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October 19, 2001/Cheshvan 2, 5762, Vol. 54, No. 6
Campus of caring
LEISAH NAMM
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 Volunteer Rosemary Wright, left, poses with Lillian Wolfson Huber, president of the resident council. Huber helped sell 50 American flag ribbons made by residents Oct. 11, which raised $150 to donate to The American Red Cross. Photo by Leisah Namm |
In another room, a woman sits in front of a computer screen, typing letters for the first time on a computer keyboard.
Outside, a group of women with memory impairments walk from one end of a patio to the other, with assistance from a therapeutic recreation coordinator.
Welcome to a day at Kivel Campus of Care in Phoenix.
For more than 40 years, Kivel has offered care for the elderly at 3020 N. 36th St.
To help provide ongoing funding, Kivel will hold a Kivel Ball, themed "A Chocolate Fantasy," at 6 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17, at the Arizona Biltmore Resort in Phoenix. It will include a cocktail hour, dinner dance, a silent and a live auction and lots of chocolate.
Dietary laws will be observed.
The Medicare-certified, 191-bed skilled care facility provides all levels of nursing care, registered nurses on duty 24 hours each day, social services, a secured Alzheimer's special care unit, restorative nursing and an on-site dental and eye-care clinic.
Its brochure says it has been recognized by Good Housekeeping magazine as among the best nursing homes in the nation and by the Inside Guide to American Nursing Homes as a "5-star" facility, but what the residents really seem to notice is the care.
"I love Kivel. Kivel has been very good to me," says resident Lillian Wolfson Huber who has lived at Kivel for four years and is currently the resident council president.
She says her favorite aspect of Kivel is the staff.
"They are just terrific," she says. "They try so hard for you in every which way. If you're a pest ... even then."
Besides medical care, the facility offers recreational activities, kosher dining and a full-time chaplain, Rabbi Martin Scharf, who has been with Kivel since 1994.
Resident Estelle Chook enjoys the library. "I do a lot of reading so I'm always checking out books. I'm always in this room," she says. In addition to the facility's library, the Phoenix Public Library visits Kivel twice a month - Chook recently checked-out "Journey" by Danielle Steel.
Chook also tries to participate in other programs, which include bingo, baking, exercise and music activities.
"I like all the programs. It's something different," she says. "I like the challenge. ... I try to do as much as I can."
One of Chook's favorite aspects of Kivel is the Kivel Ice Creamery, a '50s-style ice cream parlor donated by the Kivel Auxiliary that opened in September.
"I have cherries on strawberry ice cream with hot fudge. Oh, is it delicious," she says. "I go in there instead of having it in the dining room in a Dixie cup."
The Kivel Auxiliary, whose mission is to "secure items and services that enhance the dignity and quality of life for campus residents," has also raised funds for an 18-passenger wheelchair bus and lobby and dining room renovations, among other programs.
Besides the two long-term care facilities, the campus has three apartment houses for independent living.
This makes life easier for Alvin Plotkin, whose wife Anne was admitted to the care center about a month ago.
He moved out of his Phoenix home and into the independent apartments at the beginning of October so he could live closer to his wife and spend more time with her.
They eat their dinner meals together each night.
"That's the main reason why I moved into the apartments, so I could be here at that time to eat with her," he says.
During lunchtime, the dining room fills with residents of the nursing care facility, some in wheelchairs and some who are able to walk in on their own.
Care center resident Bessie Goldfeld sits at her table eating tomato soup when her husband David Goldfeld joins her. David Goldfeld, 94, lives in the Kivel apartments and volunteers at the center seven hours a day, five days a week. He visits with the residents and provides wheelchair transport for them, taking them in and out of the dining room, to therapy and to the beauty shop.
The Goldfeld's daughter-in-law, Lynn Goldfeld, brought her in-laws to Kivel from Florida and volunteers at the center so she can spend more time with them. Her volunteer work includes transporting residents to and from the dining room and mending clothing.
She has been pleased with the facility. "They try to do their very best," she says of the staff. "It's very clean and there's a lot of caring," she adds.
Hank Arens, therapeutic recreation director, says that Kivel staff members hold regular meetings with family members and encourage them to get involved in recreation programs, so "it feels even more like home for (the residents)."
There are no restrictions for visiting hours, he adds. "We're providing care for our residents and we're providing a service that is consistent 24 hours a day."
Arens, who is also the volunteer coordinator, says out of the 135 people on its volunteer list, a few are residents' family members.
On its Web site, Kivel lists its mission statement as striving "to provide a community that supports and upholds the dignity and autonomy of the frail elderly in order that they may realize their optimum human potential."
In approximately three years, the Kivel Campus of Care will move to a new location at 56th Street and Bell Road in Phoenix but funds raised from the Kivel Ball will go toward "ongoing funding for the current campus," says Executive Director Ira Shulman.
On Oct. 11, Huber helped sell patriotic ribbons made by the residents. They raised $150, which they donated to the American Red Cross. "Everybody wants to pitch in a little bit," she says.
Huber says she enjoys several of the center's programs - bingo is her favorite - and feels grateful to be a part of Kivel.
"Kivel is always thinking ahead of doing something for the residents," Huber says. "It's true, I'm not just buttering this up."
Kivel Campus of Care facilities
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Long-term care:
Independent housing, which provides HUD housing for the elderly:
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Details
What: Kivel Ball: A Chocolate FantasyWho: Kivel Campus of Care
When: 6 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17
Where: Arizona Biltmore Resort Hotel, 24th Street and Missouri Avenue, Phoenix
Cost: $250; $150, 39 and under Discount for members of Young Leadership Division (YLD)
Call: 602-956-5487