Nursing home residents plant tree for elder abuse awareness

By CHARITY SMITH

[email protected]

Wakefield - Residents at the Gogebic Medical Care Facility participated in World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on Tuesday, by planting a blossoming cherry tree in the community garden.

Ashley Jarvenpaa, director of activities, said that June 15 was designated as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day in 2016, by the International Network of Prevention of Elder Abuse, the World Health Organization, and the United Nations. The World Health Organization posted a 2017 report based on 52 studies across 28 countries that together report that 15.7% of adults age 60 and older are subject to elder abuse each year.

Every year these three international organizations have a different theme or activity to try and raise awareness on the subject, Jarvenpaa said. This year the theme was #UPROOTELDERABUSE, and encouraged people to plant a tree to show in support of the cause, she said, and the facility residents voted to plant the cherry tree from the four choices given to them, she said. The other choices were maple, apple, or an oak tree.

Facility resident Wayne Kangas was selected to help dig the hole and plant the tree. He was selected as an avid gardener and because he is physically able to assist in the effort.

Kangas is "like family to a lot of employees," as he has been a resident at the facility for "a very long time," Javenpaa said. "He helps every year to start the garden and keep it maintained throughout the year."

Kangas said planting the tree for elder abuse was a great experience and he hopes the tree keeps growing for "hundreds" of years. He said that he felt good planting a tree when something good was coming from it. "We should plant more trees," he said.

Once the tree was planted the residents were brought outside, she said. The residents were "a little surprised" by the size of the tree, as it is a sapling.

"When you tell them it's a tree planting they think 'big tree' and then they're like, 'well, that's just a bush,'" Javenpaa said. "I tried to spin it and tell them it's going to grow with our awareness through the years. The more aware we are with the ways to help prevent the situations that create elder abuse the better it will be."

The explanation seemed to make the residents laugh, which she said is a typical reaction to her announcements, Jarvenpaa describes her part of the facility as the "sunshine department," and that its purpose is to "make that silver lining for the grey days."

Future events for residents include water sports, where residents slingshot waterballoons at "volunteer employees," to help cool off and an indoor Fourth of July float parade, she said. Each department will be decorating and designing a radio wagon into a mini float for a parade through the halls with staff dressed up as Uncle Sam, the Statue of Liberty and Miss America.

"We're going to try and bring that Fourth of July spirit indoors," Javenpaa said.