The Fieldstone Feed

In this second installment of our 5-part series viewing life during COVID-19 through the eyes of people it affects in senior living, we turn to the perspective of one of our beloved caregivers, Mary Ahlberg.  Mary is the kind of person that when you meet her, you know she is special. As a former Montessori teacher for children 9 months to 4 years of age, she has the keen ability to intuitively hone in on people’s needs. This particular skillset has served her very well as a caregiver focused on life enrichment at our Issaquah Memory Care community. With a zeal for trying new things, Mary engages dynamically and openly with everyone she meets. 

When it comes to considering a move to a senior living setting, most families want to know that their loved ones are receiving exceptional care for their particular needs. Ensuring your peace of mind is a critical factor to a successful community-resident-family relationship. Teepa Snow, world-renowned educator and trainer of the Positive Approach to Care, asks “Can we experience the person as an amazing gem of great value, and give them the right setting and the right care so they can shine?”  Exceptional care embraces this approach and incorporates it into all levels of resident care, staff training and business practices.

This month Fieldstone is proud to highlight Sue Jones in our Employee Spotlight. Sue, also known as "Susie Newmie," is the Campus Ambassador of Fieldstone Memory Care Yakima and Fieldstone OrchardWest. Sue is originally from Seattle, Washington where she lived for 56 years. She enjoyed living there, but she did not enjoy the traffic and weather. Sue has seven incredible children, five girls, and two boys, with 14 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. All of her daughters are happily married and currently live within two hours of Yakima. Four of her oldest granddaughters have graduated from college; the fifth granddaughter just made Sue a great-grandmother, and the rest of the grandchildren are babies or in school. 

According to the Caregiver Alliance, the average family caregiver is a 49-year-old female who works a full-time job outside of the house and has elementary age children. Because her only focus is not being a caregiver, other demands on her time are bound to come up. Whether it is a business trip, vacation, a school recital or just needing some time for herself, help is needed. That is where respite care comes in.