Valentines for seniors
Residents of Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center love getting gifts from the community, especially when they come from children, according to activities director Victoria Thompson.
The residents will soon be getting valentines from McQuistion Elementary School, but they will be coming from “100-year-old” students, because they made them on the 100th day of school Monday.
“It’s the 100th day of school so some of the kids dressed up as 100-year-olds; they wore big glasses, fancy shoes, one girl has her grandmother’s walker,” said Nancy Jo Braun, first grade teacher at McQuistion. “They never got to have a room party since they were in kindergarten last year so this is one of the first room parties they get to have.”
Braun said the first-grade class hasn’t gotten to have any classroom parties, since most schools didn’t have them to mitigate COVID-19. In addition to the crafting activity Monday, the class is having a Valentine’s Day party at the end of the week where the students will exchange valentines with one another.
But Monday’s Valentine’s Day class crafting activity wasn’t just for fun. Braun said the students learned to write to express themselves as part of class, which comes through in the messages they were sending to Sunnyview residents.
The activity combined writing development with crafting, which included coloring hearts, cutting them out and gluing them to a paper to make a collage. The students also keep their written papers so they can track their progress over the school year; which Braun said they also enjoy.
“It’s writing to a topic; sometimes it’s hard for them to find a topic to write about,” Braun said. “Whenever they get to practice they get excited.”
Thompson said the center’s residents have gotten a lot more gifts from the community since COVID-19 regulations have been in place. When they get individual presents, like the incoming valentines, the sentiment is even greater, Thompson said.
“Their faces light up,” Thompson said. “Even though they don't know that person it's just knowing that someone is thinking of them.”
Thompson said she expects that the valentines will be appreciated by the Sunnyview residents because they are coming from children.
“Our people love kids,” Thompson said. “Any time they get something from kids it really brightens up their day.”
