Dear friends,
We’ve had some nice days to be in the sukkah this week, which everyone so loves! We have, of course, sukkahs on both campuses and the Gallen Center has their own as well. You ought to see the Gallen Center sukkah—it has two chandeliers laden with traditional decorations like fruit and gourds. Between the chandeliers we have what I can only describe as tiny twinkling balls that have led staff to dub this the “disco sukkah!” We’ll be celebrating the end of the holiday next week and looking forward to, as always, joining together as a Jewish Home Family. We’re also excited that we’re having a reunion of our Israel Mission travelers from 2018. We’ll do that next week in the sukkah at Jewish Home Assisted Living. It will be a joy to gather and reminisce, it is hard to believe that a year has passed!
At the Jewish Home at Rockleigh we began our week on Sunday with Chair Fitness, trivia games and music from around the world. In the afternoon, our Sunday Afternoon of Music featured Mark Wright and his friend John Hardy. The piano and banjo duet was great and they performed a lot of New Orleans style jazz as well as popular tunes. On Monday and Tuesday many elders and their families joined us for Sukkot services and Kiddush in the sukkah. We also had a wonderful holiday reminiscence program that brought back many memories. Other activities included Spelling Bee, Finish the Sentence, Sit and Be Fit and some fun games on our It’s Never 2 Late system. Wednesday’s highlights include Steady Boxing, Name that Tune on the Kaplen 2 unit and games on Seiden. The community choice program was a bowling tournament that proved to be quite lively! Seiden elders also enjoyed Music and Meditation in the afternoon. On Thursday we continued our celebration of Cultural Diversity month. This week we were in Jamaica with food, music, trivia and culture! In the afternoon we enjoyed reggae music and the sound of steel drums. It was fun for all! On Friday we had “pink” Dancercise in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month as well as Men’s Club, Game Hour, Karaoke, Rock Steady Boxing and more. The big highlight of Friday was the celebration of National Chocolate Cupcake Day! Our Baker’s Delight program engaged many elders in cupcake making, decorating and, of course, eating!
The week began with music in the Gallen Day Center. Mark Wright was back with his friend John Hardy and they did a great concert of Americana music in honor of Columbus Day. We had our Buddy program in the sukkah and had some fun decorating and “bedazzling” pumpkins. Tuesday included Rock Steady Boxing and a lively program of Laugh Active yoga. We also did a fun fall arts program with leaf stencils. On Wednesday we had a great program in the sukkah as well as some fun sensory activities. We also had a session of our Jewelry Club and make some great “high fashion” jewels to wear. In the afternoon we relaxed with Reiki and aromatherapy. Thursday included Sweet Sensations and we enjoyed the late summer fruit. Rabbi Feld came by and we had a chance to see and talk about the holiday and the significance of the lulav and etrog. We also enjoyed a piano concert in the afternoon. Friday included Margie’s Music Circle in the sukkah as well as Comedy Club.
Rabbi Korenblit kicked off the week on Sunday with an article of week discussion on Sunday morning and an afternoon lecture on “Plants and Fruit in the Torah.” We also had a lively Bingo afternoon, at elder request, playing many different variations and Rafael was her to do music and exercise. On Monday and Tuesday mornings we held services and enjoyed Kiddush in the sukkah. We also enjoyed trivia games and a visit from Pet Therapy International. On Tuesday, in addition to services, we had a tribute to “I Love Lucy” on Memory Lane in recognition of national I Love Lucy Day.
On Wednesday we enjoyed exercise as well as “Something to Talk about with Joan.” We had personal shopping and great fun with “sundaes in the sukkah.” Rick Steve’s travelogue took us to Eastern Europe and we also had fun with Carlos and our monthly birthday party. And we finished Wednesday with a visit from teens from Temple Emanuel in Closter who helped facilitate game night. Thursday included music with exercise and a great program on Eleanor Roosevelt. We also had more alliterative fun with “sushi in the sukkah!” We wrapped up the week with “Today’s Headlines with Beth” and a discussion led by Rabbi Korenblit and entitled “Ecclesiastes: King Solomon as an Author.” Professor Ian Drake rounded out the week with his lecture on “The Challenges Facing Israel’s New Government.”
All the best, ![]() Carol Silver Elliott
Volunteer Opportunity of the Week
Looking for a friendly, very open-minded conversationalist to make once-a-week visits with one of our female residents on the Jewish Home at Rockleigh's Rubin unit.
Please contact Stacey Orden, Director of Volunteer Services at sorden@jewishhomefamily.org or 201-518-1175 with questions or to sign up.
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10 Link Drive Rockleigh, NJ 07647 | 685 Westwood Ave. River Vale, NJ 07675 |