Town Crier Articles

Over a week before Governor Northam called for full quarantine restrictions throughout the Commonwealth due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our Edgeworth Park at New Town Assisted Living and Memory Care community, under the direction of Executor Director, Jennifer Henning, began procedures for battening down the hatches.  The facility had already been maintaining CDC flu precautions since October of 2019, and on March 9th, an email went out from the Director’s Desk to all resident families assuring them of the facility’s habitual use of approved disinfectants throughout the building and of the staff’s faithful adherence to all CDC and Virginia Department of Health guidelines.  A sincere appeal was also made at that time that if a resident family member was ill to refrain from visiting their loved ones.  On March 12th, the Executive Director sent two additional emails out, one to all employees and the other to all residents and resident family members.  The former enlisted all staff personnel to help keep the Edgeworth Park Family safe and fight to keep the virus out of the community, reminding them of their training and itemizing the procedures they were to continue to follow with even greater diligence; the latter reminding residents of handwashing hygiene and social etiquette when sneezing or coughing --and requesting that all family members refrain from visiting the community until further notice in an effort to limit potential exposure to the virus.  On March 17th, the Governor called for quarantine of all Virginia residents; and on March 18th, Edgeworth Park escalated the request that families refrain from visiting to the notice of a full prohibition to the site of all but essential employees and healthcare providers of compassionate care.

 

Further precautions were taken as the weeks of quarantine progressed.  Strict guidelines for screening staff and approved care providers were instituted at the front desk, staff received daily reminders as to the need for diligence in maintaining the best hygiene practices possible and the importance of social distancing, and nurses were directed to faithfully take resident temperatures, every day.   Unfortunately, additional precautions for the residents were more intrusive with the cessation of outside excursions, regularly scheduled group activities, salon appointments, and communal dining (the last requiring that all meals be served to residents in their apartments).  In instituting these changes and meeting all needs, Executive Director Henning shared that the biggest challenge has been in continually educating the staff as they are key in keeping residents and their fellow co-workers safe. Henning requested the dire necessity for their self-identification if they or a family member happen to come in contact with the virus or with someone who has.  Nurturing families through this crisis has also been difficult, as separation has been very hard on both the residents and those they love.  Understandably, realization of the gravity of the situation by the residents and their families has been slow but with it has come understanding, acceptance, and gratitude for what the Edgeworth Park owners, management team and employees have instituted for the safety of all concerned.

 

But most problematic during the quarantine has been the disruption in the otherwise fun and busy lives of Edgeworth Park’s residents.  Marketing Director, Victoria Bowen, and Activities Director, Kim Roberts, have worked very hard to make the effects of the quarantine less impactful on their residents and family members.  Not surprisingly, because of the separation and inactivity caused by the quarantine, depression and loneliness for the residents have been of great concern.  Consequently, concerted efforts are made, daily, to keep families connected and residents busy and entertained.  To “stay connected,” iPads have been distributed to employees and FaceTime and Skype sessions encouraged between residents and their families. Every day, the staff send personal messages and pictures to family members and pictures of their loved ones. Regular posts to Edgeworth Park’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn keep friends and family up to date on the excitement happening despite the circumstances. When possible, staff members accommodate family visits by way of a facility window. No less important are the creative ways in which the owners, management team, and staff members are keeping residents entertained and the community’s morale up.  A “Cheer Cart,” containing snacks, beverages, games, books, and DVDs, visits each resident apartment, two times a day. The activities team goes above and beyond their normal programming by giving simple shampoo and style salon treatments to those requesting the service, and favorite gatherings such as ice cream socials, Bingo, and wine-tasting sessions have been modified by holding them more often but with fewer attendees to comply with social distancing.  Walks and games in the enclosed courtyard and gardening are encouraged, as well.

 

While keeping resident and staff morale up has been priority, inventive ways to meet that need have not been found wanting. Recently, a “Spirit Week,” was launched which saw a week jammed packed with silliness to keep spirits up and the blues away.  Specialty foods were used and “dress-up” by the staff and residents around a specific, daily theme--Pajama Day, Character Day (see photos below), Wacky Tacky Wednesday, Throwback Thursday, Tourist Day—encouraged.  Adding to the festiveness of the week, a jelly bean count and raffle was also initiated. Was it a success?  Indeed, for while Edgeworth Park is a community offering assisted and memory care, it is first and foremost a family comprised of people and those who care about and for them.  There is a tangible sense at Edgeworth Park that everyone is partnering with each other to fight the threats of the pandemic, together--and goodwill abounds.  Family comes first; and in a crisis, family comes together, giving each of its members strength.   The well-being of the Edgeworth Park Family is paramount at Edgeworth Park, the key reason why precautions were taken early against the pandemic, efforts to cheer and sustain during isolation have been maintained, and unlike other similar facilities in our area, the decision to restrict new resident occupancies until the pandemic quarantine has been lifted was decided upon by both the community’s owners and management team. That decidedly speaks to “The Edgeworth Park Difference.”  All to keep the Edgeworth Park Family well and safe. 

