Staff of a local senior living community, Sterling House Shelby, made a big dream come true for their 96 year-old resident, Margaret Carswell. As a part of Sterling House Shelby’s parent company, Brookdale Senior Living, Experiences of a Lifetime program staff asked what she wanted to do that would be new and exciting.
As an avid baker, Carswell’s wish was to visit a Krispy Kreme bakery and learn how they made their donuts.
"When they told me I was going, I couldn’t believe it," said Carswell. "I couldn’t believe this was happening to me."
The local Krispy Kreme bakery in Gastonia agreed to help. Carswell was greeted at the door by Krispy Kreme representatives, and given a tour of the bakery where the famous donuts are made. She was offered to try a fresh baked donut from right off of the line, and she enjoyed it.
"It was better than any cake that I ever made," said Carswell. "It tasted like heaven."
"We were so excited for this event, and happy that we could do something special for one of our residents," said Lindsey Albrecht, life enrichment coordinator at Sterling House Shelby. "One of our cornerstones is to have fun and celebrate life every day. We fulfilled this through this special event."
Residents at Brookdale Senior Living communities nationwide were given the opportunity to share and submit their wishes as part of a program called Experiences of a Lifetime. They filled out a survey form explaining an experience they would like to have fulfilled, and how that related to one or more dimensions of the company’s Optimum Life® concept.
Brookdale’s Optimum Life® concept is geared toward cultivating whole-person wellness through fulfillment in six key dimensions: physical, emotional, purposeful, social, spiritual, and intellectual. The company’s Experiences of a Lifetime program provides a helping hand in making some of the dreams of its residents come true.
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