On Saturday, March 16th, from 12:00 p.m. to 3 p.m, The Roslyn branch visited an Intermediary Care Facility in Bayville which is run by the Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau County.
This intermediary care facility that CPNassau created has assisted many individuals with disabilities since 1984. Currently, the facility is at its maximum number of residents with a total of 47. They also have a team of 120+ staff working here to ensure the well-being of these residents. If residents’ health and life skills improve, they can be moved to group homes. However, if their health deteriorates and they require additional medical assistance, then they may be moved to a nursing home or hospital.
When we arrived, we introduced ourselves and we were also welcomed by many residents and staff. We began with a group exercise which consisted of 15 simple exercises that the residents in wheelchairs can do. These exercises consisted of movements such as reaching as high as you can to stretching your arms out and to the sides. This allowed the residents to move around and get some exercise since many of them have limited mobility in their wheelchairs. While doing these exercises, we noticed all the residents trying their hardest to do them and also having a great time. After the exercise, everyone participated in a game of bingo. Each of us paired with a resident who needed some hand-over-hand assistance. We had a great time playing and we played until there were three residents with bingo. These residents were also very excited to receive a prize of a wristband of their choice. We were all surprised when we saw all of the residents’ collections of wristbands to show how many games they had won. After Bingo, we did a relay race where we had to push the residents’ wheelchairs while they held a spoon with a plastic egg on it. We split the residents into 2 teams and did a relay race. Although the space was limited, everyone enjoyed the game. After the relay race, we brought in our giant Connect 4 set and we split the residents into 2 teams. Then, each member of the teams took turns putting each circle into the set. We had a little trouble with some residents not being able to reach the top of the set because they were in their wheelchairs. However, we came up with a solution to pick up the set and tilt it towards them so they could easily make their decision and place the circle into the set. It was crucial to be patient as some of the residents thought carefully about their decisions or had a little trouble with placing the circle in the set.
Today the facility was having a monthly birthday celebration for the residents with March birthdays.There was music, dancing, and singing and everyone had a great time. There was a DJ who played many fun songs. All the staff and residents were dancing and singing to the music. Everyone worked together to create a fun and lively environment for the residents. In addition, this experience taught us that patience and teamwork is very important.
Members who participated include: Maxim Li (3.0 hours), Jordan Bae (3.0 hours), Leah Chan (3.0 hours), Leo Zheng (3.0 hours), Nicholas Eng (3.0 hours), Letao Tao (3.0 hours), Serena Chen (2.5 hours), Michael Zhang (2.0 hours), and Angelika Jiang (2.0 hours)
Reporter – Maxim Li
