Winter 2013/2014
THE GOLDEN YEARS
Pacific Christian Senior Services
Atascadero Christian Community
Country Care Health Center
California License #401700013
Atascadero,CA
(BUSINESS WIRE) -,2013 –
Pacific Christian Senior Services (the “Company”), one
of North San Luis Obispo
County’s largest non-profit
operators of senior living
communities,
announces
the launch of its new branding strategy that involves
name changes, an integrated marketing program inclusive of a refreshed corporate identity, enhanced marketing content, new responsive website and a new color palette and image
scheme. A new responsive
website was designed to
make searching for senior
living services easier than
ever.
The complete makeover of
the company’s branding
strategy and site unites the
company’s two communities, Atascadero Christian
Community (formerly Atas-
cadero Christian Home) and
Country Care Health Center
(formerly Country Care Convalescent Hospital) located in a
geographically
concentrated
region, under one new corporate identity. Pacific Christian
Senior
Services
website:
www.pcseniorservices.org.
Pacific Christian Senior Services (PCSS). This name will be
the umbrella name that both our
facilities are under. This will also
give us the opportunity to add
complimentary services to continue to meet the needs of the elder
community.
At the request of our residents,
Atascadero Christian Home has a
new name…..
Atascadero Christian Community
(ACC). If you look up the meaning
of community it states; a feeling
of fellowship with others, as a
result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals. This
definitely describes how the resi-
dents feel about living here.
Country Care Convalescent
Hospital’s name has changed to
Country Care Health Center
(CCHC). If you look up the
meaning of convalescent you
will find; A gradual return to
health and strength after illness. The period needed for
returning to health after illness. Changing the name to
health center provides an image
of returning to health with a variety of rehabilitation stages.
2014 Directors and Staff
Board of Directors
President, Bill Zeiders
Vice President, Roger Hillberg
Secretary, Richard Fleer
Treasurer, Marty Allen
Staff
CEO/CFO, Dan Busby
Administrator, Anne Gilles
Director of Nursing,
Ellen McDonald, RN
Marketing Director,
Stephanie Yurchak
Personal Care Supervisor,
Mary Sylvestre, ACC
Activities, Don Maroney-ACC
Debbie Semonsen-ACC
Amy Baird-CCHC
Dietary Supervisor,
Michelle Hughes-ACC
Kelly Pritchett- CCHC
Chaplain– Terry Mathis
Volume XXIX
Inside this issue:
From CEO/CFO
2
From the CEO
2
5 star ratings
from our Administrator
2
Employee of the
3
Year
Photo Gallery
4
Fall Prevention
6
Feature Resident
7
Special points of
interest:
 From the Chaplain
 Adopt an Angel
 Living Tree
 Special Thanks
Message From the CEO/CFO Dan Busby
Atascadero Christian Community is
beginning to develop long range
plans to be part of the coming
changes in our country’s health
care system. We are updating our
master plan to include additional
services to our senior community
such as independent living apartments, in-home support services,
home health care, memory care and
adult day care for seniors. To provide these new services, we are
developing plans to build additional
facilities on our campus in Atascadero. Please watch our NEW
website for updates at
www.pcseniorservices.org.
For several months, we have been
developing plans to build two small
nursing homes at our campus on
Santa Rosa Road. These will be
twelve bed homes with private resident rooms and a homelike environment. These nursing homes will
eliminate the large, institutional
style of care and provide dignity
and a greater level of involvement
with our residents. We have the
support of our local community and
are beginning to raise funds for the
architectural drawings and site development. As we progress and develop final project costs, we hope
you will consider supporting us financially and through your prayers.
We have many more ideas in the
development stage and I look forward to sharing them with you
throughout the coming year.
Our Administrator Anne Gilles on 5 Star Ratings
Every year the State of California does
health inspections at skilled nursing
facilities. They look to ensure compliance with all the rules and regulations,
especially ones involving Medicare and
Medi-Cal. Country Care Health Center
is a Five-Star facility.
All skilled nursing facilities are assigned a Star designation based on the
outcome of the health inspection,
staffing ratios and quality indicators
that have been predetermined by the
Center for Medicare Services. These
areas are combined to create one overall score. This range can be from One
Star, denoting poor quality, to Five
Stars denoting excellent quality.
Nursing homes in a particular geographical area can vary in ratings. The
Page 2
Five Star system gives you a ‘snapshot’ of the care an individual nursing
home has to offer.
The Five-Star rating is divided into
three sections, Health Inspection,
Staffing and Quality Measures. The
Health Inspection looks at all major
aspects of care in the nursing home.
