The Senior Scene

Sumner resident Betty Murray has a long history of helping others.
Murray, who is 91 years old with a killer smile and a mind that is sharp as a tack,
has worked hard all of her life. Years ago, when her daughters were young, she was working at a J. C. Penney store when her brother called and said their mom was suffering from cancer and needed Murray to come run her nursing home. Murray stepped right up, earned her LPN certificate and took charge of the nursing home for the next 14 years.
When that career ended, she wanted a job that would allow her to stay at home and raise her five daughters, so she checked in to running an adult family home. She operated one for 32 years, retiring at age 70.
After her retirement, she visited St. Joseph Medical Center’s dialysis center in Tacoma and noticed that everything in the patients’ rooms was stark white.
“I talked to one of the nurses and said, ‘What do you think about different colored bedspreads to brighten this place up?’” Murray recalled. The nurse thought it was one heck of a good idea. That spurred Murray’s love of crocheting bedspreads and scarves for those in need.
One of her daughters, Gloria Jane, got tangled up with drugs and alcohol at an early age, and it wasn’t long before she became homeless. A visit with Gloria to Nativity House, a homeless shelter in Tacoma, got Murray thinking again how she might be able to lend a hand to those in need.
“At that time, Nativity House was a small place run by Brother Gary, a Catholic priest that had retired, and Gloria said, ‘Let’s stay for lunch.’ Lunch was a bullion cube with carrots,” said Murray.
She decided she needed to step in and help, so on her next visit she brought some much-needed coffee, tea and lunch supplies and told Brother Gary to take a seat because she would be preparing the noon meal that day.
“He looked at me like I had two heads, because no one had ever offered to help,” said Murray, who made soup with chicken and dumplings that day.
She loaded Brother Gary up with more supplies and left wondering what else she could do to lend a hand to Nativity House guests.
Sadly, Gloria Jane died at 36 years old. In her honor, Murray has been busy crocheting scarves and taking them to Nativity House. So far she has donated well over 100.
Nativity House supervisor Anisha Fernando said the scarves are a welcome gift to the guest of the shelter and community center for the homeless.
“They enjoy picking out their own scarf, choosing their favorite color, and it brings them joy. They really appreciate the scarves,” Fernando said.
Nativity House, which is run by Catholic Community Services, recently moved to a new location at 702 S. 14th St. in Tacoma. The new location offers overnight housing for 50 women and 120 men.
“We have a full functioning kitchen, air conditioning and a nice heating system that circulates the air six times a day,” said Fernando.

Cooks make breakfast and lunch in the new kitchen, and they are gradually moving to serving three meals a day.
Murray loves crocheting and spends her days in her home, sitting in a comfy chair right by the window and making scarves, but she has a huge need for more yarn. Anyone willing to donate skeins of worsted weight yarn can bring it to Nativity House and drop it off at the entrance in the back of the building. Fernando will make sure the yarn reaches Murray so she can continue her humanitarian effort of providing warm scarves for homeless folks.
Murray has a burning desire to continue her crocheting and donating, and the homeless population needs the scarves. All Murray needs to make that happen is more yarn.

Joan Cronk is a freelance writer.

Some school teachers retire the day they become eligible, having tracked that important date for years. However, there are teachers still working in the Puyallup School District well past the age of retirement with no plans of hanging it up in the near future.
At Woodland Elementary School, Marcia Madsen, 70, is still teaching kindergarten.
When asked what she liked about it, Madsen’s sense of humor shined through when she replied, “What is not to like about 5-year-olds? The only reason I’m the teacher is because I’m the tallest.”
Madsen said one of the gifts she receives from the kids is the pure joy of learning from them every single day.
“It is a passion that I can be with these little people and help them to put all their knowledge into these little pockets that we call education. That is why I love it,” she said.
Madsen has taught at Woodland for the last 22 years and has seen a lot of changes.
“Back in 1967 when I had my first teaching job, it was graham crackers and milk and a nap, and now we have gone to all-day school, reading, writing, math and science,” she said.
Madsen said she didn’t go to kindergarten as a child, and many other children opted out as well because it wasn’t mandatory to attend school at that age. Now, 5-year-olds are prepared and anxious to attend all day kindergarten.
“They are just children, but we can sure introduce them to a lot of wonderful experiences and memory-making,” she said.
Madsen enjoys the curiosity of the kindergarten students and their eagerness to learn. She and her husband have six children, and when the last one headed to kindergarten, she went back to teaching.
Madsen said she doesn’t put much thought into retirement.
“I plan to work until I can’t work any more,” she said.
Sixty-six-year-old Lanny Gleason has worked as a teacher for the last 28 years. Gleason, who is the vocational coordinator for the Puyallup district, says he loves his job and isn’t retiring any time soon.
Working with students with disabilities who are ages 19 to 21 and have no clear career path, Gleason helps them define a goal and assists them in visiting various training sites in an effort to see what works for them.
“There is no perfect job, but working with business and industry and working with students and being able to see the end result is rewarding,” he said.
Gleason has seen many advances in the program that works with students with disabilities. “We can do a lot for kids that we couldn’t do before,” he said.
Gleason began his teaching career in Nebraska when the Individual Education Plan (IEP), a federal program to help special-needs students, was three pages long.
“It consisted of an objective page, a signature page and an invitation page,” said Gleason, adding that today the IEP is 22 pages long.
His job takes him to three high schools – Puyallup, Rogers and Emerald Ridge – with different offsite programs.
“The nice thing about Puyallup is it is a city, but there is a smalltown atmosphere,” he said.
There are currently 150 training sites where students have worked, and Gleason said they have a good network of training opportunities for students.

