mary Bridges, chaplain Salina Presbyterian Manor
Christmas is right around the corner. For many faiths, it is preceded by the season of Advent, which begins the Christian liturgical year. There are many Christmas traditions from around the world that are part of the fabric of Christmas in the United States. Both my maternal and paternal grandparents came to America from the Volga River area of Russia after their ancestors immigrated to Russia from Germany at the invitation of Catherine the Great. The first Christmas trees decorated and named after the Christian holiday appeared in Strasbourg, Germany, at the beginning of the 17th century. After 1750, they began showing up in other parts of Germany. Perhaps that is why when I was growing up, we really only had one decoration at Christmas time— our tree, which sat in the corner of the living room and had those wonderful old bubble lights. In the 1820s, the first German immigrants decorated Christmas trees in Pennsylvania. After Germany’s Prince Albert married Queen Victoria, he introduced the Christmas tree tradition to MUSINGS, continued on page 4
Glenda and Steve Thummel are thankful to be healed and home for the holidays after a motorcycle accident this summer.
Grateful to be home for the holidays On June 8, 2018, Salina residents Steve and Glenda Thummel were out riding their motorcycle on a beautiful day, traveling north of Salina and west of Concordia. In the blink of an eye, their lives were changed as they knew it: at an intersection they hit a pickup. “We were taken by ambulance to Salina where they determined our injuries were more than they could handle,” said Steve. They were then transported to Wichita’s Via Christi-St. Francis to start the recovery process. “I had a broken rib, but my basic injury was my left hip was dislocated,” said Steve. “They determined I had some bone chips in my hip and did surgery to take those out. I also had a really deep wound on my left shin. My injuries weren’t quite as bad as Glenda.” “I had seven ribs broken, my pelvis was broken in three places, and I had a broken wrist and a broken big toe,” said Glenda. “I had two breaks on one shoulder blade and one break on the other. I don’t remember anything HOLIDAYS, continued on page 2
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about that day because I had a severe concussion.”
care of us and the nurses watched us close. It was a great place to be if you need the services and care they provide.”
support they had in their recovery. In addition to the physical therapy they received, the Thummels also received support from Pastor John Fillipi, his staff, pastors John Luce and James Davis, their church family at First Church of the Nazarene, fellow members of the Christian Motorcyclist Association, friends, strangers and old acquaintances that have gone out of their way to send a card and say a prayer for them during their recovery.
To prepare to care for the Thummels, the team at Presbyterian Manor had to pull together and develop a comprehensive plan of care.
“We had all these people praying for us—people we don’t know, churches we don’t know—but the one thing that brought everyone together was God’s healing power and the fact that God is here with us on a daily basis to take care of what we need. He’s been on this journey with us since the beginning. That’s made a tremendous difference in how we’ve healed and how we feel,” said Steve.
After Steve spent five days in the Glenda agrees. hospital and Glenda six, Salina Presbyterian Manor agreed to accept “The team at the Salina Presbyterian them for inpatient physical therapy. Manor are awesome. Even though I had laid in bed basically the whole “They accepted us even though they were not sure how they would time, they had me ready to walk and go home. They did an excellent job, manage someone with the extent and I still go to PT as an outpatient of Glenda’s injuries, but they were determined to accept the challenge. two days a week,” she said. We are extremely happy they did and succeeded,” said Steve. “My therapy was simply getting my leg back into shape so it would support my weight. They did a great job with us. The CNAs took really good
Community Matters
is published monthly for residents and friends of Salina Presbyterian Manor by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org. Desi Flerlage, executive director Jenni Jones, marketing director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact Jenni Jones, jjones@pmma.org. Telephone: 785-825-1366 Fax: 785-825-6554 Address: 2601 E. Crawford, Salina, KS 67401-3898 Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values. SalinaPresbyterianManor.org
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“Before Glenda’s arrival, therapy had a meeting on her status, and we knew she was going to be an extremely complex case,” said Celice Stancil, therapy director, and Paige Gridley, physical therapy assistant. “Laying eyes on her when she entered the facility confirmed how delicate and challenging Glenda was going to be for her duration of rehab. Not only did we take Glenda, but we had Steve to focus on and rehab as well. Therapy experienced ups and downs each day … In the end, having both husband and wife here helped keep each of them emotionally stable while striving to reach their goals each day. “It is an indescribable feeling on day one to lay your eyes on a husband and wife that were blessed to make it through a horrific motorcycle accident and then watch them walk out of rehab independently and return to their normal everyday life. Absolutely breathtaking!” The Thummels appreciate all the
Community Matters December 2018