 

 As reported by Charlotte Park Residents Doug Zoller and Dallas Henna:

 

On Monday, April 6th, the New Town Book Clubs’ Little Library was installed and dedicated on the Elizabeth Davis Green across from the pool. Although the Library won’t be open for donations until the pandemic recedes, it was decided to go ahead to the degree possible, in anticipation of better times. The Library is dedicated to Sharon Keith, former New Town resident and a founder of the Wednesday Book Club. Sharon and her husband Bob lost their lives following a car accident
last April.

 

In order to achieve safe social distancing, those at the dedication with me were limited to Lucy Painter and Daisy Henna of the Women Who Read (Thursday) club, and Janet Hoffman and Betsy Darling of the Wednesday Book Club. All Club members were thanked for their generous financing of the effort.

 

Other “thank yous” went to

 

The ceremony ended with a final dedication to community, perseverance and hope. Grand Opening plans will be announced as soon as possible. In the meantime, come check it out on a walk around the neighborhood!

 

 

Several New Town retired residents have spent their Covid-19 staycations creating face masks for family, friends, medical staff and other first responders. Among those engaged in this endeavor are Susan Byrne, Sarah Carey, Liz Dennis, Libby Flowers, Mina Hering, and Susan Stetler. Libby reports that many of her masks have gone to EMTs. The demand for material and elastic has been a challenge, but these ladies have each persevered to use their talents serving in this meaningful way. Great work mask makers!

Patti Vaticano

 

We have an insidious invader in New Town, a deceptively pretty and even delicate foliage that sports bright, lime-green leaves on slender stems.  This is Japanese Stiltgrass, also known as Eulalia or in Latin, Microstegium vimenium.  If looks can be deceiving, then Stiltgrass is the proverbial wolf in sheep’s clothing, offering incursion tactics extremely hard to combat. Even where the grass has been established for a short time, it forms a dense mat of ground cover with leaves growing up to 40 inches long and rooting at the stem nodes, deadly to all other plant growth and efficiently preventing regeneration of forests, fields, and home gardens, thereafter. Within just three to five years, the plant creates impenetrable, single stands which crowd out native herbaceous vegetation with alarming precision, reducing the growth and flowering of native species, suppressing entire native plant communities, altering and/or overwhelming insect colonies, slowing plant succession, and altering nutrient cycling. Only the full eradication of Stiltgrass will assure the recovery of native species, both plant and insect, from the destruction that it brings. 

 

This curious aggressor prefers moist soil that is shaded from full sun.  It is found in marshes, ditches, low-lying woods, floodplains, woodland borders, damp fields, woodland thickets, lawns, and along stream sides and roadsides. Wet soils that have periods of standing water are not suitable for Japanese Stiltgrass.  Regardless, its seeds can survive and germinate after extended periods of inundation. Although moderately prolific, with a single plant typically giving rise to as many as 1000 seeds, the seeds remain viable in the soil for three to five years, and the plant can spread rapidly, particularly following a disturbance such as flooding or mowing.  An additional means of rapid growth of this grass is via the white tail deer, which, while not feeding on the grass itself, remove its competition by feeding on other native plant species of wood and field.

 

NBC News describes it as a nationwide phenomena – but it has now gone viral globally – Australia, New Zealand, Canada! Teddy bears appearing in windows as a welcome distraction for children as well as a sign of unity and a way to stay connected during this period of isolation. I think it captures a little bid of the kid in all of us and reminds our neighborhood children that we’re thinking of them even if we can’t hang out together like they’re used to.  

 

We’re asking New Town residents to join in by displaying a teddy bear (even just a paper version) in their windows or porches or wherever makes sense for your home or business. We’ve already had over 30 families sign up with our coordinator Sarah Yaneza to let us know they’re taking part. It’s not too late to participate. Let’s make the boredom more “bearable!”

 

Parents (and adults) can use the bears as any incentive they like or as a math project or just a fun diversion. There are two organized activities:

 

1) Scavenger Hunt – every other day we are featuring a bear on the New Town Residential Association Facebook page. This is a fun way to target your daily walk. If you’d like to keep track of where you find them, Sarah can let you know how you did at the end of our hunt season.

 

2) General New Townwide Hunt – find as many locations as you can with a bear displayed, and keep track of the addresses. Then let Sarah know by April 25th. We will crown a champion “hunter/huntress” in the May Town Crier.

 

If possible, please leave your bear on display until April 25th to give children a chance to find them all and to extend the smile to our whole community through Virginia’s initial shelter-in-home period. Keeping a safe distance on your walks is important also.

