Welcome New Beginnings: January Events

It is hard to believe how time has flown and we now, once again, welcome in a new year—2014! This January, as part of our Alive in All Seasons program we will be celebrating the magic of music. Music has long been recognized as a healing tool in the writings of Pythagoras, Aristotle and Plato. A quote by Plato helps us understand the enormity and power of music; “music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything”.

Music is indeed part of our souls, our imaginations, our lives. It is no wonder that people love music; it inspires us, sparks our minds, taps into our creativity, heals our souls, motivates us to dance, to laugh, to cry. This January we will celebrate music in all its glory!

We will be hosting several open events at our community this month. Please join us for a special performance by Music with a Mission at 3:00 pm on January 17^th, our Veteran’s Aid & Attendance Benefit workshop at 10:30 am on January 18^th, our Back to the 50’s Again Sock Hop dinner show at 5:00 pm on January 23^rd, and our Chinese New Year Celebration at 1:30 pm on January 31^st. We encourage you to review our calendar for other offerings and attend any or all of the activities that are of interest to you.

It’s going to be another great month here at Juniper Village at Forest Hills. Let us join together in music and “Welcome New Beginnings”. 

A Musical Christmas

It was a musical Christmas this year at Juniper Village at Forest
Hills. We were treated with a special Christmas performance by the first
and second graders from the Trinity Christian School in Forest Hills and a
beautiful musical performance by members of the Good Shepherd Handbell
Choir - Youth Group. It was such a pleasure to have so many talented
community members sharing their joyful music with us!

Christmas Is A Busy Time At Juniper Village

Christmas just wouldn't be complete without all of the decorating,
baking,and holiday traditions...and Juniper Village at Forest HIlls is
no exception. Christmas comes early around here with vendors putting
up their Christmas Trees for the Celebration of Trees Holiday Display
the day after Thanksgiving. Throughout the month of December the
residents were busy with baking holiday cookies for the local homeless
shelter, making ornaments in craft class for placing on their
Christmas tree, enjoying musical performances by members of the local
Girl Scout Troop, and students from the 1st & 2nd Grade Class at
Trininty Christian School, and making Gingerbread Houses. As you can
see...Santa's Elves were very busy this month. Happy Holidays from
your family and friends at Juniper Village at Forest Hills!

Visit Juniper Village at Forest Hills' 5th Annual Celebration of Trees Holiday Display

Tour over 30 Christmas Trees decorated in a variety of holiday themes
by local businesses with Juniper Village at Forest Hills 5th Annual
Celebration of Trees Holiday Display. The display is free and open to
the public daily from 9am till 8pm and runs from December 4 to January
4th. Stop by and vote for your favorite tree!

Promise Hospice Provides Gifts

Christmas is a time for gift giving, and last week the staff at
Promise Hospice presented the residents at Juniper Village at Forest
Hill's Wellspring Memory Care Unit with the perfect gift; handmade
clothing protectors. Throughout the year volunteers from Promise
Hospice work on gifts to donate to ther patients and residents in
local personal care and skilled nursing care communities from the
Pittsburgh area. This year, Promise provided our residents with a
variety of colorful clothing protectors. A very useful and thoughtful
gift. Thank you Promise Hospice!

Pictured is Deborah Shaffer from Promise Hospice and Juniper Village
resident, Martha C.

Celebrate Little Things: December Events

"The more you praise and celebrate your life,

the more there is in life to celebrate" ~Oprah Winfrey

 

This December, as part of our Alive In All Seasons program

we will be focusing on traditions. Traditions play such an

important role within our lives by providing a shared identity

and sense of belonging, comfort and joy. Traditions allow us

to tap into our deep and rich cultural, family and religious

heritage. Our Alive In All Seasons tagline this month of

"Celebrate Little Things" reminds us that these traditions,

many of which are small, little things, can serve as the glue

that binds us together and makes our lives great.

 

Celebrations will be abundant this holiday season here at

Juniper Village as we share memories from our residents,

families and our associates about traditions, beliefs and

customs that have shaped our lives. We will learn about how

other cultures celebrate winter holidays, complete with the

singing of carols and the sampling of some delicious ethnic

treats. We will gain respect and insight into each other as

we reflect upon our unique and cherished traditions, and;

maybe create some new ones along the way!

 

You are cordially invited to join us for our 5th Annual

Celebrations of Trees Holiday Display. Stop by anytime from

December 4 through January 4 to view over 30 Christmas

trees decorated by local businesses and organizations. And,

join us on Thursday, December 19 from 6pm-8pm for our

Family Holiday Cocktail Party. Enjoy a variety of hors d'oeuvres

and holiday musical entertainment by the Good Shepherd

Handbell Choir at 7pm.

 

So, this holiday season please stop by

and celebrate with us as we

"Celebrate Little Things"

Cupcakes and Fruit Carvings

Our Dietary Department was shining on Thursday, November 20 with
Cupcakes and Fruit Carvings!

In an attempt to select the perfect gourmet cupcake gift for our
professionals this holiday season, Juniper Village's Dietary Manager,
KenMiller and the Dietary Staff brought the management team together
for a blind tast testing. The Dietary Department created 6 different
gourmet cupcakes from which to choose. After rating the delicacies on
taste and overall appearance, the winners selected by majority vote
were Chocolate Mint and Dream Sickle!! What a delicious holiday
treat!

For the past few years our residents and guests have admired the fruit
carvings our Dietary Manager, Ken Miller displayed at our special
events. Many of the residents and their families had been asking how
was it done and was it something they could do? So this year as part
of our College of Lifelong Learning courses we scheduled Chef Ken to
teach a class on fruit carvings. Over a span of 2 evenings visitors
learned how to create beautiful flowers and carve intricate designs.
Along with the class, Chef Ken also demonstrated the art of Fruit
Carving for the residents. So, the next time you join us for a
special event, be sure to take a look at his beautiful fruit and
vegetable carvings on display.

