Editor: Silvana Saccomani

SILVERA TIMESSilvera’s Community Newsletter - Spring 2015

If you know someone who needs a Silvera home, please contact us at 403.276.5541 | silvera.ca

QUESTION PERIOD

#804, 7015 Macleod Trail SW, Calgary, AB T2H 2K6

(t) 403.276.5541 • (f) 403.276.9152 contact@silvera.ca • www.silvera.ca

Pamila Fonseka, Director of Fund Development, and Arlene Adamson, Silvera CEO, at the 17th Annual Bill Brooks Prostate Cancer Benefit. Tickets to the event were donated to Silvera for Seniors, making it possible to spread awareness about what Silvera does and advocate for seniors in Calgary.

Photo: Christina Ryan/The Calgary Herald. Reprinted with permission of The Calgary Herald.

Members of two more Calgary Rotary Clubs heard about Silvera’s work recently. Silvera’s CEO talked about how Silvera residents helped build Calgary and now it’s our time to give back to them.

MLA Gordon Dirks with Westview residents Cor Radder (left) and Bert Turner.

A new Community Resource Coordinator (CRC) has joined Silvera for Seniors.

Katie Packer joined Silvera in December, bringing with her eight years of experience in social service work.

Packer is looking forward to helping residents thrive. “Being able to make a change…the advocacy part and sharing with people the resources that they are

eligible for that could change their lives in a positive way,” she says.

Packer and Silvera’s other CRCs can offer you support and help you connect with resources, services and benefits available to seniors in Calgary.

Call 403.390.3988 to book an appointment with a CRC.

Silvera offers both Supportive and Independent Living housing. What is the difference?If you’ve made the decision to move into seniors’ housing, there are many options for you to consider.

Let’s look at the bigger picture of what is available in Alberta in terms of housing.

SPOTLIGHT ON KATIE PACKER

RAISING AWARENESS

Katie Packer, new Silvera CRC.

To that end, we put together a list of questions we have received from our communities in recent months and this first 2015 issue of Silvera Times is devoted to answering some of them.

One of our New Year’s Resolutions for 2015 is to improve the way we communicate with you, our residents. This is a promise we’re working hard behind the scenes to keep.

SILVERAINDEPENDENT LIVING Residents are able to look after their own daily needs.

SILVERASUPPORTIVE LIVING (SL1 AND SL2)

Residents require a very basic level of support that is non-medical in nature.

OTHER PROVIDERSLONG-TERM CARE Residents have complex health needs requiring a more hospital-like model.

SILVERA SERVICES

• Maintenance• Yard work• Snow removal• Access to Community Resource Coordination program• Access to some activities• Access to some Sandstone Tuck Shops and services

SILVERA SERVICES

• Meals (3 times daily, plus snacks)• Housekeeping (once / week)• Non-medical staff 24/7• Call bell alert system • Accounting for resident check program• Activities program• Access to Community Resource Coordination program• Access to Sandstone Pharmacy Services and Tuck Shop

OTHER PROVIDERS

Everything in SupportiveLiving SL3 and SL4 plus:

• On-site healthcare delivery by Licensed Practical Nurses, Health Care Aids and others as appropriate.

OTHER PROVIDERSSUPPORTIVE LIVING(SL3 AND SL4) Residents may require assistance with many daily tasks.

OTHER PROVIDERS

Everything in SupportiveLiving SL1 and SL2 plus:

• Special dietary requirement monitoring (SL4)• Housekeeping (more than once / week)• Personal laundry available• Routine checking of residents• Daily linen service (SL4)• Qualified and/or professional healthcare staff on site 24/7

AFTER SILVERAThere are other options once Silvera is

no longer able to meet your needs.

SILVERA HAS1,500 RESIDENTS IN OURTWO TYPES OF HOUSING.

One is called INDEPENDENT LIVING and the other is SUPPORTIVE LIVING.

These are terms the Provinceof Alberta has established.

AS A SENIOR’S HOUSING & CARE NEEDS INCREASE

Resident arranges Home Care and additional services needed.

The Special Needs Assistance for Seniors program is one of the many programs and services available to eligible seniors in Alberta.

