The Birches at Harleysville News

Caring for someone with dementia is not easy. The mainstream outlook consists of negative messaging compounded by stigma due to a lack of awareness and understanding of the condition.

When discussing dementia, the focus is typically on what the person has lost as they transition through each stage. “But if that’s all you’re thinking about, you’re missing opportunities,” Teepa Snow said.

Snow is a renowned dementia care and education specialist who developed Positive Approach to Care® and other methods such as the GEMS® dementia state classification model.

Her classification model differs from commonly used scales by identifying six different brain states and the shifts in skills and abilities a person can experience in any given moment, focusing on the present—not what was lost.

“Just like gems, each person is precious, valuable, and unique, and given the right setting and care, can shine,” she said.

Understanding the GEMS States – sapphire, diamond, emerald, amber, ruby, and pearl – and how people with dementia experience the world, professional and family care partners can provide better care. They can then change their actions accordingly for a better connection and encourage participation in care tasks and activities.

Snow’s methodologies shift the current narrative, radically transforming the experience of dementia to help people with the condition continue living meaningful lives, which is why our community implements her teachings into our memory care program and ongoing team training.

Our memory care director constructs person-centered care plans that highlight each resident’s current abilities rather than focusing on what has been lost to help them experience happy, purposeful moments.

Like in the comics, real-life superheroes have an alter ego to keep their true identity a secret—although when unmasked—there’s no cape. Regardless, they’re still unique!

HARLEYSVILLE, Pa., Aug. 2, 2018– Superheroes. Thanks to Hollywood recreating The Justice League and The Avengers, we often think of them flying through the sky, wearing a cape or cool futuristic body armor while using some unnatural “power” to save the day.

Like in the comics, real-life superheroes have an alter ego to keep their true identity a secret—although when unmasked—there’s no cape. Regardless, they’re still unique!

Nick DelPopolo, a real-life superhero and business office manager at The Birches at Harleysville, was recently recognized for his lifesaving efforts that occurred in the summer of 2006.

As a volunteer firefighter, he’s rushed toward danger before, but he’d never done something like this. Standing on the top floor in a Warrington Township apartment building and peering through heavy gray smoke, DelPopolo was getting ready to head downstairs when something caught his eye.

“I looked to my right and saw something through the smoke. I went to see what it was,” said DelPopolo. “It was a girl curled up on a couch clinging to her Mickey Mouse stuffed animal.”

Without a second thought, he whisked the little girl to safety where she was able to receive care from a paramedic on-scene.

DelPopolo’s fire training facilitated his response. He was able to fight fear and assess his surroundings. In a situation where panic could cloud another’s judgment, he rushed to save another’s life not thinking of his own.

“As a seasoned volunteer firefighter I have received countless hours of training; however, I never saved someone’s life before,” said DelPopolo. “All I could think about was getting her out of the building as quickly and as safely as possible.”

The semi-private recognition event in May honored individuals who saved lives 10 to 15 years prior. DelPopolo would once again come face to face with the little girl, now a grown woman with a daughter of her own.

“Honestly, all these years I often wondered what she was doing and how she was. I never thought I would find out,” said DelPopolo choking back with emotion. “To see her again with her family, made everything come full circle.”

His actions may not earn him an Oscar; nonetheless, his humility reunited a little girl with her family, allowing them more memories to cherish and giving her the opportunity of motherhood—something no movie deal can buy.

The Birches at Harleysville is a personal care and memory care community that provides assistance to seniors needing help with activities of daily living. Three delicious meals are prepared by our chef daily and served in a comfortable dining room complete with relaxing music and the companionship of friends. Our robust activity calendar is designed to meet every resident’s interest and activity level. The Birches offers a month-to-month lease, which includes housekeeping, laundry services, and transportation to medical appointments and other outings. Best of all there are no long-term contracts or entrance fees. Schedule your free, no-obligations tour with Alyssa Barndt, marketing director, by calling 215-541-3700.

The Birches at Arbour Square Personal Care and Memory Care is pleased to announce the community was presented with a 2017 Best of Senior Living Award for receiving consistently high ratings from residents and their families in the past year.

HARLEYSVILLE, Pa., Dec. 12, 2016 – Arbour Square Independent Living and The Birches at Arbour Square Personal Care and Memory Care in Harleysville, Pa. are proud to announce that they have both been selected as 2017 Best of Senior Living Award Winners on SeniorAdvisor.com, the largest ratings and reviews site for senior care and services in North America.