These surveys can vary greatly from
state to state as each has its own licensing regulations. The staffing component looks at the overall number of
staff compared to the number of residents and how many of the staff are
licensed nurses. The thought being, the
more staff that work directly with residents, the better the care. Quality
Measures are a set of indicators that
professionals agree will
show how well the nursing
home helps the residents to
maintain their ability to transfer, toilet, eat and dress themselves. It also
looks at pressure ulcers, restraints,
medications, depression, falls, and a
variety of other health related issues.
When a family is considering a facility,
talk with the staff and residents. Focus on what is important to your loved
one and ask questions. CCHC strives to
remain a Five – Star facility. We review
and audit our procedures frequently
for compliance. We talk with our residents to ensure that they are satisfied
with the service they receive and that
they feel safe and happy.
THE GOLDEN YEARS
ACC Employee of the Year—Mary Sylvestre
Congratulations to Mary for being chosen employee of the year at ACC. What
makes this such an honor is that it was
all the staff who voted for her. What
makes an employee of the year? Staff
members were given instructions on the
qualities a person with this high honor
must possess, ie. superior work ethic,
team player, going above and beyond
the call of duty, compassion for the
residents, making the best decisions
for the welfare of all concerned.
Mary is the Personal Care Supervisor
and oversees a staff of 14. She has
been with our assisted living facility
for 14 years. The first time Mary did
any work for us was in construction
cleanup from the new buildings being
built. She moved into housekeeping
where she soon attained a supervisory
position. One of Mary’s traits, she pitches in where needed. In the past you
might have seen her mowing lawns, driving residents to appointments. At one
point, she was acting facility manager for
3 months. But Mary’s heart is with the
residents. When asked what the most
rewarding aspect of her position is,
Mary’s reply, “Seeing smiles on our resident’s faces, and knowing that we are
giving the best care possible
Congratulations Mary…..We love you!!!
Recognizing 5, 10 & 15 Employee Years of Service
Atascadero Christian Community
Don Maroney (5)
Country Care Health Center
Lynda Pierson, (15) years
Teri Charno, (10) years
Amy Baird, (5) years
Carrie Schaeffer, (5) years
Krystal Laucella, (5) years
Debbie Valdez, (5) years
Suzette Ngiralmau,, (5) years
Patricia Pritchett, (5) years
in Kansas and visits there
as often as she can. She
gets fresh beef from Kansas and is always up for a
CCHC Employee of the Year - Amy Baird
Devotion in Motion. That’s Amy Baird.
She has only been with our company for
5 short years, however, in that time
she has gone from C.N.A., to C.N.A.
Supervisor, to the person everyone
goes to for everything, to Employee of
the Year . Sadly we now lose her on the
floor, but we are blessed that she has
taken on the Administrative position of
Activities Director. Amy brings a special skill set to the position because
Volume XXIX
she knows everything
about our residents and their families.
On a personal note, in her spare time
Amy loves to play golf. She and her
husband live next to a golf course so
the two of them enjoy golfing together. When not golfing, they sometimes
like to ride their Harleys together.
She has family, including a grandchild,
BBQ.
Amy is one of those great personalities that everyone loves She is
always willing to help out where
ever help is needed. We welcome
Amy’s fresh new vision and ideas
and look forward to an exciting
new era in the Activities Department at Country Care Health Center.
Page 3
Photo Gallery
Christmas
Christmas
Christmas
Time
Time
Time
In In
In
Our
Our
Community
Community
Community
Family
Family
Family
& Friends
&
&&Friends
Friends
December
December
20th
20th
Christmas
Time
In Our
Our
Community
Family
Friends
December
20th
Christmas
Time
In
Our
Community
Family
&
Friends
December
20th
Christmas
Time
In
Our
Community
Family
&
Friends
December
20th
Paul & Paula Happy Holidays
100th Birthday Hug
Open House Fun
Did the Grinch steal
Christmas?
Crazy Hat Day
Future Developments
We have over seven acres of buildable property.
As the population of Atascadero and the
surrounding
area continues
to age, the
need for additional independent
living, assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care grow. You can
designate your donation for our
future building projects.
The Small Home Skilled Nursing
Facility
Our first construction project will
bring a new concept in skilled nursing. We have chosen The Small
Home Skilled Nursing project for
its innovative and progressive concept. The physical environment of
each home is designed to transform
the institutional skilled nursing facility into a small, residential environment that is home to 10 to 12
elders. These homes fit within the
current regulatory and reimbursement structures, and are
thus able to nurture people of all
abilities, disabilities and financial
circumstances. The first of these
homes will be built on the property where the colony home stands.
