Meet Bridget Cowper, Guest Relations Specialist at Brownsburg Meadows Assisted Living, and resident Jesse Storms.

While Bridget and Jesse aren’t related by blood, they have a bond with each other that’s hard to describe as anything other than familial.

Shortly before he moved into Brownsburg Meadows, Jesse’s wife passed away. The move and the loss made for an exceptionally tough adjustment period. However, being familiar with loss herself, Bridget introduced herself and worked to occupy Jesse’s time. In no time, the two of them started to bond over her love of gardening and his stories of the past.

As their connection grew deeper, they came to understand the important roles they played in each other’s lives. Bridget’s parents had already passed, but she considered Jesse to be a parental figure to her all the same. In fact, Bridget asked Jesse to attend her son’s wedding as a stand-in father for her, and he happily accepted. The two of them continue to be inseparable, and they can always be found together enjoying activities and indulging in their love of sweets. Bridget feels very blessed to work at a place where she can enjoy each day with a wonderful person like Jesse, and Jesse is glad to call Brownsburg Meadows Assisted Living his home.

Meet Stephanie Booher, Business Office Manager at Coventry Meadows Assisted Living, and residents Ed and Nila Goshert.

The instant connection started with Stephanie sharing a birthday with Nila and calling each other “Birthday Buddies.” When Ed and Nila transitioned into the Assisted Living from the Garden Home, Ed stated that Stephanie straightened the couple out when they “didn’t know if we were pitching or hitting.”

Stephanie has been such a help to the couple that Nila has Stephanie’s name written down in her Prayer Portal to pray for her each night. Nila also loves to hear Stephanie sing. Nila says she moves her mouth while Stephanie sings to the residents to make other’s think it’s Nila singing. Nila is so touched by Stephanie’s voice that she asked Stephanie to sing at her funeral.

Meet Dee Parish, MDS Coordinator, and resident Martha Brock.

When asked for her words to live by, Brownsburg Meadows resident Martha Brock replied, “Always be yourself and trust in God.” Martha has a special relationship with the MDS Coordinator, Dee Parish. Dee and Martha happen to share the same birthday and they enjoy celebrating together. Dee surprised Martha on her birthday recently by cooking her favorite food: chicken livers.

Dee and Martha also write poems for each other. In addition, while Martha’s grandson was on the Vatican Walk of 5,000 miles, Dee made Martha a book that included information about the stops that Martha’s grandson would be visiting on his journey. Together, they tracked Martha’s grandson online as he completed his journey through Spain.

Dee and Martha share a strong bond that started with a shared birthday, and they are now best of friends.

Meet Sara Barnett, Memory Care Support Specialist and Debbie Kennedy Danville Regional Rehabilitation resident.

Sara first met Debbie when she was the Activities Director and Debbie’s Customer Care Companion. Their relationship bloomed over a plant. One day when Sara was visiting, she noticed Debbie and her roommate at the time had a plant that had died in a planter in their room. Sara could see that Debbie loved plants because she had a lot them in her room that her daughter brought her. So Sara took the planter and bought a new plant to surprise Debbie. The two of them just clicked after that. They both love plants, the outdoors and gardening.

Sara became the Memory Care Support Specialist in August of last year but that didn’t stop her relationship with Debbie to continue to grow. Debbie refers to Sara “as a daughter.” They spend time talking about their love for their children, gardening and birds. Sara keeps Debbie’s bird feeders full so they can watch the birds together. Debbie was very close to her Grandma and Sara was too. They both enjoy sharing memories of their Grandmas with each other. Sara says “Debbie is a bright light in my day.We look forward to our daily visits.”

Meet Edna Jacobs, Resident, and Sue Rose, Activities Director at Mount Vernon Nursing & Rehabilitation.

Both Edna and Sue grew up in Mount Vernon, Indiana. Sue attended school with Edna’s daughter, Gayle. Edna was a well-known in the community as Sue was growing up and Sue always admired Edna’s involvement in charities, church and the lives of her children and grandchildren throughout the years.

In July, 2016, Sue was able to meet Edna on a more personal level when she came to live with us at Mount Vernon Nursing & Rehabilitation. Edna and Sue bonded quickly and Sue became like a “bonus daughter” to Edna. They both have strong faith-based beliefs, a similar sense of humor and a love for coffee! When Edna gets down, Sue knows just what to do to get her back on the sunny side of life. They sit on the front porch and reminisce about growing up in this small town. Sue often plans activity outings with Edna, visiting her old neighborhood or watching the boats go by on the river. They have also been known to stop at the hardware store that Edna’s grandson owns to surprise her son-in-law and grandson. They truly have a one of a kind connection!

