This month our staff and elders in all three of our homes received their first round of the COVID-19 vaccine. This has been a beacon of hope for us all as it helps keep our elders and team safe and healthy, and moves us one step closer to being able to reunite families with their elders.

Thank you for all the wonderful support from the families, you all have helped us through the past year and we can't thank you all enough.

This year, many members of our team were nominated for NM Health Care Association's 2020 Best of the Best Awards. These awards are a great honor as the healthcare community recognizes the hard work, love, and care that go into being a caregiver. We are so proud and excited to announce our winners and finalists!

We asked our staff at our three homes what they like most about working at Vista Living Care. Here's what they had to say!

Our elders celebrated National Sugar Cookie Day by baking and decorating sugar cookies for themselves and to share with our care partners and staff. They had so much fun working with their hands and their creativity shined as they put their own personal touch on their cookies. Check out their smiles in these photos!

It's super important to us to keep our elders both physically and mentally active and we are constantly trying to find new and fun ways for them to get moving. Our elders had a ton of fun with these chair exercises with their pool noodles! It is lightweight enough for them to move and lift with ease but still get their mind muscle connections working. We try to incorporate little exercises like these at least once a week to keep them sharp.

It's time to announce the July winner of the We Cook Honors award! With a total of 18 people voting…the results are in!  There is no doubt that Sierra makes a wicked pozole, Arbors a beloved Tuna Sandwich and Hermosa a mouthwatering Red Chile Chicken enchilada! 

With that said this was an unbelievably difficult month to judge. Even with 18 voters, between Arbors and Hermosa it was so close we had to look at the data three different ways to determine who could be named the winner for July. After much deliberation and review of several photo finish camera shots, team HERMOSA is the winner of July’s We Cook honors! This is the second win for Hermosa this year. Well done to ALL THREE HOMES!  You each created some unbelievable meals in which you should be proud to serve our elders.

Our elders are staying connected with their loved ones. Daily phone and video calls between our elders and their loved ones never fail to brighten up the day for everyone. We love to see our elders smiling at the sound of their loved one's voice, or joking with their family on their video calls.

Celebrating Father's Day! Our elders enjoyed a nice picnic outside with delicious BBQ ribs, potatoes, and a beautiful cake. We are happy that we can still celebrate and honor our fathers during the times of COVID, even if it means staying connected virtually.

Here at Vista Living Care not only do we care for our elders, but we also care for our amazing staff and team. They come to work faithfully and try their best to keep each other and our elders healthy, happy, and safe. We recognized that dedication and surprised each employee with a bag filled with grocery essentials! Thank you team for your hard work and dedication!

Our very own Ruth Dennis, our Senior Director of Social Services and Education here at Vista Living Care participated in an interview in #StayHomeInstead Chats, a recurring interview show hosted by Home Instead Senior Care (Santa Fe). 

In her interview, Ruth talks about how art and other creative forms can be an outlet for those living with dementia and their caregivers and references her recent video, 'Art Saves Lives'. Ruth does hosts many art therapy sessions with out elders which include pottery, mural painting, crafting, and much more. In the video referenced, 'Art Saves Lives', Ruth discusses how at her latest art therapy session with a group of elders, she was able to guide them through creating a mural and used this process as a way to help them develop new skills that they may not have thought possible before. She also notes that during this time of COVID-19, the elders can feel the loneliness and stress that comes from not being able to visit with their family members and so she wanted the elders to work on this mural together as a sense of community and connection. 

Ruth goes on to share a story about how art changed an elder's life which was mentioned in her recent book "Mindful Dementia Care". This particular elder had been a corporate lawyer for her whole life and had always been extremely articulate and sharp, but when she developed dementia she began to have difficulty speaking and expressing herself. Ruth and the other caregivers introduced her to drawing and sketching, and she soon fell in love with drawing as a means to express herself and to tell a story. She even started to tell people that she considered herself an artist. This powerful story illustrates how art can become part of a person's identity and really shape their lives.

Ruth's tips for caregivers at home who would like to bring art into their loved one's life are simple: she says all you need to do is simply get the supplies, like sketch books, a nice set of sketching pencils, water colors, etc. and make them accessible in your home. Give your loved one the opportunity to explore these art tools and create from them.

Ruth closes her interview by sharing her description of 'perfect moments' in time that sometimes just happen, but are priceless. She describes how at Sierra Vista a few years ago, they experienced one of these moments when on a cloudy afternoon it had just began to snow and the scent of fresh baked cookies was filling the home as the elders gathered around to draw and listen to music, and the moment just felt perfect.  She talks about how at the three homes, they really try to get these 'perfect moments' to happen organically as much as they can for their elders and their families. 

Our monthly We Cook! Honors Awards are back! Each month we have a food competition between our three homes and award a winner. The judges are asked to rate the meal on:

1. Nutritional Value
2. Appearance
3. Creativity & appeal
4. Do not consider whether they like the particular meal

 
This month we had to expand to 11 different voters!  Hermosa had nice presentation, good meal variety and some really great food.  The Arbors had great presentation and some great food as well.  Of the 11 voters… 5 of them selected Hermosa overall and 6 of them chose Arbors overall. So we are excited to announce that THE ARBORS has retaken the Cup for May!  Congratulations Team Arbors!!! 
 