SeniorAdvisor.com’s Best of 2017 Award winners represent the best of the best of in-home care, assisted living, and other senior living providers, based on the online reviews written by seniors and their families. This exclusive designation honors the top one percent of senior care providers across the country.

“Arbour Square and The Birches are proud of this achievement and we are so grateful to have families that trust us in caring for their loved ones,” said Mimi Kehan, campus executive director. “We are thrilled to be able to provide care for senior loved ones and treat them just like our own family by creating a home for them where they can love life.”

The annual SeniorAdvisor.com Best of Awards tabulates over 130,000 family created reviews to find the best quality care providers for this honor. Of the nearly 200,000 communities currently listed on SeniorAdvisor.com, just over 1,600 were recognized with this prestigious award.

The Arbour Square campus offers a continuum of care for seniors in the Harleysville area. Both Arbour Square and The Birches at Arbour Square are winners, and regularly receive highly positive reviews from their families like this one: “Arbour Square facility and employees have answered and exceeded our prayers. Every single person we/they encounter go above and beyond to make our parents comfortable and truly strive to ensure mom and dad thrive and enjoy life in their golden years. There are activities, therapies, good food, beautiful facilities, wonderful people, so mom and dad can remain independent, yet we know they are cared for in a kind, caring, respectful way,” said Mary S.

“Families are increasingly looking to online reviews to find out who truly delivers great care for our seniors, not just who claims to deliver great care,” said Eric Seifert, President of SeniorAdvisor.com. “Our SeniorAdvisor.com Awards program is all about celebrating the exceptional people who do just that. We’re honored to spread the word about these organizations whom families can entrust with the care of their senior loved ones.”

To qualify for inclusion in the Best of 2017 Awards, providers must have maintained an average overall rating of at least 4.5 stars while receiving three or more new reviews in 2016. Additional details and a complete list of award winners can be found on SeniorAdvisor.com.

About SeniorAdvisor.com LLC

SeniorAdvisor.com is the largest consumer ratings and reviews site for senior living communities and home care providers across the United States and Canada. The innovative website provides easy access to the information families need when making a senior care decision, and features trusted reviews and advice from local residents and their loved ones. For more information, please visit www.SeniorAdvisor.com or call 866-592-8119.

About The Arbour Square Campus

The Arbour Square campus is the area’s most vibrant senior living community, offering a continuum of retirement options including independent living, personal care, memory care and home care. Arbour Square and The Birches at Arbour Square offer residents a unique retirement community on an affordable month-to-month lease with no entrance fees. Resident services include meals, housekeeping, social events and transportation. Home Care services are provided by Chestnut Knoll At Home and are available to assist seniors with daily living, meals, transportation and companionship in their own homes or apartments. For more information, please call Julie Kline, director of marketing, at 267-677-1204, or visit www.arboursquare.com.

Contact: Julie Kline, Campus Marketing Director, The Arbour Square Campus, 695 Main Street, Harleysville, PA 19438, 267-677-1204, jkline@arboursquare.com

LOWER SALFORD — The Birches of Harleysville has a new neighborhood.

Ribbon cutting and tours of the new Daybreak Memory Care Neighborhood, a self-contained area with dining, activity, living and lounge areas, along with outdoor space, for seniors with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia, was held by Indian Valley Chamber of Commerce on Dec. 9.

“I know that you will find that this new addition to our community and the memory care supports that it brings to Harleysville and the surrounding community is very much needed and will be an asset to the surrounding areas,” said Executive Director Justin Mason.

This is the Birches second Daybreak Memory Care Neighborhood and was built in an area previously used for personal care assisted living apartments, said Kevin McCollum, president of Heritage Senior Living, which owns the Birches.

“The goal of our Daybreak memory care program is to provide the best quality care for our residents, obviously, but in a supportive environment that’s a little bit smaller in the neighborhood and also is a little more intimate so we can get to know the residents a little more closely,” he said.

The new neighborhood has nine units for 12 residents, he said. The Birches at Harleysville has a total of 69 personal care and memory care units, 25 of which are for memory care, he said.

Planning for the project began in 2019, at which time the goal was that it would be completed in early- to mid-2020, he said.

Then the pandemic hit and changed the schedule.

“Here we are today at the end of 2021 and it’s finally about 99.9 percent complete, but we still have some logistical issues because there are some container ships floating around somewhere with some furniture,” McCollum said, “so hopefully we’ll get that here pretty soon.”

A final inspection for state licensing still had to be done after which residents could move in, he said.

McCollum also noted the work done by the health care workers during the pandemic.

“I personally just want to thank all of you for everything you’ve done because it means everything,” he said, adding thanks for “everything you continue to do.”