What do you Aspire to do, be, live, accomplish? It is a thought-provoking question and at the heart of the culture shift happening at Western Reserve Masonic Community. Aspired Living encompasses the Whole Person Wellness of our residents; the social, physical, intellectual, and spiritual aspects of a person’s life. It also looks to our vision that a true community of successful aging is one where older adults are living at their highest level of health, well-being and engagement.
To “Kick-Off” the philosophy of Aspired Living for our residents, a week-long series of activities and engagement opportunities were planned each day. The theme of the first day of kick-off week was Social Day on January 21 and stemmed from the residents’ desire to volunteer and pay it forward. We partnered with the Medina VFW Post 5137 to prepare care packages for 129 soldiers of the 837th National Guard out of Lorain, the National Guard Units in Akron and the Mansfield Lahm Air National Guard Base’s Family Support Organization.
Over 60 residents volunteered to pack a variety of candy, snacks, granola bars plus an assortment of personal care items. Residents also took the time to write a personal note included in each care package. Items for the packages were supplied by a donation from Bil Jac Corporation and a grant from the BeActive BeFriend project, an initiative founded by Kathy Goebel during her time as Lady of 2010-2011 Grand Master Brad Goebel. BeActive BeFriend is an on-going project that raises funds to support opportunities for residents to create and participate in activities that spark their interests and improve their living environment.
Our Social Day activity was an example of “paying it forward”, as many of our residents either served or had family members who served in the armed forces. They understand how important it is to support our troops in any way possible and how much that support is appreciated by our soldiers.
