Greetings from the RP Home, still vibrant after 115 years of blessings from the Lord! We will be sharing news from our Pittsburgh campus once a year in the Witness. We publish two other issues of Good Tidings per year, so, if you are not on our mailing list to receive these by regular mail or email, please contact us at lmeneely@rphome.org and we will be sure to add you to the list. In addition, we will be posting Good Tidings on our web site at http://www.rphome.org, so there are multiple ways to keep apprised of the good work being done on behalf of our beloved residents.

Volunteers Needed

It’s evident in all nursing home and personal care home environments that volunteers are needed, especially for one-on-one visits. Residents often get lonely and will blossom from interaction with visitors. Those who have no family or friend visitors, or room-bound individuals who have no outside contact, especially benefit from an individual visit with a volunteer.

At the RP Home, in addition to helping with group activities, volunteers read to individual residents, talk with them, have a cup of tea together, listen to a ballgame on the radio or simply hold hands and sit quietly for a while. Some of our seniors enjoy taking a walk, being escorted in his/her wheelchair, or perhaps playing a board game to pass the time. We find that many of our loved ones simply want to talk about their lives—their hopes, dreams, joys and sorrows, and are happy having someone who will listen and share in conversation.

Becoming an RP Home volunteer is all it takes to contribute significantly to someone’s life, and enhance your own. It is a wonderful feeling to know you have brightened someone’s life. Volunteering can be easily arranged. A volunteer usually has the freedom to set his/her own schedule as long as it is in accordance with the RP Home visiting hours and policies. If you live in the Pittsburgh area, and would like information on how you can make a difference in someone’s life by becoming an RP Home volunteer, please contact me by phone at (412) 321-4139 or by email at spagone@rphome.org.

And remember, your talents are needed in senior settings across the land; so consider volunteering and sharing your gift of companionship wherever you may reside!

—Sandy Pagone, volunteer coordinator

Garden of Faith Update

We are happy to announce that, as of this early September writing, we are nearing completion of construction of our long-awaited Garden of Faith in our interior courtyard. Workers have been busy since early summer. It has been exciting for many of the residents to watch the progress unfold through the second- and third-floor windows and eagerly await feeling autumn sunshine on their faces when the new deck opens to all. Equally as excited are the therapists and short-term rehab residents who have literally been on the front lines of construction, with workers using our rehab unit door as the main access point to the garden. They certainly have had a bird’s eye view of the construction process and have, no doubt, “bonded” with all the technicians who have passed through their space daily! We look forward to being able to use the garden for outdoor therapy on a daily basis in good weather.

Summer Olympics 2012

Not content to sit and watch international athletes compete “on the telly,” residents and children from the Robin’s Nest competed in our own version of the Olympics right here on campus. Led by Mindy Cable and her creative staff, all members of our community had the opportunity to try their hand at games such as Wacky Wimbledon, London Britches, Buckingham Slam, Oxford Shoo and Big Ben Bing Bong (this included a photo of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback “Big Ben” Roethlisberger as the clock face!). Presiding over both the opening and closing ceremonies was her majesty, the queen, director of nursing Linda Long! Our dining service provided wedding cake with the prince and duchess, tea and crumpets with the queen and a full British inspired lunch of bangers and mash!

Walker Country Fair

God graced us with pristine weather for our annual Walker Country Fair on Sept. 17. With a warm summer breeze and not a cloud in the sky, young and old delighted in the petting zoo (the spitting llama was a big hit), fabulous fair food, arts and crafts, face painting, climbing aboard a real fire truck, and Western games, with the music of the Pittsburgh All Star Banjo Duo as wonderful background. It was a pleasure watching the sunny faces of everyone throughout the afternoon as we all “played” together in fun and fellowship!