Donate to the project today at
www.pcseniorservices.org/give
or by calling our corporate office
at 805-466-0281
If you would like further information please contact Stephanie
Yurchak , Marketing Director
[email protected].
Tree of Life Memorials
The Central Coast is graced with the
beauty of the native oak tree. The
handcrafted wood carving of the oak is
seen in several places throughout our
community.
Donation Engraved Leaves Levels
As a donor you will have permanent
bond of love with our residence. Each
leaf is engraved with “in memory of”. A
beautiful tribute to a wonderful life.
Rock—$5000
Page 4
Bronze Leaf—$100
Silver Leaf—$200
Gold Leaf—$500
Tree Trunk—$10,000
NEW!! Now you can donate online
http\\:pcseniorservices.org/give/
THE GOLDEN YEARS
What’s New At CCHC—Activities
There are some exciting new chang-
the spring we are planning to start
es going on at Country Care Health
a garden in Eden Plaza. Baking is
Center in the Activities Depart-
back and the residents enjoy it so
ment. Karen Hilliard has retired.
much we bake twice a week. We
Let me introduce myself…I am Amy
are moving more with some new ex-
Baird, the new Activities Director.
ercise programs and “Bingo for
We are having a lot of fun revamp-
Bucks” is our most popular new ac-
ing the program. Two of our cur-
tivity. Stay tuned for more up-
rent residents have volunteered to
dates and excitement from Country
run their own activities. We will be
Care!
planting flower pots for centerpieces for the dining room tables, and in
Looking forward to more fun...AMY
What’s New With Activities at ACC
Our Activities Department ended summer on a high note, as we made a big
trip south to the Santa Barbara Zoo.
The weather was perfect as we enjoyed great sights: a pride of lions, two
families of giraffe, elephants, a couple
of silver backed gorilla. We also enjoyed the train
ride around the
entire zoo and one
resident wanted to
take the engineer
home with us.
October brought
pumpkins that were decorated and set
up in the dining room to keep everyone
company. We have made it a tradition
to head to the coast to marvel at all
the scarecrows in Cambria. Rounding
out the month was our Halloween costume contest that really got lively.
November brought us enough warm
weather to enjoy a couple ice cream
outings and a trip to an apple farm for
fresh apples and cider. Another tradition is a trip Morro Bay the day after
Thanksgiving for clam chowder…
Volume XXIX
uuummm good!!!!
December is usually our busiest month
as many groups come in, both young and
old, to sing Christmas Carols and bring
goodies. We spend a lot of time filling
gift bags for every resident to be given
out at our Christmas party. We
wish to thank all of those wonderful organizations and people who
donated so much so our residents
can have a beautiful Christmas; it
all makes such a difference.
We made several trips around the
county to see newly born elephant
seals, a live drive-through Nativity at
Oak Park Christian Church, Vine Street
in Paso Robles to take in the Christmas
Llghts, and again to the coast to the
Station Grill for hamburgers and waving at the Amtrak train as it went by.
One of the highlights of the year is our
resident Christmas party, with family
members in attendance. The staff
‘attempted‘ to serenade our guests
with carols. Everyone loved the great
atmosphere of the evening. All took in a
great meal, the decorations couldn’t
have been better, and Santa and Mrs.
Claus ended the evening by passing our
gift bags to each resident. It was a
magical perfect evening.
We are looking forward to the New
Year with many
opportunities for
change and a new
vision. We are
creating “walking
clubs”
amongst
residents and will
be taking groups
out into the community, it will be another great way to enjoy the many
sights on the Central Coast.
Thanks to all for all the help…
DON & DEBBIE Activities
Page 5
Each year, one in every three adults age 65 and older falls
Falls can cause moderate to severe
injuries, such as hip fractures and
head traumas, and can increase the
risk of early death. People age 75
and older who fall are four to five
times more likely than those age 65
to 74 to be admitted to a longterm care facility for a year or
longer. Rates of fall-related fractures among older women are more
than twice those for men.
Over 95% of hip fractures are
caused by falls. In 2010, there
were 258,000 hip fractures and
the rate for women was almost
twice the rate for men.
Fortunately, falls are a public
health problem that is largely preventable.
Things You Can Do to Prevent Falls
form lighting in a room.
Exercise regularly. Exercise makes
lightweight curtains or shades to
reduce glare. Paint a contrasting color on the top edge of all steps so you
can see the stairs
better. For example, use a light color
paint on dark wood.
you stronger and improves your balance and coordination.. Have your
doctor or pharmacist look at all the
medicines you take, even over-thecounter medicines. Some medicines
can make you sleepy or dizzy.
Have your vision checked at least
once a year by an eye doctor.
Poor vision can increase your risk
of falling. Get up slowly after you
sit or lie down.
