OCTOBER RESIDENT NEWSLETTER

IN THIS ISSUE:

• Auburn Courtyard New Patio
• AHS Resident Events 
• Chaska Staff spotlight on Evita Melluma
• Waconia and Chaska Employees Celebrate "Assisted Living Week" 
• Waconia staff spotlight on Chad Carlson
• Auburn Meadows Resident, Arlene M., is a Halloween Hayride Entrepreneur
• Foundation Director Welcomes New Partner, New Role 
• The 11th Annual "Festival of Trees"
• October Resident Activities
• Pastor's Corner

Auburn Courtyard Receives New Patio

Residents in Auburn Courtyard have a new beautiful, outdoor patio to enjoy thanks to our amazing community, who year over year donate money to special projects to enhance the lives of our residents.

The Courtyard Patio project was funded by donations from The Festival of Trees, our annual Fundraising Gala in November (see more information about this year's Festival of Trees below).

With just a few more weeks left of comfortable, outdoor weather, the Courtyard residents will be able to enjoy the Fall colors and fresh air.

AHS Resident Events

BBQ's, crafts, bowling and enjoying the patio are all activities our residents participated in September.

Chaska Staff Spotlight on Evita Melluma 

Name: Evita Melluma

Job Title: RN Clinical Coordinator

Key Responsibilities: Plan, organize, develop and direct the overall

care of residents in accordance with current regulations. 

Family: My honey, Amos, and our 3 kids ~ Annika, 17 yo., Lukas,

11 yo., Matthew, 9 yo.

Favorite Past-time: Going for walks/hiking; spending time with family.

Favorite Travel Destination: Anywhere with water and mountains

When I retire I hope to: Travel with RV while exploring National Parks and other wonderful areas in the US.

I have been employed at Auburn Homes & Services for 14 years now. I was born and raised in Latvia, Eastern Europe. Came here to babysit in 2019. Original plan was - 6 month. That got extended. Went back to Latvia a year later, but got a student visa to come back here and study while continued to babysit. Went through nursing school, met my honey; long story short – I’m still here and the kiddo who I babysat is almost 24 now J. I knew I wanted to be a nurse since I can remember myself.                                 

"Assisted Living Week" 

AHS Celebrates it's Assisted Living and Memory Care Staff

Our assisted living and memory care employees, that serve our residents with integrity and compassion, were celebrated during "Assisted Living Week". 

During the days of September 11 through September 23rd, staff members were invited to play game show and carnival themed games to win great prizes like gift cards, speakers and cold, hard cash! Employees also enjoyed root beer floats, treats, a nacho bar and home baked cookies by the residents.

Thank you to all of our staff for their dedication and hard work!

Check out the pictures below and see our staff playing "The Price is Right", "Cash Cab", "Card Sharks" and grabbing real cash in the Cash Cube.

Chad and his family                                                              Playing Santa Claus                 

Waconia Staff Spotlight on Chad Carlson

Name: Chad Carlson

Job Title: Maintenance Director / Housekeeping / Transportation

Key Responsibilities: Maintain the facility so that the residents can be proud of their home. I also oversee the housekeeping department that keeps the building and resident rooms clean and does their laundry along with the transportation department that takes the residents on outings, to appointments and on town runs. 

Family: Married with 2 boys

Favorite Past-time: Boating and spending time with family and friends and watching football with my boys.

Favorite Travel Destination: Jamaica and Crosslake Lake MN.

When I retire I hope to: Live in the Crosslake area during the summer and be somewhere down south during the winter months.

I first learned of Auburn Homes & Services when my mother was rehabbing at Auburn Home in the summer of 2012 and saw the new building going up. I started working for Auburn in September 2012 just before Auburn Meadows opened. So I just celebrated my 10^th year here at Auburn. I enjoy getting to know the residents and chatting with them when I get the chance, working with a great team and the atmosphere which makes it a fun place to work.

Auburn Meadows Resident, Arlene M., is a Halloween Hayride Entrepreneur

Auburn Meadows resident Arlene Marshall, went from the hustle and bustle of the city to country living; becoming an orchard owner and Halloween hayride entrepreneur.

Arlene grew up in South Minneapolis, got married and had 3 children (2 girls and a boy). In 1970, Arlene and her husband decided they wanted a hobby farm and bought an old farm in Eden Prairie. The farm had lots of buildings and they converted the chicken coop into a party house. They had a little antique shop and even hosted a few wedding receptions. In the mid-80s, an apple orchard next door came for sale and they decided to purchase it. Eden Apple Orchard consisted of 142 acres of land, 12,000 trees with 8 different varieties of apples and pick your own strawberries and raspberries.

In 1991, Arlene and her husband turned their 40 acres of woods into “The Witch’s Woods,” with Halloween hayrides and spooky attractions (one of the first in the area). The hayride had a narrative; where witches lured people into the woods and turned them into different characters. There were 35 actors that worked in different areas including Dracula’s castle, the witches house (complete with cauldron), the witch buster (a Cadillac hearse painted orange), Phantom of the Opera, Frankenstein’s laboratory, Elvis in the graveyard, a spooky spaceship and a flying witch on a wire that flew down over the hayride. Arlene’s favorite part of The Witch’s Woods was Frankenstein’s laboratory which got a lot of attention with the fake blood she would make each week. Arlene has wonderful memories of being on the farm with her family, the orchard during apple picking season and Halloween nights in the Witch’s Woods.  

