Coming Home to "Family"

This past holiday I was invited to prepare dinner for my sister and her husband's close friends, for a New Years Eve celebration. All of them in some way are service connected with the Army. Some actively serve in our country through infantry, cavalry, intelligence, and the EOD (explosive ordinance disposal). Some are protecting our home soil while others are in Iraq and Afghanistan...and then there are the wives who support them from home. I was honored to be able to prepare a home made meal, far different from the MRE's they were used to. So, I hit the local market, planned a hearty meal and added loving touches to make the whole experience special for them. The otherwise embattled gentleman were hanging out in the kitchen while I was finishing the preparation of the meal. They were asking questions about the ingredients, appreciating every little detail and moment that was occurring. After browning the chicken, preparing the tomato base with garlic, capers, peppers, sopressato, and a few other secret ingredients, I added the chicken back into the base to finish cooking. I felt as watched as Julia Child and as appreciated as a Steeler's football game during play offs!

In the meantime I iced the Sour Cream Chocolate Cake (to which they were drooling). The Halloumi cheese Potato casserole was cooling and it was time to shred the cooked chicken breasts. At one point my brother in law exclaimed: "you SHREDDED the chicken, WOW, that looks amazing!" For a man who earned a Purple Heart in Iraq, it brought tears to my eyes to see the joy for the simple things. He appreciated the effort, and I was humbled by all the appreciation. How could my little meal compare to his sacrifices for our country?

While the water was boiling for the linguini, I laid out the Brie cheese platter, decorated with red raspberries and star fruit. Again, the excitement broke out. It was enough to draw the gentleman away from their competitive Wii sports game... (that water was taking FOREVER to boil, so they jumped on the opportunity to play!) It was adorable, during off turns they kept jumping up to grab bites of the Brie, shrimp platter, and other foods prepared by the ladies.

Finally, that darn linguini had boiled to Al Dente and dinner was served. One of the wives brought the traditional Sour Kraut and Kielbasa to add to the meal. The food was abundant and the cocktails delicious as we shared a celebratory meal together as a "family." After several more games on the Wii sports resort, and the chocolate cake, the ball dropped and the new year rang in...and not too much after that we all tucked in for a safe and happy New Years!

That rather tall and commanding gentleman pictured above, carrying the flag in the center, was one of those in attendance. His girlfriend traveled home to the US from her teaching in Korea to celebrate this holiday season. They both came such a long distance and I was proud to be even a small part of their joy while home.

That feeling of home and coming home is important to individuals at all ages. I feel the work I do for families and Residents here at Juniper has provided me with the insight to recognize that those boys deserved, (and on some levels needed) the warm homecoming and "family" dinner. No one enjoys leaving home, whether it is to war, out to the market on a blustery day, or to move altogether into a different environment. I rely on my compassion for families and friends and I pull from my own personal experiences each day as I meet new families that perhaps have just sent a son off to war recently and today are inquiring about Dad needing to move from his home due to safety concerns. Families are experiencing emotion at different levels and intensity for many reasons, and I understand sometimes they don’t even know where to start when faced with an aging loved one in need.

I speak to Veteran's every week who gave to our country and are now in need or are planning for Assisted Living. In fact, 65% of those who moved in last year were Veterans or spouses of Veterans utilizing the Aid and Attendance benefit. I take special interest in helping those gentleman and ladies of the service and have gathered the resources in order to educate families on how the benefit can improve the financial situation for Veterans and their surviving spouses. The little bit of extra effort it takes to coordinate a Veteran's move in is nothing in comparison to the sacrifices they made for our country...I was reminded of that again this New Year's Eve while in the company of some who still choose to fight for our greater good. Again on New Year's Day, as I jumped out of bed to prepare a breakfast for champions, I smiled as I reminisced about the evening festivities.

The least we can do for our Veteran's, younger and older, is to show appreciation and honor their service to our country. Whether they acquire their application from the Courthouse VA, VFW, American Legion, or the DAV, all of these agencies serve the same purpose, in terms of Aid and Attendance; they assist families in completing the Aid and Attendance application for the benefit. Fred Cunningham, Tammy and Diane, down at the Veteran's Administration in the courthouse, serve our local Meadville area and truly go above and beyond when working for the Veterans they serve. I am proud to have been a part of helping the 65% who moved in with that benefit. Many of them walked in not even knowing about the benefit and walked out a part of our Juniper Family. Please take the time to learn about this special Pension benefit for you or your loved one. You may contact Juniper Village directly at 333-4400 for information related to Assisted Living and how this benefit can help your family.

Mandy Maruska
Director of Community Relations
Juniper Village at Meadville