Wear shoes both inside and outside
the house. Avoid going barefoot or
wearing slippers.
Improve the lighting in your home.
Put in brighter light bulbs. Florescent bulbs are bright and cost
less to use. It’s safest to have uni-
Add lighting to dark areas. Hang
Other
Safety
Tips…...
Keep
emergency
numbers in large print near each
phone. Put a phone near the floor in
case you fall and can’t get up. Think
about wearing an alarm device that
will bring help in case you fall and
can’t get up.
Article obtained through
www.cdc/gov/
From The Chaplain— Terry Mathis
One of the sweetest moments in the
last few months was the baptism of
Dorothy Herman.
Dorothy is a resident at Country Care,
where she can nearly always be found
in front of the sewing machine, creating something special. She enjoys Bible study, fellowship, and singing. Her
integrity and honesty and love
for others are evident.
Then Dorothy took a further
step. The sweetest moment came
when Dorothy openly declared
her relationship with God
through baptism. She had never
been baptized and chose to ex-
press her faith in the reality of the
spiritual cleansing given to her by
the sacrificial death of Jesus
Christ.
On December 3, 2013, surrounded
by her friends at Country Care,
Dorothy was baptized. We pray
that this sweet moment will encourage and further develop her
faith.
Did you know you can help save the earth?
We can cut our print and mailing costs and make an impact on
the environment. All you really need to do is to convert your
newsletter subscription to an e-mail subscription. You can do
this by e-mailing me at [email protected] or go to
our website www.pcseniorservices.org and get on our e-mailing
list.
The newsletter will be available for reading and downloading
from our website www.pcseniorservices.org.
Page 6
THE GOLDEN YEARS
Featured ACC Independent Resident Lita Brown
I had the pleasure of interviewing Lita
Brown as she was chosen as our profiled resident. As her life unfolded in
front of me, one thing became amazingly clear, her path in life has been
steered by her strong faith in God.
She was born in 1932 at home in Maywood, CA near Los Angeles. She lived
there until the ripe old age of 5, when
the family moved to Artisa, CA. Her
parents both worked on aircraft as
part of the war effort.
At age 17, Lita married and became a
mom to two beautiful daughters and a
wonderful son. After 10 years of marriage she divorced and went on to raise
her children as a single parent. Since
she needed to support
her children, Lita held
numerous positions
over the years. Can’t you just see her
as a receptionist? She’s such a people
person. She’s been a cake decorator,
seamstress, store clerk and maker of
porcelain dolls.
In 1961 Lita met the love of her life.
He had two boys and the blended family of 5 children became teenagers all at
the same time. She prayed a lot during
this period of her life!! They were married 4 days short of their 48th wedding
anniversary when her husband passed
from Alzheimer’s. Lita was his caregiver during his decline which lasted 3
3 Ways You Can Help

Prayer—Our residents can always
use prayer support from friends
and family. God works in ways
which we can’t begin to imagine.
Visitation—Many of our residents
have no family or family that live
out of the area. Having a personal
visit gives them a hope that someone cares.
When asked why she chose Atascadero
Christian Community, she replied, “I
fell in love with the ambiance of the
property”. She helped a dear friend
move in and was struck by the care and
tenderness by which her friend was
treated. She knew from that day forward that she would one day live at
Atascadero Christian Community.
We are glad she made the move. She
came to us one year ago living in one of
our independent cottages. You will see
Lita helping with many of the activities.
If she sees a resident that needs assistance she will always find time. Her
positive outlook and attitude in life
makes her a treasure to our community.
By, Stephanie Yurchak
Adopt an Aging Angel
Aging Angels is a benevolent fund established to assist residents in need of
assistance.
years. She became educated on the
different health issues that come with
Alzheimer’s.

Financial—Some of our residents
have outlived their financial resources. They might only have
enough funds for the bare essentials or fall short of even those
basics. Atascadero Christian Home
has a policy to never ask anyone to
leave because of diminished resources. Our goal is to help these
residents through generous donations from our Aging Angel donors.
“Some of our residents have
outlived their financial
resources….”
NEW!! Now you can donate online
http\\:pcseniorservices.org/give/
Or Call today 805-466-0281
For More Information
about Pacific Christian Senior Services
Please let me know if you would like
more information about ACC or CCHC,
a tour of either of our communities, or
if you have questions about Assisted
Living or Skilled Nursing. Stephanie
would be happy to provide you with
information to help you through your
decision making process.
Volume XXIX
Contact:
Stephanie Yurchak,
Marketing Director
805-466-0281
[email protected]
Page 7
Pacific Christian Senior Services
Golden Years Newsletter
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