Weekly Update December 23, 2021
December 23, 2021
To: Solheim Employees, Residents, Family Members and Stakeholders
From: Sam Oden, CEO of Solheim Senior Community
(Note: Due to the Christmas Holiday, this will serve as our Weekly Update.)
Christmas is finally here, and I can’t say it enough—I feel very blessed to be part of the Solheim community. It is a joy to see our residents and their friends and family members enjoying all the wonder that this season brings: singing carols, enjoying hot cocoa, and even savoring a little “snow” during our ‘Saturdays at Solheim’! I wish all of you and yours a joyous and peaceful Christmas holiday, and I am excited to look ahead to 2022.
As a reminder, it’s not too late to show your appreciation for our staff with a monetary donation. Visit www.solheimsenior.org/donate to give, or contact Tina Antypas for more information. As we near the end of the year, you may also offer kind words through our Solheim Feeling Employee Recognition nomination cards found at the front desk or nursing stations, or visit us online at www.solheimsenior.org/employee-recognition. Nominations received through December 31st will be considered for our ‘Employees of the Quarter’ for the 4th Quarter of the year!
I’m excited to announce that starting next month, we will be partnering with the USC Thornton School of Music to provide weekly music therapy to residents within our Halvorson Memory Care Neighborhood. Music is very important to us here at Solheim (as evidenced by our 3 grand pianos spread across campus), and studies are now increasingly proving what I think many of us have long suspected: music has an incredible power to improve mood, enhance learning and concentration, and even ward off the effects of brain aging. We hope that this pilot program will prove to be just the beginning of a long and mutually fruitful partnership with the Thornton School of Music, and it’s yet another reason to be excited about what the coming year will bring here at Solheim.
To remind everyone about our ongoing protocol for visitations: For visitations throughout campus—from our Health Center, to our Residential and Assisted Living Campus, to our Halvorson Memory Care Neighborhood—in accordance with guidance provided by our regulatory agencies, we require either proof of vaccination, or proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of the visitation. (We have rapid testing available on site, Monday through Friday, during business hours for unvaccinated visitors who have not been able to obtain a test within the previous 72 hours. Rapid testing returns results within approximately 15 minutes and there is a $20 administrative fee for this service.) All rules and protocol remain unchanged, and we thank you for your continued partnership, diligence, and patience in continuing to follow all of these important guidelines.
I’d also like to reiterate again—as always—that especially as we enter cold and flu season, if you are sick or not feeling well, please postpone your visit and do not come to campus until you’re feeling well again.
As of today’s writing, I am very happy to report thatwe have no new confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 anywhere on campus.
If you have any specific questions, please direct them to Tina Antypas at 323 257-7518 X225 or tantypas@solheimsenior.org.