Abundant Living Adult Day Care Services employees arrange the new furniture in the 'great room,' getting ready for participants return Monday. photo by Wayne Hinshaw, Salisbury Post

By Kathy Chaffin

Salisbury Post

Abundant Living Adult Day Care has a new home.

The spacious headquarters at 1416-A S. Boundary St. will bring together participants from its former locations at the Cathey-Hanford House on South Fulton and Haven House on Harrison Street.

Executive Director Barbara Garwood said the 6,648-square-foot facility will also allow the adult day care to serve twice as many people.

"We just really want folks to know we're there so we can reach the ones that need our services," Garwood said.

A total of 28 people, including those with dementia, Alzheimer's disease and physical disabilities that prevent them from staying home alone, participated in the adult day care program at its former locations.

With the additional space at the new center, Garwood said the program can serve up to 60 people.

Abundant Living, which will change its name to Abundant Living Adult Day Services when the new location opens Monday, was closed this past Wednesday through Friday to allow staff time to arrange furnishings and supplies.

The adult day care now fills half of the building that was previously owned by Thompson Screenprinting. Lutheran Services for the Aging purchased the building for $525,000, according to President Ted Goins, and renovated half for its state administrative offices.

Renovation of the Abundant Living side cost $920,000, Garwood said, of which $733,000 has been raised so far. The adult day care is a ministry of Lutheran Services for the Aging and an agency of the Rowan County United Way.

The dedication of the center and an open house will be held next month, with additional community events scheduled for 2008.

Garwood said not all of the participants understand that they're going into a new facility.

Of those that do, she said most are excited, but a few have expressed some apprehension.

"That's where our staff will come in and make them feel at home here," she said. "What I think is going to be really fun is when we get to see folks explore the new space and pick the spots that they like best."

A large covered entranceway will greet participants when they arrive on Monday. This will prevent people bringing their family members from having to hold onto a slippery wheelchair in the rain, according to Mary Ann Johnson, director of church and community relations for Lutheran Services for the Aging.

"The covered area will be a blessing and it will protect participants from the rain and the weather," Johnson said.

The front door of the center leads into a large lobby, where volunteer greeters will enter a security code allowing entrance to the rest of the building. Guests will use an intercom to be allowed in when there are no volunteers or staff in the lobby.

Inside, an expansive great room includes a small sitting area, an activity kitchen area with a large horseshoe-shaped counter and adjacent dining area featuring a 73-inch high-definition television with surround sound donated by F&M Bank.

Another more private sitting area is filled with comfortable recliners and lift chairs. "It will be a very comfortable, peaceful room," Garwood said.

Furnishings for the center were purchased with a grant from the Robertson Family Foundation, while the activity kitchen area was paid for with a Community Initiative Grant from the Rowan County United Way.

To one side of the great room are two sunrooms, one filled with 12 matching gliders and the other featuring a large table and chairs that can be easily moved and assembled somewhere else. Both lead to a covered porch with white rocking chairs and a paved courtyard where participants can walk and enjoy the landscaping or relax on patio furniture.

The Rowan County Sheriff's Department landscaped the courtyard as part of the Rowan County United Way's annual Day of Caring, Garwood said.

A bed of herbs at the front, for example, includes lavender, which she said is supposed to have a calming effect on people, and rosemary, which is believed to help improve memory.

The new Abundant Living Adult Day Care Services employees learn how to use the new bathtub. Paula Hill, Ann Rouser and Tracy Myers are learning the controls. photo by Wayne Hinshaw, Salisbury Post

Evergreens planted at the top of a rock retaining wall will buffer the traffic while jasmine will create a soothing aroma in the spring.

St. Luke's Episcopal Church has given Abundant Living a grant to for flower beds on mobile casters at a height that participants in wheelchairs will be able to smell and enjoy. "We have someone who is in the process of working on that," Garwood said.

The walls of the center are painted a light tan and a blue-green, which matches the countertops in an activity kitchen area. The furniture features various earth tones, with leaf prints on the cushions for the gliders and rockers.

The new center will also feature a treatment area where Ann Rouzer, RN, will monitor participants' medical conditions, dispense oral medications, give injections and change dressings and catheter bags. Her position is being expanded from part time to full time with the expansion of the program.

Three certified nursing assistants are also on the nine-member Abundant Living staff.

Additional positions will be added as more participants are admitted to the program. Garwood said families of the 30 people on the waiting list have been sent letters asking if they are still interested.

The kitchen in the new center is equipped with modern, commercial appliances. Staff prepares breakfast for the participants, she said, along with an afternoon snack.

Lunches are provided by the Lutheran Home at Trinity Oaks.

There are 10 bathrooms at the center, each one with handicap facilities.

New offerings at the center include a specialized bathtub designed for people who have difficulty getting in and out of a regular tub.

Also, Nancy Watkins will operate a beauty shop in the center.

"We're hoping that that will take another burden off of caregivers," Garwood said, "instead of having to make that extra trip to the beauty shop or the barber shop."

Both services are available at an extra cost.

A therapy room will allow participants to receive speech, occupational and physical therapy in private.

The cost of attending Abundant Living is $45 to $55 a day, she said, depending on the level of care that's needed.

Assistance is available through the Veterans Administration, Home and Community Care Block Grant funds administered by Rowan Senior Services, the State Adults Day Care Funds administered by Rowan County Department of Social Services and the Community Alternatives Program administered by Rowan Regional Medical Center.

Garwood said about a fourth of the participants are private pay.

Program hours will remain the same for now, Monday through Friday, from 7:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. For more information about Abundant Living or to enroll for a free day, contact Garwood at 704-637-3940 or visit www.lsanc.net and follow the prompts for adult day services.

Contact Kathy Chaffin at 704-797-4249 or kchaffin@salisburypost.com.