Meet Dawn Brooks, Director of Marketing and Admissions and Meadow Lakes resident, Raymond Glaze.

Whether it is bonding over their love for family or Raymond recounting his past, Dawn loves to visit him and listen to his stories. As his CARE Companion, she would visit him every day, say hi and try to make small talk. But it wasn’t until his grandson was visiting with some other family members that Dawn found that true connection. Raymond, too, comes from a large family. He is one of eight siblings and Dawn is one of six.

Dawn says, “His love for his wife, Barbara, and their 72 years of marriage is absolutely inspiring. He is often giving me tips to a successful marriage and a happy life in general!” Dawn said one of Raymond’s favorite pieces of advice is, “Love each other and the rest is easy.”

Raymond served in World War II, as did Dawn’s great grandpa. Raymond also retired from General Motors where he worked for 45 years as a machine repairman. Dawn’s grandpa also retired from GM. The two joke that Raymond and her grandpa would have been friends just like the two of them.

Raymond enjoys bowling and golfing and promises to teach Dawn a thing or two, as she is not great with a golf club or a bowling ball. Each day, Dawn looks forward to her conversation with Raymond; she learns something new each time they talk.

Meet Kim Hallenbeck, Customer Care Coordinator and Coventry Meadows’ resident, Betty Barbee.

Kim first met Betty while working as a Memory Care Support Specialist for a sister facility. Betty captured her heart instantly with her spunky personality, her sense of humor and her smile. The two just sort of clicked. Kim thinks it’s because they are both Pisces, love old blues and gospel music and enjoy poetry. Betty would write poems about the staff and Kim would type them up for her and have her read them aloud during activities. Betty’s kind and funny words about the staff would really make their day. Kim eventually took a different position with ASC but continued to visit stay connected with Betty.

After visiting this past Christmas, Betty remained on Kim’s mind. Then, in February of this year, Kim was asked to visit a referred patient and when she stepped into the gentleman’s room, the two locked eyes and smiled. It was Betty’s son! He had plans to admit to Kim’s community for rehabilitation. The two talked about Betty and shared stories of her. It was at this time that the family decided that Betty and her son should reside in the same community. Because of this decision, Betty and Kim have been reunited! Kim is so excited to be able to see Betty every day again. Each time Kim visits Betty, she says, “I am greeted with a big smile, a dance, a poem or a ‘Hey, Little Bit,’ which is the nickname she has given me. I am grateful for our friendship and the connection that brought her back into my life.”

Meet Don Reinking, Heritage Park resident, and Kimball Tetzloff, Environmental Supervisor.

Kimball was fixing something in Don’s room and noticed two pictures Don had on the wall. Don’s family had made two magazine covers with his service photo, making it look like he had appeared on Time and Life Magazine. Kimball started asking Don about the pictures and they discovered that they had both served in the Army.

Don served during World War II. He earned five Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts during five separate World War II campaigns including the D-Day invasion of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. Don spoke German since he was a child, so he was assigned to special duties during his service. Kimball served stateside and he and Don have shared many war time memories together. Don showed Kimball all of his memorabilia and medals from the war. Don had the unforgettable opportunity to fly on an Honor Flight, and he hopes that Kimball will also get to experience this. We thank Don and Kimball for their valuable contribution to our freedom. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

Meet Maryanne Harlan, Activities Director and Wayne Brown, Cypress Grove resident.

Maryanne hails from Tennessee and Wayne from Kentucky. Both are huge fans of Hank Williams Jr., who happens to live right in the middle of where they grew up. Each of them has tracked down Hank’s home in Paris, TN and both used to love visiting the night club he owned back in the day where they would listen to live country music.

Maryanne and Wayne share a love for all country music and frequently chat about their favorite country music singers. Wayne can answer any trivia question about old country music, so Maryanne loves to quiz him about it. Thanks to these interactions, Maryanne discovered that Wayne used to be in a band, specializing in singing Hank Williams Jr. songs. He was so good that he was asked to sing on the show, "You Can Be A Star." They have learned a lot about their favorite music and each other by becoming close companions.

Meet Kristy Denton, Executive Director, and Cypress Grove resident, Larry Hoefling.

Kristy and Larry first connected over their love for running. In fact, their first half marathon was the exact same one, years apart! Larry ran his first Kentucky Derby Half Marathon at the age of 36 in an hour and 51 minutes. Kristy did the same race but in 2008 in three hours and 42 minutes. Larry asks Kristy most mornings if she ran to work that day. Then he reminisces about running five to eight miles every morning at the firehouse where he was a firefighter for 27 years. He says he loved the "runner's high" that he got from it and that there is nothing quite like it.