Tag Archive for: Events

What frustrates executors of estates the most? That they can’t find the documents and information essential to wrapping up the affairs of someone who has passed away, financial planning executive Karen Drancik told Homeland residents and family members recently.

Karen Drancik offers a dynamic presentation alerting Homeland residents and their families of the need for documenting all the information necessary in case of a loved one’s death or incapacitation.

“We love our family, and we don’t want our passing or incapacity to become any more traumatic to our family members by leaving a mess behind,” said Drancik during a recent presentation entitled “Family Love Letter: A Gift of Time, Love and Clarity.

Drancik, vice president and senior consultant of Neuberger Berman Advisor Institute, walked attendees through a detailed planning guide called “Family Love Letter.”

Everyone starts generating documents from the day we’re born, Drancik said. Families must share that information before death or incapacitation to help survivors “navigate the paper trail.”

“We love our family, and we don’t want our passing or incapacity to become any more traumatic to our family members by leaving a mess behind,” she said.

As she reviewed the 38-page workbook’s five sections, Drancik shared tips – many drawn from her own professional and family experience – on estate planning:

• At a “bare minimum,” have a will. Without one, the state of Pennsylvania decides where property will go, “and you might not like how they divvy it up,” said Drancik.
• Update life insurance beneficiaries as circumstances change.
• To thwart identify theft, hospitals might require identifying documents such as a birth certificate before providing a copy of the death certificate.
• Be specific about distributing personal property and sentimental items, such as jewelry, artwork, and antiques. “You might think your children are perfect angels, but when you’re gone, the gloves are coming off,” Drancik said. Sometimes, the simple act of explaining why a particular family member gets a treasured heirloom can smooth ruffled feathers.
• Write down all usernames and passwords for accounts, computers, phones, and other electronic devices. Keep the list in a locked, secure place.
• Take time for the “ethical will” – a description of the times in which you lived and the values you lived by, “to pass on to future generations.”

Kathy Hill, of Hershey, attended the presentation with her mom, Homeland resident Flora Jespersen. Her parents moved to Homeland from their home about a year ago, and the presentation helped her quest to “learn everything about what I can do to help my parents because we’re going places we haven’t gone before.”

“There’s no primer on this,” Hill said. “Every little bit helps.”

Resident Isabel Smith, the former Homeland Administrator who helped pull Homeland out financial straits in the 1970s, appreciated the information. “We should have had this all our lives,” she told Drancik.

All attendees received a free copy of the “Family Love Letter” workbook. Drancik’s appearance was sponsored by Joy Dougherty, CFRE, and Neuberger Berman. Attorney Vicky Ann Trimmer, of Daley Zucker Meilton & Miner, LLC, helped answer Pennsylvania-specific legal questions.

Jan Gray Beers attended with her parents, new Homeland residents Bob and Marion Gray. The passing of a loved one “i

Roy Justice blows on a conch shell, eliciting amazingly musical notes, and the regular presentation of “The Singing Historian” at Homeland Center begins.

Roy Justice, “The Singing Historian,” brings his blend of storytelling and song to skilled care residents in Homeland’s solarium.

Twice a month, Justice brings classic American songs and the stories behind them to Homeland Center. The popular presentations explore the side streets of history while also using effective methods to spark memories and intellectual engagement among residents.

On this day, Justice is continuing a series of patriotic songs. He tells, in story form, the confluence of events that led Francis Scott Key to climb above deck on a British ship in 1814 to see how Fort McHenry survived following an all-night bombardment.

Justice choked up as he described Key’s vision of the Star-Spangled Banner visible in the morning fog.

“No matter how many times I talk about this, I’m overwhelmed with what he must have felt when he looked at the harbor,” Justice said. Now that residents had a refresher in the meaning behind the lyrics, he led them in singing the National Anthem.

Twice a month, Roy Justice brings classic American songs and the stories behind them to Homeland’s residents.

Justice believes in the ability of older audiences to “understand the intellectual aspects of what I do.” He incorporates memories his listeners might recall, such as today’s discussion of the contentious, Depression-era debate over making “The Star-Spangled Banner” the National Anthem.

Even blowing the conch shell, just as canal boatmen did to signal lock tenders they were coming, is meant as a distinctive sound to awaken awareness that his presentation is starting.