Veteran's Day 2013

Veteran's Day originated as Armistice Day on November 11, 1919,
the first anniversary of World War I. In 1926 congress passed a
resolution for an annual observance to occur on November 11 and since
then, our country and many others around the world, have been
remembering our fallen soldiers and thanking all of those who have
served. Here at Juniper Village, Veterans from all branches of
service received recognition and thanks from their fellow residents,
Juniper Village employees, and staff members of both Promise Hospice
and VITAS Hospice. It was a poignant celebration, in which our Veterans
shared their stories and reflected on their sacrifices.

Forest Hills Halloween Party

Magic Was In The Air At Juniper Village

Magic was in the air this year for Juniper Village at Forest Hills'
annual Spooktacular Halloween Party. Mermaids, monsters, fairies,
and crayons, along with all of the residents and their guests, enjoyed
a delicious lunch of Mummy Dogs, Dracula's Liver, French Fried Potato
Fingers, Blood Oranges and Graveyard Moose. After lunch, the crowd was
mesmerized by "The Magic of Politos" quick hands and how did he do
that magic show. The afternoon was topped off with a costume contest
where the winners received a cash prize for the best costumes! As you
can see, it was a spooktacular Halloween bash!!

Cherish the Journey and Keep the Spirit of Family: November Events

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and, it is indeed a perfect time to celebrate with loved ones; so it is not surprising that our Alive in All Seasons focus for the month of November is families: Cherish the Journey! Matsuo Basho wrote "every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home". These beautiful words remind us of the importance of cherishing this journey of life through celebrations that bind us together; family and friends, nurturing our spirits and fulfilling us in deep and meaningful ways.

This month as we celebrate our Alive in All Seasons theme of family: "Cherish the Journey", we will be hosting many wonderful activities and events with our focus on family! We will be working with residents, families, associates and friends to create family trees and start autobiographical journals. We will enjoy rich and meaningful activities utilizing the traditions, customs and skills of many of our family members, friends and all the significant people that have impacted our lives. We will reminisce about favorite family recipes, learn about families in different cultures, and join together in giving thanks. These activities will foster the development of deep connections with one another, thus, allowing us to cherish and celebrate each others' lives. We will enjoy the opportunity to create and relish more memories of delightful moments along this beautiful journey of life together!

We invite you to join us as we celebrate the beautiful gift of family, sharing some of your time treasured stories, traditions, customs and wisdom gathered with your loved ones on your journey together! We are filled with gratitude as we give thanks for yet another year bringing joy to the lives of all those on our path! We wish all of our families and friends a beautiful Thanksgiving holiday overflowing with rich abundance! All this month we will also be hosting several highlighted family and community events that include: our Fall Food Drive benefiting those less fortunate through the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank all month, our Veteran's Aid & Attendance Benefit Presentation that will explain how the program can help you or a loved one pay for your long term care on November 11 at 6:30 pm, our monthly Caregiver Support Group Meeting where we will discuss how everyone in the family needs to help when it comes to caring for a loved one on November 13 at 1:30 pm, National Memory Screening Day featuring free confidential memory skills tests as well as memory care education, and our Thanksgiving Day Celebration featuring a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings for a $10 donation to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank on November 28 from 11 am until noon plus desserts and music at 3 pm. We encourage you to review our calendar and join us for any or all of our events as we celebrate families and Cherish the Journey!

The General Store Is Open!

A crowd of residents gathered last Tuesday evening for the Grand Opening of Juniper Village at Forest Hills General Store! Residents quickly lined up to get a glimpse of the store's offerings and to make their first purchase. The store carries a variety of personal toiletry items, snacks, games and reading materials as requested by the residents. Items can only be purchased with Juniper Dollars that were given to each of the residents prior to the store opening, and can be earned by attending a variety of highlighted Connections activities throughout the week. The store is currently open Tuesdays from 5pm to 6:30pm and Friday's from 3pm to 4pm. Everyone is invited to stop by and visit our new General Store!

 

 

Everyone Was A Winner With Juniper Village at Forest Hills Senior Olympics

Juniper Village at Forest Hills first annual Olympic Games got off to a great start with a resident parade and the official lighting of the Olympic torch. The competition quickly heated up with our Wheelchair Obstacle Course, Flyswatter Volleyball, Bocce and Ring Toss competitions. Residents fiercly competed in both individual and team sports all week long. The Olympic Games concluded on Friday with an official closing ceremony that included ribbons, plaques and trophies. Over 14 residents received recognition for their Olympic efforts, however unlike the real Olympics, everyone was a winner at Juniper Village at Forest Hills's Senior Olympic Games!

 

 

 

 

 

Bring A Friend to Lunch Day!

 

The weather was warm but the entertainment was even hotter as Juniper
Village at Forest Hills celebrated their 4th Annual Bring A Friend To
Lunch Day. Bring A Friend To Lunch Day is a special day where our
residents invite their friends to join us for an afternoon of fun!
Everyone enjoyed a delicious lunch while being entertained by the
Sassy Seniors. A local Pittsburgh area troupe that provides a Lawrence
Welk type program complete with singing, dancing and lots of comedy.
As you can see, everyone had a great time!

Juniper Village Residents Take To The High Seas!

Pittsburgh is a beautiful city and what better way to enjoy it than with a sight seeing trip down the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers aboard the Gateway Clipper. Juniper Village residents attending the outing last week enjoyed reminescing about the city landmarks that used to be there, seeing the new football and baseball stadiums, and all of the many changes that have occurred along our shoreline over the past few years. No wonder they say Pittsburgh is one of the most livable cities in America!