1 June

Wish List. Recent DVD’s Needed At The Mansion: Movie Nights! You Started It

by Jon Katz
DVD’s Needed At The Mansion

A few months ago, members of the Army of Good started shipping some DVD’s to the Mansion. They have become a huge and welcome hit there, the residents gather in the Activity Room to watch them and talk about them four or five times a week.

Julie Harlin, the Activity Director, is in shock at the way in which the Army Of Good responds for requests, she is shy about asking and can hardly believe the responses.Her office is filled with boxes and baskets from the Army Of Good.

But I am good at squeezing these things out of her. Today, she put up a very cheap and easy new Mansion Wish List – three movies, Peter Rabbit, the Greatest Showman and Wonder. It will be gone by the time I go to get a bottle of water.

I asked Julie about DVD’s and she said the new interest in movies is exciting, and good for the residents, who gather at night and in the late afternoon to watch them, talk about them and laugh with them. Some of the residents are new to movies, they spent their lives working on farms and  hard jobs, they never had the time or money for movies.

Your generosity is spreading a great love of movies, I hear the residents talking about them all the time. This didn’t happen before.  Suddenly, we are in need of more DVD’s.

They have the time now. Julie said she would welcome any donations of movies as long as they are fairly recent, within the last five or six years. We are making movie buffs out of people who really need and value this stimulation.

I’m going to propose a regular Movie Night At The Mansion, we’ll find the treats, maybe even pick the best movie of the month. Maybe we can move this event to the great room and get a projector, we’ll see. Popcorn!

If you have any modern movies on DVD, please feel free to send them to Movies, c/o Julie Harlin, Activities Director, The Mansion, 11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

In the meantime, you can check out the new Mansion Wish List right here. See what you have started.

And thanks for doing so much for the residents of the Mansion a Medicaid Assisted Care Facility. They begin work on the garden next week thanks to your gifts. I’ll take photos. (For those of you who wish to participate, it’s time to think about the Fourth of July Party at the Mansion. Gift bags and  decorations would be appreciated.

1 June

Cushions For The Mansion Porch Rockers

by Jon Katz
Cushions For The Mansion Porch Rockers

Some of the Mansion residents report that the rocking chairs on the porch – they are out there a lot in the warm weather – were too hard. I ordered four test cushions and put them on the chairs yesterday.

Minnie was the first resident to use them, and gave them a thumbs up, she  said he was so helpful to her back to have them. Minnie is dairy farmer, her husband is alive but won’t move into an assisted care facility, he is sticking it out on their farm.

It’s so often the small things that matter the most.

The early reports are strong, so I’m getting for more. They cost  $32.39 apiece. Thanks for supporting my work at the Mansion. We are keeping good alive.

1 June

The Refugee Soccer Team Gets Some Recognition

by Jon Katz
The Soccer Team Gets Some Recognition

The Albany Warriors got some much deserved recognition this morning when the Albany Times Union sent a reporter to wrote about the team, which is almost undefeated, and which has become a family unto itself for these refugee children, who have suffered enough.

In the piece, Ali talks about how the players have evolved since joining the team. Their grades are good, they are learning how to interact with one another, their spirits are high and their sense of community is strong. The piece explains why the team is so important to me, and I hope, to you. Check it out.

It is sweet to see some of Ali’s hard work being recognized.

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