The program can provide a lump-sum payment to assist with the cost of appliances and some health and personal supports.

To request an Alberta Special Needs booklet or help with submitting claims, contact your CRC at 403.390.3988 or at crc@silvera.ca, or speak to an employee at your community to have a referral put in.

ALBERTA SPECIAL NEEDS

A BOUQUET

DONATION BOOSTS SILVERA’S CRC PROGRAM

The Carrera Foundation stepped up to provide Silvera with a generous $180,000 donation over three years to support the Community Resource Coordinator program.

For Carrera, it’s all about breaking the cycle of poverty in Calgary. This includes paying attention to the lack of affordable housing in Calgary, especially after the devastating floods in 2013.

The Carrera Foundation is also concerned that many Calgarians are under the false impression that all seniors are affluent, with good pensions and sizable investment accounts.

Many in fact live below the poverty line, and more people need to understand that this is the case.

Silvera’s Community Resource Coordinator program was a great fit for the Foundation, as it helps low-income seniors access benefits and resources from a wide variety of government and non-profit organizations that are often difficult to navigate.

The Trustees of the Foundation know that Silvera seniors have been community builders in many ways, and helping to improve their quality of life is a commitment they are happy to make. Silvera employees are the

heart of our communities, and it means a lot when you take time to acknowledge them.

Dream Haven resident Elaine Husband sent us this note to thank Lisa, one of Silvera’s custodians:

“Thank you for solving our messy hallway problems. How lucky we are to have the hard-working Lisa as a regular at Dream Haven. I am so fortunate to be able to call Dream Haven home.”

When hard-working Calgarians find themselves on fixed incomes and sparse pensions in retirement, they are sometimes not top of mind for many Calgary philanthropists.

Continues on page 2

4 silvera.ca | If you know someone who needs a Silvera home, please contact us at 403.276.5541

Residents Josip Petrus and Neil Roth at Valleyview Community’s Mardi Gras party.

Shawnessy Community residents Pat Brown, Reva Harrison and Hildegard Abel in a Valentine’s Day photo booth.

Phyllis Culley, Francina Donkers, Betty Blacklaws and Marlene Mullan try out aphrodisiac foods at a Valentine’s Day-themed taste and teach at Westview Community.

2 silvera.ca | If you know someone who needs a Silvera home, please contact us at 403.276.5541 silvera.ca | 403.276.5541 3

SANDSTONE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES

WANTED: RESIDENT REPORTERS

SAVE THE DATE: SILVERA GAMES 2015

Across Silvera communities, our work to prepare for emergencies, including fires, continues in 2015.

In our Supportive Living communities, employees practice responding to fire monthly, so they are able to assist you in responding to a fire alarm.

In our Independent Living communities, we will continue with more fire safety talks, so you know how to prevent fires. More fire drills are also planned to practice how to leave the building in case of a fire.

Every fire alarm should be taken seriously, as time is crucial for your ability to stay safe.

If you hear a fire alarm and live in an Independent Living community:

• Remove yourself from danger by leaving thebuilding through the nearest fire exit.

• If you’re unable to leave the building, staywhere you are and call 9-1-1.

If you hear a fire alarm and live in a Supportive Living community:

• Stay where you are unless you are directed to move or you arein imminent danger.

• Don’t panic. If your door is hard to open, that is part of thebuilding’s safety features. Our employees are able to help you.

Austin Nixon residents Sylvia Stanley and Patricia Froslev and Property Manager Paul Kane with one of the new muster point signs outside Austin Nixon Manor Community. Look for the muster point signs coming to Silvera’s communities soon.

QUESTION PERIOD (CONTINUED) FIRE SAFETYSPRING CLEANING

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Why doesn’t Silvera offer 24-hour medical care? When the Province of Alberta created housing bodies like Silvera, it determined there were certain services each type of housing would offer. Silvera was not set up to provide 24-hour medical services. However, Silvera has partners, including Sandstone Pharmacies, that can help you with your medical needs. Your physician should also be able to help you set up your own Home Care needs at Silvera.