Their children were also a blessing to Steve and Glenda at the time. “Our daughter, Dawn, spent the first three weeks with us to make sure all of our needs were met. Tom, our son-in-law, took care of the physical things at our home to make sure all was ok. Our sons, Jarrett and Steven, and their families spent time here each weekend to help and make sure all was ok. Without them, we would have struggled in our recovery. Our neighbor, Brian, without being asked, mowed and took care of the yard. He was a great help.” This holiday season will be extra special now that Steve and Glenda will be home and healthy. They HOLIDAYS, continued on page 3 Like us on Facebook
Here is a summary of our activities planned for December: December 3 December 4 December 5 December 6 December 7 December 8 December 10 December 11 December 12 December 13 December 13 December 14 December 16 December 18 December 19 December 19 December 20 December 20 December 21 December 22 December 24
Rojean Loucks Harp Music Ladies Breakfast Great Plains Theatre – “Not Another Christmas Letter” Health Care residents trip to Bayard’s Cafe Stitch & Pray Christmas Sale Carolyn Zimmerman Christmas Concert Ladies Christmas Lunch Club – Cracker Barrel – Junction City Wine & Cheese Birthday Party Health Care Christmas Party Mass in the chapel with Bishop Jerry Christmas Taste & Travel – Tucson’s Steakhouse Silvertone Singers Salina Symphony – “Christmas Festival” - Stiefel Annual Christmas Party IKC – Entertainment by Les Lankhorst Men’s Breakfast Memory Care Christmas Party Christmas Worship in the Chapel Christmas Light Tour for Independent Living Residents Christmas Light Tour for Assisted Living and Health Care Residents Christmas Light Tour for Memory Care Residents Christmas Concert with Dorothy Carmichael
Employee of the Month: Mitzi Sexton
Congratulations to Mitzi Sexton, Employee of the Month for November. Mitzi has worked for Salina Presbyterian Manor for 11 months as a home health RN. She has five adult children and a Yorkie: AJ, Amber, Lindsey, Bobby, Adam, and Sophia the Yorkie. In her spare time, Mitzi loves spending time with her grandchildren, reading, shopping and decorating her home.
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spent Thanksgiving with their family–three children and five grandchildren–where Glenda’s children insisted she be a spectator and not a cook. For Christmas, Steve and Glenda plan to visit Steve’s family in Indiana. Like us on Facebook
As for getting on a motorcycle again, it’s still a good possibility. “We haven’t been on a bike yet, but I guess our plans are to get on one again. It’s like anything else, you fall off a horse and want to get back on,” said Steve.
When asked what most people would not know about her, she said that she has a cosmetology license. Mitzi has six grandchildren and is very active with their sports, dance and other activities. She says she is very blessed. Mitzi’s goal is to continue to work parttime as long as she can at the Presbyterian Manor. Please congratulate Mitzi when you see her! Salina Presbyterian Manor
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Soup supper was a big success A big thank you to everyone who attended this fall’s Soup Supper! While the final total is not yet in, we know we raised around $30,000 to support the Good Samaritan Program. This program assists residents so that they may continue to live at the Presbyterian Manor if they run out of resources through no fault of their own.
The event would not have been possible without our amazing volunteers, generous sponsors and the donated items we received. Our hearts (and bellies) are full and we hope everyone had a good time.
Hospice of Salina volunteers and Marlene Wagoner with carry-out.
Sunny Valley 4-H Club volunteers enjoy a bowl of soup and piece of pie.
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coins. In Central America, a manger scene is the primary decoration. St. Francis of Assisi created the first living nativity in 1224 to help explain the birth of Jesus to his followers.
England. In 1848, the first American newspaper carried a picture of a Christmas tree and the custom spread to nearly every home within just a few years. When we moved to Lindsborg, we learned about the Swedish tradition of honoring St. Lucia on December 13. The celebration of St. Lucia Day began in Sweden in the mid-19th century and spread to Denmark and Finland. Light is the main theme of St. Lucia Day, as her name derived from Latin, meaning light. Poinsettias came to us from Mexico where children take turns hitting paper mache sculptures called piñatas that are filled with candy and
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Community Matters December 2018
Buddy and Elaine McClintock volunteer work the chance table.
Frank Ferson, resident, and Mary Harmon, volunteer, serve up soup.
downsized to a 975-foot condo, we have simplified Christmas decorating. However, my German heritage is still at the center. We no longer decorate a full-sized tree. Instead, I have about a dozen various colored trees from six inches to 18 According to reports by Captain John Smith, the first eggnog made in inches tall, and I put them on the America was consumed in his 1607 mantle and bookcases, and enjoy their beauty. Jamestown settlement. Nog comes from the word grog, which refers to The most important thing about any drink made with rum. Christmas is that it invites us to In Greece, gifts are usually reflect on the most important exchanged on January 1, St. Basil’s things in our life—our faith, our Day. family and our freedom. Our faith gives us hope, our family gives us I loved the Christmas season when love, and our freedom gives us the my children were growing up. We made tons of homemade decorations opportunity to practice our faith and to love each other—and of course and we had a large tree that was covered with them. As we have the Holy Family. Like us on Facebook