“Everybody has memory markers,” Justice said. “It’s just a question of finding them. You can improve the quality of their lives based on bringing these things to the forefront that are sitting there, dormant. If you can get them there, there are moments of recognition and getting in touch with who they are and where they came from. It gives them some peace and some comfort, at least for that period of time.”

Homeland residents respond eagerly to Justice’s presentations. When he sings one of his signature songs, “16 Tons,” many sing along with every word – “You dig 16 tons, and what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt.” They listen attentively, respond to Justice’s questions, and jump in with their own questions.

Justice’s programs offer “history from a little different viewpoint,” said resident Phoebe Berner. “He presents songs of a different era and explains how they originated, why they were written, and how they were used and what the words mean.”

Sitting in the front row, resident Mary Anna Borke answered Justice’s questions about the leader of France during the Thomas Jefferson administration (Napoleon) and the nation where Britain feared its next uprising after the colonies rebelled (Jamaica).

Borke was a history major in college who, like Justice, appreciates the causes and effects of history. That attention to detail makes Justice a good historian, Borke said.

“There are some things that weren’t in the history books,” she said. “So many people think history is just the study of dates. The real history is what caused things to occur. We have to follow the lessons, or, like they say, we’re doomed to repeat it.”

In fact, Borke was one of several residents who told Justice he made a mistake, pointing out that he said “Boston Harbor” when he should have said “Baltimore Harbor.”

“I have to really be on my game,” Justice said with a laugh. “I learn a lot from these folks.”

Homeland Center resident Ray Caldwell remembers the joy of French fries on a warm night.

“As a kid, I’d go to local fairs in the street,” he said. “In the summertime, people had fairs, maybe a block fair or carnival. Fries were always one of the main items. It was a good way to satisfy your appetite.”

Caldwell and fellow Homeland residents relived those memories on a rainy Friday, when a French fry truck pulled into the parking lot. The event, inspired by residents and planned by caring staff and board members, dovetailed perfectly with Homeland’s philosophy of serving nutritional meals without depriving residents of tasty favorites.

The day originated when the Homeland Center residents council, including Caldwell, asked for French fries with their meals. Sadly, their wish couldn’t be accommodated because French fries lose their heat in the transfer from kitchen to dining rooms. But Board of Managers member Kelly Lick said she “put my thinking cap on.”

“How can we get French fries to the residents?” she said. “Fresh, hot, nice, crispy French fries.”

Lick contacted York-based Bricker’s Famous French Fries, and soon, truck wheels were turning. Homeland’s dietary and activities departments joined in, collaborating to bring residents a special treat.

“We have to work together for the residents,” said Asst. Dir. Of Nutritional Services Carmella Williams. A Homeland employee for 24 years, Williams said the residents keep her coming back.

“I can have a bad day, and I come in here, and they have smiles on their faces,” she said. “Having a conversation with them can change everything. It’s all about the residents.”

Homeland balances delicious, nutritional meals with treats that boost quality of life. Among the elderly, vibrant quality of life that averts complications like depression and overreliance on medications “always trumps the diet as far as making sure they have adequate fruits and vegetables,” said Director of Nutritional Services Yolanda Williams. Moderation is encouraged, but diets are rarely restrictive.

“If someone wants ice cream every day and it improves quality of life, that’s what they’re going to get,” Yolanda Williams said. “Besides, if you do everything you need to do health-wise and nutrition-wise to get to 85, why can’t you have what you want?”

When the Bricker’s truck arrived at Homeland, Plan A was to take residents outside for the delight of getting their fries straight from the fryer, but Mother Nature had other ideas. Instead, Lick and other board members ran out in the rain, piled servings of French fries and ketchup on trays, and brought the goodies inside.

Residents were delighted, accepting the fries with exclamations of “Wow!” and “Very good!”

Homeland residents are “absolute dolls,” said Lick. “If there’s something they like, I’m going to make sure they get it.” As for the mystique of French fries, she agreed with Caldwell that “they take you back, to memories of going to the beach and the boardwalk.”

The lunchtime treat confirmed Caldwell’s belief in Homeland as “a wonderful place.”

“It’s one of the nicest places you ever want to consider,” he said. “People go out of their way to be friendly.”