Joan Cronk, who wrote this article, is a freelance writer.

In Pierce County, older adults and adults with disabilities have a resource to help them remain in their own homes as long as possible.
The goal of Aging and Disability Resources (ADR), a program of Pierce County Community Connections, is to connect adults and their caregivers with all the resources available to help them achieve that goal.
Aaron Van Valkenburg, manager of ADR, said, “Most if not all of our programs have a tie to helping individuals stay at home and to live in their own home with as many choices, dignity and respect as possible.”
The best place to start, said Van Valkenburg, is a phone call to ADR at 253-798-4600. “That is the starting point for everything, and the call center is open to anyone,” he said.
Calls are answered by a case manager who will start the process of connecting clients with those all-important services, covering everything from where the nearest senior center is located to discussing eligibility with someone who has a complicated issue. Eligibility for services is determined through a home visit where options and referrals are discussed.
“We certainly don’t aspire to do everything, and we rely heavily on good community partners that we can refer people to. ADR is not a one-stop service. It is just the first stop and the front door to a lot of other services,” said Van Valkenburg, adding that the state of Washington has been very forward-thinking on these issues and provides funding for some services. Medicaid, a mix of state and federal funds, and the Federal Older Americans Act also provide funding, as does Pierce County’s general fund, which is used to support senior centers.
“Studies that the state has done on the program found that the family caregiver support program does help reduce the burden levels because we assess every six months and delays formal placement or transition to Medicaid services for the loved one who is receiving the care,” Von Valkenburg said.
Connie Kline, ADR social service supervisor, said many services are provided in-house with case management staff, as well as contracts with community-based organizations providing other services.
“Case managers go out and screen and assess to see what the caregiver’s needs are. The primary eligibility for this program is that it has to be an unpaid, informal caregiver, relative or close friend providing unpaid, full-time care,” she said.
Kline noted the goal is to keep loved ones at home as long as possible.
Services can range from respite care, giving caregivers a much-needed break from their responsibilities, counseling or equipment to assist the caregiver. Other services include foot and dental care and in-home assistance, just to name a few.
Van Valkenburg said the conditions of some clients living at home are every bit as complex as folks in nursing facilities.
“We have people receiving several hundred hours a month of care, and some clients have full-time help,” he said.
Lisa Troyer is a case manager with the Family Caregiver Support Program (FCSP), and as such meets with caregivers to assist them.
“We use a Personal Family Caregiver Survey to help with this process. The results of the survey help in developing a care plan that provides the needed support offered through FCSP,” said Troyer.
This support can come in the form of in-home or out-of-home respite care, education and information, and help with the purchase of adaptive medical equipment. Caregiver counseling and support groups are also available.
Troyer and enjoys the interaction with her clients.
“On a typical day, I drive home thinking how the small amount of help provided by the FCSP makes such a big difference in the lives of the caregivers we serve. It is a blessing to work with such loving and dedicated individuals,” she said.
There are times, however, when in-home care doesn’t work any longer, and at that point the program helps clients find the right spot for continuing care for their loved one.
Kline added that ADR contracts out for a number of community services. Many of those are authorized and funded under the Federal Older American’s Act, the biggest one being the Senior Nutrition Program serving folks at meal sites in the community and senior home-delivery meals, as well as health promotion programs.
Kline said the feedback from caregivers has been very positive.
“Some caregivers have indicated that they couldn’t survive without us. It really makes all the difference,” she said.
Van Valkenburg agreed, adding that when anyone comes through the ADR door, they are screened to make sure that if they are eligible for other services, such as utility assistance, they receive it.
“We are all about supporting people to allow them to live in their own homes,” he said.

Joan Cronk, who wrote this article, is a freelance writer living in Puyallup.