If Silvera can’t offer a service I need or would like, what do I do?Silvera’s responsibility is to create safe homes where residents can enjoy a quality of life that is affordable. Knowing that Silvera is a charitable not-for-profit organization with limited funds and resources, we look to you, as independent adults, to seek out the supports and resources you need for your specific needs. Silvera’s Community Resource Coordinators are also available to help identify opportunities and resources in the community that you can access directly. The Kerby Centre’s Seniors Directory of Services is another great resource and copies of the Directory are available at each community.

How does Silvera make its decisions?Silvera works closely with all three levels of government and has 19 different pieces of rules, laws and standards that it needs to follow in order to operate. Silvera also has a Board of Directors that reviews reports related to these rules and standards as part of its oversight, governance and strategic-planning work. Any time a decision is made, Silvera looks to what it can and cannot do within the context of those 19 documents. When it comes to big decisions that deal with finances and capital, the Board will have a big say.

Silvera Times is happy to receive your questions. Use the comment cards in your community or send an email to: contact@silvera.ca (attention: Silvera Times)

ASK US!

Silvera for Seniors’ partnership with Sandstone Pharmacies gives Silvera residents access to a number of services and programs, including:

If you would like more information, call Sandstone’s Sarcee Pharmacy at 403.217.5163.

• Compliance packaging ofprescriptions and free delivery ofprescriptions, over-the-countermedications and food items.

• On-site services of a clinicalpharmacist (by appointment).

• Specialty pharmaceuticalcompounding (at Sandstone’sGlenmore Landing Pharmacylocation).

• Alberta Aids to Daily Living (AADL)Vendor for incontinence products,mobility and bath aids, ostomyproducts, compression stockings,medical supplies and equipment.

• Certified support stocking fitter(by appointment).

• Health and Wellness Education Clinics(e.g. diabetes management, healthyfoot and leg clinics, cane and walkertune-up, blood pressure clinics, etc.).

Aspen Community resident Cleo Bilton turned 100 this December. Read Bilton’s story on Silvera’s blog at silvera.ca/media-centre/blog

Have you ever wanted to be a reporter? Well, now is your chance.

Silvera Times is looking for residents to become reporters.

As a community reporter for Silvera Times, you’ll tell us about what’s happening in your community.

To find out more, call 403.567.5324.

Get ready for a fun day of activities and friendly competition! On May 21 at Spruce Community, Silvera athletes will compete in rollerball, beanbag toss, shuffleboard and more at the annual Silvera Games.

Look for more information coming to your community soon.

If you have questions about fire safety, consult your resident handbook or speak to a manager at your community.

SILVERA’S GOT TALENT VALENTINE’S DAYSilvera for Seniors has a wide talent base among our seniors, and Bow Valley resident Michael Szabo even has a royal fan.

A seasoned opera singer, Szabo performed as a tenor in the choir of opera productions such as La Boéhme and Faust with the Southern Alberta Opera Association in the 1970s.

“It’s fun, I loved it,” Szabo says. “There was lots of studying. Sometimes there were hundreds of pages of music we had to memorize and there were orchestras with hundreds of people.”

Szabo never forgot watching the TV transmission of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation from the British embassy in his native Hungary, and years later he was inspired by his friend to send a CD with his music as a gift to the Queen. Szabo was pleased to receive a letter thanking him for his gift of music.

Now, Szabo enjoys singing karaoke to keep his craft alive.

Michael Szabo (centre) in the 1973 production of La Boéhme.

Kalsen Abdullai starts the annual cleaning of resident suites at Aspen Community. By doing a thorough cleaning of our Supportive Living suites once a year, Silvera is practising our commitment and obligations under Accommodation Standards to provide clean and safe homes.

MOVE ‘N MINGLE

Mountview Apartments Community celebrates the 10-year anniversary of the Move ‘n Mingle Fall Prevention Exercise Program, run in partnership with Alberta Health Services.

Westview Community resident Herman Koetsier celebrates Valentine’s Day at his community.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Scottish country dancers perform for Spruce Community residents at a Robbie Burns Day event.

Aspen Community residents celebrate Robbie Burns Day with the St. Andrew-Caledonian Society.