A Meaningful Birthday Celebration

Resident Bud Uyenoyama recently celebrated his 97^th birthday. Knowing that Uncle Bud enjoys playing cards, care partner CNAs Dee and Faina set up a table and started a card game. They taught Uncle Bud how to play a game called Monkey Monkey. Soon care partner Jay came by to join in the fun. Then Uncle Bud’s roommate joined in the fun and was teaching the care partners how to play poker, which is Uncle Bud’s favorite card game. 

This is a great example of several Eden Alternative Principles:

• Principle 4: "An Elder-centered community creates opportunity to give as well as receive care. This is the antidote to helplessness. - Uncle Bud's roommate taught Dee, Faina and Jay how to play poker. 
• Principle 5: "An Elder-centered community imbues daily life with variety and spontaneity by creating an environment in which unexpected and unpredictable interactions and happenings can take place. This is the antidote to boredom." - Uncle Bud's roommate and care partner Jay unexpectedly joined in the card game.
• Principle 6: "Meaningless activity corrodes the human spirit. The opportunity to do things that we find meaningful is essential to human health." - Uncle Bud had the opportunity to do something that was meaningful. 
• Principle 8: "An Elder-centered community honors its Elders by de-emphasizing top-down bureaucratic authority, seeking instead to place the maximum possible decision-making authority into the hands of Elders or into the hands of those closest to them." - Dee and Faina knew that Uncle Bud enjoyed playing cards, and decided to celebrate his birthday by playing cards. A manager or supervisor didn't ask them to do it.