With the new year upon us, I would like to wish you all a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year. It is such a blessing to be able to serve our residents and families. Although the last few years have been challenging due to Covid, there isn’t a day that goes by that I am not thankful to have the opportunity to serve our residents and families. The love and support that is given within this building gives us all strength to get through anything. I find it difficult to put into words how grateful I am to have been blessed with the presence of so many amazing people. Although 2022 included saying goodbye to many loved ones that will be dearly missed, it also brought new residents into our lives. On behalf of all the staff at North Willow, thank you for sharing your loved ones with us. It has been so much fun to serve, support and celebrate our residents, families and staff.

I am looking forward to what 2023 will bring to Traditions at North Willow as our census is now well over 90%. Keep your eyes open for some décor refreshing and other fun surprises. Our Activity Department is always providing exciting, new activities for the residents and families, so watch out for those monthly reminders. Someone even mentioned a Christmas in July party! We are working on getting Santa here for that!

I am so proud to lead such an amazing group of people. Please remember, my door is always open and I am always here working to provide the best quality of life to each and every resident that lives here.

Best wishes,

As the New Year begins and the chill in the air continues, let’s look back over the last couple of months to warm our hearts. We have had some spectacular get-togethers with residents and friends, which is what we love to do here at Traditions at North Willow. We were blessed to have our new Chef, Kyle and his amazing team create a delicious Thanksgiving and Holiday Dinner for all our residents to enjoy. It was such a beautiful sight to see the families interacting and new friendships being made.

Next, was our delightful Christmas Choir Concert where residents and friends again came together for connection, entertainment, and friendship. Santa was even here to spread a little Christmas magic. In between these big events, we had lots of other fun things such as door decorating, wreath making, ornament making, and lots of cookies and hot cocoa. Whew! So much in such a short amount of time and yet we are already looking forward to continuing the fun into 2023 with more family-filled events.

Remove those Winter Blues and come in and join us for one of our fun events happening soon! Living at Traditions at North Willow has so many perks, such as on-site Chef prepared meals from 7:00am-6:00pm daily, Happy Hour daily, maintenance-free living (so, no more shoveling snow!), activities, friendly residents, and staff and so much more. If you would like to learn more or take a tour, please click button below or feel free to reach out to me directly at (317)-876-2916. Happy New Year to all!

January finds us recuperating from the hustle and bustle of the holidays and settling in as winter weather approaches. We will be offering fun activities to keep us warm such as our new Get Hooked! Get Hooked is new program for North Willow for those who knit and/or crochet. We are working on creating several lap blankets to be donated to those in need. We are also excited to warm up to a glass of wine or a refreshing soda with one of the many Happy Hours scheduled for the month.

February will keep us busy with Valentine’s Day celebrations and crafts. We have lined up several exciting lunch and dinner outings and look forward to continuing our strong Wii Bowling teams. We have four teams competing in a league and new bowlers (Future Strikers) learning the game. North Willow holds TWO national championship titles from 2022.

March will find us eager for the first day of Spring and warmer weather ahead! We will plant seeds for transplanting in our raised beds. In addition to monthly birthday parties and live entertainment, North Willow will celebrate the “Swinging 60’s, Mardi Gras, Presidents Day with a special Abe Lincoln speaker, St. Patrick’s Day, and NCAA Tournament. Make sure to look us up on Facebook for pictures of all the fun!

Now that we are in the thick of winter and the holidays are wrapping up, be extra mindful of slippery conditions as you make your way around our community. Black Friday season is over, however black ice will be around for a few more months. Report any slippery areas so we can treat it with ice melt as this can change daily with melting and freezing cycles. Make sure exterior hoses are detached if used during a warm-up week and continue to dress in layers.

Our furry friends will want to play outside, just limit the amount of time that they are out. We also have our enclosed dog park where dogs are welcome to run and play while you stay warm inside.

When outside, it is important to keep your skin properly covered to avoid skin damage caused by low temperatures and high winds. Hats, gloves, and scarves play a vital role in protecting your skin from damage.

Keep your eyes and ears open to current events on the news and be prepared to “shelter-in-place” in the event roads become impassable. Having plenty of non-perishable foods and bottled water on hand is important; the same for current medications. For any plumbing on an outside wall, be sure to keep your sink cabinets open and faucets at a steady drip should temperatures dip below 0 to avoid freezing.

Stay safe and warm this winter season!

North Willow has jumped into 2023 with new programs. We have recently added FitMinds to our daily Memory Care schedule and three times a week for Assisted Living. We believe in exercising our muscles and minds and host weekly Trivia, Jeopardy and Team Scrabble games along with exercise five days a week. Memory Care residents take daily walks combined with reminiscing in addition to morning exercise. And don’t forget the music! Memory Care has daily sing-a-longs and Assisted living has Community Chorus which provides a cardiovascular workout while having fun.

Fit Minds can be life changing with increased mental stimulation. Cognitive stimulation is an evidence-based intervention that supports what research tells us about the brain’s ability to build resilience and create new neuron pathways. Fit Minds provides mental stimulation, in group and individualized programs for seniors and senior living communities.

75% of participants see a positive increase in their cognitive scores after only 8 weeks. Why is improving your cognition important?

Meet Sarah Graves of Traditions at North Willow, our September Employee of the Month! Sarah, who was born and raised in Michigan, has been with North Willow for 5 years as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA).

Sarah is an incredibly hard-working and dedicated single mother of 5 amazing children. Sarah also said that she has been “blessed with eight grandsons!” When Sarah isn’t working, she loves spending time with her family. We asked Sarah if she had any hidden talents and she mentioned that she could drive a stick shift.

“The very best part of my day is seeing my residents’ beautiful smiles.” When asked if there was any particular memory from the last 5 years that stands out in her mind, Sarah quickly responded, “Once during a resident’s transition, she requested to see me to express her love and gratitude for me taking care of her during her stay at North Willow. That meant everything to me, and I’ll never forget it.”

“I love that Management is willing to help where and when they are needed. North Willow is a family.”

Libby Mellinger, North Willow’s Executive Director, added, “Sarah is an amazing human being. Her heart is full of love for each of our residents. She always goes the extra mile to make sure they are happy, comfortable, and content. She is exactly what Traditions is all about…treating and respecting everyone as family. She is an absolute beautiful soul in every way!”

Dear Resident,

From all the staff at Traditions at North Willow, we would like to thank you for allowing us to be your home. We sincerely hope that you have had and continue to have an exceptional experience living here at the community.

As you are aware, we are always seeking to welcome new residents to our growing Traditions Family. If you know anyone who could benefit from our Independent Living, Assisted Living, or Memory Care options; come visit us inside the main building and fill out a referral card(s). We are excited to work with you and your friend, family member, or neighbor- at looking into options here at the Community. If you share the name of a friend who becomes a new resident, you will receive one month free of carefree living!

We look forward to growing with you and making Traditions home to you and your friends! (Please speak with Allison, Community Relation Director for additional details).

Warmly,

Visit us at www.TraditionsAtNorthWillow.com or contact Allison Roskam at AllisonRoskam@Traditionsmgmt.net for more information.