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SCOTTSDALE PROGRESS | WWW.SCOTTSDALE.ORG | OCTOBER 24, 2021
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Great Wolf Lodge howls over Halloween festivities BY ALEX GALLAGHER Progress Staff Writer
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ctober is traditionally a busy month for the Great Wolf Lodge in Scottsdale – and one of its most festive. Every year, the resort decks out its indoor attractions and lobby with decorations and embraces the spirit of Halloween with its dubbed “Howl-o-ween” activities. “October for us is always a great month because guests have gotten through the summer and the start of school,” said Great Wolf Lodge Scottsdale General Manager Brian Johnson. “The weather is nicer now and we have things like fall break to make October one of our busiest months.” After having to scale down last year’s festivities because of the pandemic, Great Wolf Lodge has upscaled its celebrations this year. “We’ve done things differently than last year,” said Johnson. “Last year we had a grandiose spider as our decoration but this year we looked at the feed-
Great Wolf Lodge General Manager Brian Johnson has planned a festive Halloween atmosphere for guests. (David Minton/Progress Staff Photographer)
back from our guests to carry the theme throughout the resort and we have a gi-
ant bat as our decoration.” Another way the resort has been able to
expand on the previous year’s festivities has been by returning to full capacity. “Last October, we were probably going to a maximum of 65 percent,” said Johnson. “Now that we’ve been able to open up to 100 percent of room availability to our guests, this October has been much better than the last one from that standpoint.” This year’s festivities include “Grab ‘N Go Howl-O-Ween” arts and crafts, a “Monster Bash” dance party, “UnBOOlieveable” story time, a trick or treat trail and several other mini events. “‘Howl O’ Ween’ is a branded effort and what’s unique about this is that it’s done for all 31 days of the month,” Johnson said. This time of the year is exciting for Johnson and the members of his pack as the festivities give guests a new way to experience the Great Wolf Lodge. “This gives them something different and new activities to try out,” he said. “It’s just a different experience from the nor-
see WOLF page 23
Scottsdale caregivers now train others in senior care BY MALLORY GLEICH Progress Contributor
T
iffany Phelan has been in the senior care industry for 19 years. After seeing how challenging it was for her grandparents to deal with her grandfather’s battle with Huntington’s Disease – her grandmother was his primary caregiver – she realized she could help and was ready to make a difference in people’s lives. Tiffany’s husband, Shaun, entered the senior care industry 15 years ago after watching his mother care for his grandfather for the last couple of years of his life. Shaun lived in Arizona while his fam-
ily lived in Buffalo, N.Y., where he grew up before moving to Phoenix 27 years ago. “When I saw the opportunity to engage with seniors here in Arizona and increase their quality of life, I left my career in commercial printing to do something meaningful for the community,” Shaun said. Enter Senior Helpers Scottsdale caregiving faTiffany and Shaun Phelan each have been involved in cility, which the Phelans senior care for years and now they’ve opened a center have owned and operated to train other caregivers. (Special to the Progress) for 15 years.
Senior Helpers is a national organization that offers in-home senior services to “help the senior population age gracefully and with dignity in the comfort of their own homes.” Shaun and Tiffany met through Senior Helpers – they both owned separate franchises (Tiffany’s in California); after they met and dated, Tiffany moved to Arizona and they were married. Their connection to the senior living facility also helped them to open their latest venture, the Senior Helpers Center of Excellence in Caregiving training center. This facility is open to professional
see CAREGIVER page 23
