Post by Okwes on Mar 7, 2006 12:50:53 GMT -5
Elders celebrate new nursing home
Elders celebrate new nursing home
"We need to take care of them"
CHINLE AZ
Rick Abasta 3/6/2006
www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=76\
24
<http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=7\
624>
Community members, elders and tribal officials braved windy and cold
conditions to celebrate the new facility for the Navajoland Nursing
Home.
The new assisted living center will house 16 elders and bring the
residential capacity of the nursing home to a total of 83 clients.
William Clay, vice president for the NNH Board of Directors, said the
new home was created for the purpose of providing Navajo elders comfort
and a space for visitations from family and friends.
Speaking in Navajo, Clay said, "For a long time now, our Navajo
elders, men and women, have struggled with the realities of old age. We
need to take care of them.
"With this new home, we will be able to provide care for 16 elders.
Too many of our elders today are living at home alone. We are here to
provide services for them," he added.
One person who works closely with the Navajo elders of NNH has formed a
bond with many of the residents. Crystal Chee is a medical records
technician for the nursing home and has been working at the center for
the past two years.
"I like working with the elders, it's a learning experience for
me," Chee said. "I like to be around my elders because it's
keeping the Navajo traditions, culture and language alive.
While many of the elders prefer to keep to themselves, she said once
they begin socializing and opening up, there isn't a subject matter
that most of these elders wouldn't discuss. Therein lies the
opportunity to learn, she said.
Ella Dalton, an administrator for NNH, said the home was funded through
the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act block
grant funds in 2002.
"Because of the NAHASDA funding, we will now be able to house 16
clients in this home. We're all very appreciative of this funding
for the planning and construction of this home," Dalton said.
The assisted living center was designed by a Navajo architect, Loren
Miller, principal architect for the LAM Corporation. Designing the home
was a cinch for Miller, who said the primary concerns for the project
was staying within budget.
"The design was primarily based on providing housing for 16
residents, whether they are male or female," Miller said. "(NNH)
wanted the central facility to be a hogan shape for the dining and
living room area.
"The bedrooms were put off into the two wings and we had
residential-style kitchen facility," he added.
Miller said the design for the facility began in the fall of 2002 and
construction was initiated in the summer of 2003. Originally, NNH wanted
the whole facility to be in a hogan shape, but he said it was cost
prohibitive.
Besides the Chinle Assisted Living Center, Miller has worked on
NAHASDA-funded projects previously, constructing single family
hogan-style units in 2000 on the Navajo Nation.
"That project was for elders too," Miller said. "The
community, elders, adults and children need to respect these new
developments. This funding is not free.
"Each year, we have to deal with less and less funding. You read
about it in the papers every week about funding cuts. We have to
appreciate what we're given," he added.
Louis Shepherd, grants manager for Navajo Housing Authority Grants
Management, said the initial funding from the assisted living center
came in 2001, when the NNH received $172,453 from NAHASDA for planning
purposes.
Once everything was planned out for the center, Shepherd said NNH
received an additional $1,495,583 for construction of the center.
"This is a significant achievement and we commend the Navajoland
Nursing Home for bringing this project to completion," Shepherd
said. "There's a tremendous need for these services and
facilities to address the aging Navajo population.
"This is one of our success stories for providing group housing for
elderly Navajos on the reservation," he added.
The new assisted living center has opened doors for the construction of
more group homes for the future, Shepherd said.
Elders celebrate new nursing home
"We need to take care of them"
CHINLE AZ
Rick Abasta 3/6/2006
www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=76\
24
<http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=7\
624>
Community members, elders and tribal officials braved windy and cold
conditions to celebrate the new facility for the Navajoland Nursing
Home.
The new assisted living center will house 16 elders and bring the
residential capacity of the nursing home to a total of 83 clients.
William Clay, vice president for the NNH Board of Directors, said the
new home was created for the purpose of providing Navajo elders comfort
and a space for visitations from family and friends.
Speaking in Navajo, Clay said, "For a long time now, our Navajo
elders, men and women, have struggled with the realities of old age. We
need to take care of them.
"With this new home, we will be able to provide care for 16 elders.
Too many of our elders today are living at home alone. We are here to
provide services for them," he added.
One person who works closely with the Navajo elders of NNH has formed a
bond with many of the residents. Crystal Chee is a medical records
technician for the nursing home and has been working at the center for
the past two years.
"I like working with the elders, it's a learning experience for
me," Chee said. "I like to be around my elders because it's
keeping the Navajo traditions, culture and language alive.
While many of the elders prefer to keep to themselves, she said once
they begin socializing and opening up, there isn't a subject matter
that most of these elders wouldn't discuss. Therein lies the
opportunity to learn, she said.
Ella Dalton, an administrator for NNH, said the home was funded through
the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act block
grant funds in 2002.
"Because of the NAHASDA funding, we will now be able to house 16
clients in this home. We're all very appreciative of this funding
for the planning and construction of this home," Dalton said.
The assisted living center was designed by a Navajo architect, Loren
Miller, principal architect for the LAM Corporation. Designing the home
was a cinch for Miller, who said the primary concerns for the project
was staying within budget.
"The design was primarily based on providing housing for 16
residents, whether they are male or female," Miller said. "(NNH)
wanted the central facility to be a hogan shape for the dining and
living room area.
"The bedrooms were put off into the two wings and we had
residential-style kitchen facility," he added.
Miller said the design for the facility began in the fall of 2002 and
construction was initiated in the summer of 2003. Originally, NNH wanted
the whole facility to be in a hogan shape, but he said it was cost
prohibitive.
Besides the Chinle Assisted Living Center, Miller has worked on
NAHASDA-funded projects previously, constructing single family
hogan-style units in 2000 on the Navajo Nation.
"That project was for elders too," Miller said. "The
community, elders, adults and children need to respect these new
developments. This funding is not free.
"Each year, we have to deal with less and less funding. You read
about it in the papers every week about funding cuts. We have to
appreciate what we're given," he added.
Louis Shepherd, grants manager for Navajo Housing Authority Grants
Management, said the initial funding from the assisted living center
came in 2001, when the NNH received $172,453 from NAHASDA for planning
purposes.
Once everything was planned out for the center, Shepherd said NNH
received an additional $1,495,583 for construction of the center.
"This is a significant achievement and we commend the Navajoland
Nursing Home for bringing this project to completion," Shepherd
said. "There's a tremendous need for these services and
facilities to address the aging Navajo population.
"This is one of our success stories for providing group housing for
elderly Navajos on the reservation," he added.
The new assisted living center has opened doors for the construction of
more group homes for the future, Shepherd said.