AHS Foundation Director, Bob Kuhlman ,

Takes on new Role along with Business Partner, Dale Fagre

Dale Fagre and Bob Kuhlman 

Auburn Homes & Services Foundation Director, Bob Kuhlman, announced that he is retiring from full-time development work after 10 years of service;  however, he will continue reporting to the Foundation Board and overseeing our annual fundraising and giving programs along with his new business partner, Dale Fagre. Bob, along with Dale, will continue to be very involved in the community and work with new and current donors to support our resident's life enrichment experiences at AHS as well as raising funds for the greatest needs that will deliver the greatest impact.

Dale Fagre recently retired after serving five years as Executive Director of the North Hennepin Community College Foundation leading them through challenging, but also prosperous times. Previously, he spent 13 years in the senior living and care space serving as CEO, Chief Development Officer and Director of Development & Marketing. Overall, Dale enjoyed a 45-year professional career with the majority spent in non-profit and faith-based organizations.

Please join us in welcoming this fantastic duo to AHS!

Festival of Trees 2022

Save the Date! November 17, 2022

The 2022 Festival of Trees is next month and we would love for you to join us!

This year's theme is "A Starry Night" and it's sure to be one as we come together at the gorgeous venue of Bavaria Downs in Chaska for an elegant evening of fellowship, fine dining and the spirit of giving.

Once again we will have both a live auction and silent auction with great items to bid on and, of course, beautifully decorated trees to enjoy.

Mark your calendars and join us on November 17th!

For more information and register to attend, please click here.

October? Where did September go?!? Nevertheless, October is here and we have been blessed with a beautiful Fall. This month will bring cooler days, pumpkins and spooky trick-or-treaters to our door steps. Fall offers so many indoor and outdoor activities to participate in that even though September went by in the blink of an eye, we welcome October with open arms!

Check out your resident's October's Activities Calendar to see which ones are available to them by clicking on the appropriate link below:



Auburn Home, Auburn Meadows, 

Auburn Manor, Auburn Courts

The Pastor's Corner with Reverend Doctor Jennifer Moran

“’The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release…to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’” Luke 4:18-19

Dear Auburn Family and Friends,

Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I am writing this letter with gratitude as well as sadness, as it is my final newsletter article. God has called me to conclude my service at Auburn as the Director of Chaplaincy. I will be taking a one-year leave of absence from active ministry, and will very much miss being a daily part of this wonderful community. The residents at Auburn have brought me great joy and taught me so much. It has been a privilege and a dream come true to live and work with you and your loved ones. You will remain in my prayers, as I thank God for every remembrance of you.

As I reflect on these past five years, I keep coming back to a story my mom recently told me about my grandparents and their years of ministry. They served the Moravian Church for many years in Ohio and both are laid to rest there. We were visiting their grave recently and I asked Mom why they chose this spot by the windy dirt road up into the Ohio hills.

Mom said she suspected it was because that road was the one Grandpa took to get to all the people he served. He would drive a school bus into the hills every Sunday morning to bring children to church. In the 1950s that meant he was picking up hundreds (!!!) of kids for Sunday School.

Grandpa also would frequently receive 5:00am phone calls from a member of the church who was in an on-going struggle with mental health. He never failed to throw on an overcoat and fly out the door, driving up that road to sit with the church member and tell her that God loves her. Grandpa took very seriously this call from Jesus in Luke 4 to “bring good news…to set free…and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Fast forward 70 years or so, and Grandma and I were talking about how hard it was for her not to be as active as she used to be. “All I can do,” she would say, “is pray.” We talked a lot about how prayer is just as active a ministry as driving into the hills of Ohio. It is different, but just as necessary.

Jesus does call us to “bring good news.” He also calls us to take time to rest. Jesus himself rested all the time. He explicitly exhorts us to rest in Matthew 11:28-30: “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” It is good and right to turn to Jesus when we are weary. Resting and praying is as much a means of bringing good news and proclaiming the year of the Lord’s favor as driving a bus into the hills to bring hundreds of children to Sunday School. They look and feel different, but they are both faithful ways of answering Jesus’ call.

We all experience different seasons throughout our lives. You may be in a time of great activity, you may be in a time of rest, or you may be something in between. In all seasons, your faithfulness and the faithfulness of your loved ones makes a difference for God’s kingdom. Be encouraged and strengthened!

May the Lord bless you and keep you, may the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you, may the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the Spirit of Christ’s Love,

Pastor Jenny

The next Resident Newsletter will be

emailed on November 1,2022.

 If you have a loved one with a unique talent,

history or great story, let us know!

Email myelich@auburnhomes.org

or call Michelle Yelich at (952)361-5076

Have a great Month!

Auburn Homes & Services

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