We suspect June will be the tightest competition yet!!

Our very own Ruth Dennis, Senior Director of Social Services and Education, shares a touching video surrounding the quote "Art Saves Lives". Ruth talks about how this quote has shifted from just a saying, to reality especially in these times of pandemic. She has seen art heal, bring comfort, be an escape, and help elders communicate with each other and their loved ones. 

She stresses that in these times of uncertainty that are filled with fear, grief and loss, there is another story to tell. A story of positivity, hope, and resilience that is taking place all around us as well. Art, music, laughter, good food, and love are keeping our communities and our elders safe. Art, love, and hard work really do save lives!

What wonderful surprises Vista Hermosa has received from our supportive families! They sent a care package filled with homemade masks with filters, and a lovely basket with yummy treats. We appreciate all the love and support from our families!

Vista Living Care has been always been focused on helping the community, and they continue to help in any way that they can. With the recent pandemic, it has been extremely hard for elders within the community to go grocery shopping and get the essentials that they need. The team discussed ways that they could potentially help and deliver groceries to these elders, and the two Santa Fe homes (Hermosa & Sierra Vista) took the lead. The executive directors of the two homes got in touch with Dora Terrazas who runs the Española Senior Center and she shared a list of 20 homebound elders who could benefit from the groceries. The two homes then reached out to the food distributor Cisco and they were able to provide the food and supplies. 

The homes put the grocery bags together with the help of their resident elders. The elders were so proud and excited to know that they were involved in helping others in the community. The grocery bags included essentials like bread, rice, beans, oatmeal, macaroni, hotcereal, and much more. Once the groceries were prepared, they were delivered to the Española Senior Center where Terrazas then delivered them to the elders in the community. 

This experience was extremely rewarding and brought joy to the entire family at Vista! 

The April We Cook! Honors Award goes to Vista Hermosa! 

Vista Hermosa stole the trophy from the Arbors, ending their three month winning streak. Vista Hermosa stole the show this month with their variety, presentation, and flare. Not only did they make delicious food, they also prepared homemade drinks and smoothies!

On the menu were many tasty treats like:
Chilaquiles, eggs, garlic bread, smoothies, red spaghettini, corn beef, fresh fruit, watermelon agua fresca, hot fudge cake, and much more! 

Watch out for next month's winner, because it's going to be tough competition and it's anyone's game!

Sierra Vista introduced two new additions to their family! Meet Laverne and Shirley, two female rabbits. Our elders are already so happy to have them around! They bring so much joy and smiles to the home. Our elders have been volunteering to help us take care of them each day.

The Vista Living Care team in Santa Fe partnered with local restaurant, Pecos Trail Cafe, to donate meals to the homeless population of St. Elizabeth's Shelter. A delivery of 40 enchilada dinners were delivered to the shelter!

In an effort to support local business who are struggling during this time, Vista Living Care has decided to continue their quarterly volunteer service by not only donating meals to the community, but by also purchasing the meals from locally owned restaurants who may need the business in these hard times.

It is embedded deep in the roots of Vista Living Care to stay involved in the community and support others as much as possible. One of their favorite ways to show their support is through sharing meals and breaking bread!

We Laugh! We Cook! We Dance!
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Each month we award a facility for their exceptional food and nutritional focus. The Arbors' focus on presentation and creativity has shined two months in a row! The February and March We Cook Honors awards go to The Arbors!
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Breaking bread with friends, family, and colleagues is a critical part of the culture at Vista Living Care, deeply rooted from the family of our founders.

In March we celebrated three of our dedicated care partners who make a difference in our homes.
Liliana Jimenez was honored as employee of the month at Sierra Vista in Santa Fe for the month of March. We admire her hard work and dedication to our elders and her constant drive to become a better caregiver and role model. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends.
Dandy Mendez has been nominated for our staff spotlight by her team at Hermosa. Dandy's cheerful and outgoing personality brings happiness and joy to everyone around her. She spends her free time attending classes at Santa Fe Community College where she plans on going to nursing school. We are so proud of her!
Annie Garcia was honored as employee of the month at Sierra Vista for the month of February. She is a wonderful and gracious part of our team with a fun sense of humor and a great work ethic. We admire her patience, loyalty, and compassion for all our elders.

We appreciate these amazing ladies, each and every day!

Here at Vista Living Care, we like to keep our elders engaged and active so that they feel they are part of a family and living as they would be if they were at home. Oftentimes they offer to help us with our daily tasks like sweeping the floor, doing laundry, feeding the animals, and prepping the meals. We love to encourage them to participate in these tasks so they stay active and they thrive from responsibility. We are always touched by the care they take when helping us, and we appreciate it immensely. 

Another thing we make a priority are hands-on activities that stimulate their minds and creativity. The elders love making colorful puzzles, painting, gardening, and much more. We try to incorporate these fun group activities a few times a week so we can get everyone together and get their creative juices flowing. Keeping the mind active is especially important for our elders who have alzheimer's and dementia, and so we have a trained and experienced staff who support the elders and work with them daily.