 

Register your bear’s location by email to sarahbyaneza@gmail.com. (I apologize for the typos in earlier eblast messages, but this email address works-promise!) Happy hunting!

 

With slides and vivid video, Professor John Delano succeeded in persuading a rapt audience of New Town residents that indeed the vastness of the universe exceeds common imagination. The March 11th Noon Talks in New Town was entitled “NASA’s Search for Life Beyond Earth.”

 

Starting with an explanation of the characteristics that made Earth suitable for complex life, Delano proceeded to demonstrate how technology since the 1990’s has been able to measure and track minute events throughout the galaxies to determine where else these characteristics are likely to exist. The video feed from the Hubble, Kepler and Tess satellites have identified 4,136 known planets, mostly the size of Earth or bigger. Scientists have been able to analyze the data to further plot a habitable zone within which only about 25 planets are believed to have the conditions for liquid water for life. All of these planets are thousands of light years from Earth.

 

 

But what form might this life take? The investment in Mars research is focused on identifying microbe life that may not be DNA-based. From meteor samples, scientists know that the building blocks of life--proteins and amino acids--are abundant but how they are linked/built together will determine whether life as we know it exists. Attendees peppered the speaker with questions varying from the cost benefits of sending humans v. technology into space, the advances of China on the moon, the U.S. Space Force, and whether any other life forms may have already visited Earth.

 

 

NASA is “on the verge of remarkable discoveries” Professor Delano explained. Watch for the launch of the Perseverance Mars rover in July 2020 and the debut of the Space Launch System in 2021, the world’s largest rocket launcher capable of launching a payload of 70 to 140 tons. NASA is simply gathering information to describe nature and determine whether life is common or rare. “The implications of these discoveries are left for others to explore,” he said.

 

While meeting together may not be possible for some time, we’d like to encourage our New Town neighbors to continue the business of the NTRA through technology. Now is the time to experiment with virtual meetings whether it’s for book club discussions or landscape planning.

 

If you are holding an NTRA Committee meeting, provide the meeting time and date, and the NTRA website team will post your meeting on the site calendar. That calendar item serves as public notice of your meeting and interested community members are aware. Provide a contact number for more info or the link to the virtual meeting itself for members of the community to join.

 

Here’s how Committee chairs can continue to organize electronic meetings using software apps like Zoom Meeting or Skype.

 

 

Free to join. You set up a meeting time and the software provides a link for you to share with all your members.

 

Members just click on the link and share their video via computer screen or phone. (You may also download the app itself.) The free meeting time is limited to 40 minutes, but if you need more time, just set up sequential meetings and take a stretch break in between!

 

You can share a screen with items for discussion or just see each other to promote conversation. The software allows people to “raise their hand” to speak and helps moderators to keep the flow on track, one speaker at a time.   

 

 

Maybe you already use Skype for personal chats, well you can use it for group calls as well. Just set up your group phone list. To add video, all your participants will also have to have downloaded Skype, but you can call any phone number through the internet without video.

 

Don’t let months go by without advancing the important business of our Association!  You can also use these apps for virtual happy hours or family chats – just to keep in touch with some smiling faces.

 

In any case, be sure we have the most up-to-date info on the NTRA website. Send your calendar items, minutes or other community information to Mary Cheston, Communications Committee Chair at atmcheston@aol.com

 

Beyond just conducting our various business communication virtually, many once-social citizens are taking their personal meet-ups to the virtual world. Coworkers and friends all over the world are "meeting" for five o' clock cocktails on ZOOM to talk toned-down shop in a relaxed atmosphere and trade battle stories of home schooling their kids through the remainder of the 19/20 school year. Some residents are taking yoga classes, playing cards, or learning new crafts via web-based conferencing as well. Some of our own New Town residents have even taken their regularly scheduled book club online (pic below). 

 

In this month's letter from RAB Chair Chuck Stetler, he states that "we will realize how very little we need, how much we actually have, and the true value of human connection." An eloquent statement at a time in history when we can maintain togetherness while sacrificing physical contact during a global outbreak. Our cherished friendships and relationships survive in sprite of social distancing, stay at home orders, or even quarantines. We have the opportunity through almost any connected device to see our families, whether separated by towns or entire timezones, to share love and laughs. 

 

Women Who Read Book Club Zoom Meeting - "It was the highlight of my day" reported Sue Mulnix. 

 

Oliver Marston having a deep philosophical conversation between barking at neighbor’s dogs and joggers

 

This is S’mores! She is a Rex Rabbit mix, and we have had her for 3 years!  She is a rescue bunny and a bit of a Diva, wanting to be massaged only when it suits her.  Her favorite treats are clover and dandelion leaves.