Area nursing home residents enjoy Thanksgiving holiday

By P.J. GLISSON

news@yourdailyglobe.com

The presence of COVID-19 on the Gogebic Range has made it impossible for family members to plan holiday visits with loved ones living in nursing homes, but current restrictions didn’t stop staff in those facilities from going out of their way to make Thanksgiving as festive as possible.

Representatives of three local homes shared with the Globe a look at their holiday fun over the past few days.

“We’re going to be shooting the turkey,” said Activity Director Jody Luoma of Westgate Nursing, Assisted Living and Rehabilitation Community in Ironwood.

Luoma, on Wednesday, said nerf guns would be the weapon of choice for the shooting and added that residents also would have added fun drawing on balloons.

At Sky View Nursing Center in Hurley, Activities Director Amber Bruneau, CNA, said on Friday that residents worked on a Thanksgiving word scramble.

Bruneau said each residential room also has a giving tree. “Every day, you write down something that you’re grateful for and hang it on the tree,” she said of residents.

A sumptuous meal also was part of the plan at all facilities.

“We always, for our holidays, ask the residents what they want,” said Chris Hoff, RN, who is the social services designee for Gogebic Medical Care Facility in Wakefield.

She added that the response, “overwhelmingly,” was traditional Thanksgiving fare in the form of “the works!”

Hence, at GMCF — as well as at other homes — the menu included familiar items such as turkey and gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, salad, rolls and pumpkin pie.

Although in-person family visits are not currently allowed in any home, Hoff said that she asked families to send photos of themselves to be shared with residents and the nursing home community at large.

“I also took a picture of the residents and sent it out to their families,” said Hoff. “It’s their way of sending a Thanksgiving card.”

All facilities also promote any sort of visitation that does not require direct contact. That often includes virtual options via Skype, Zoom, etc., or sight visits, wherein family members and residents can view each other through a nursing home picture window.

“We do a lot of FaceTime all week long,” said