Ms. Lura Walsh turned 102 years old today! She enjoyed her chocolate birthday cake, stakeholders singing “Happy Birthday,” and most of all she enjoyed Sonny! Our facility dog brings such joy to our elders. They love for him to do tricks for snacks. Ms. Walsh doesn’t like to get up in a wheelchair, but with some encouragement from Sonny, she got up and went to the beauty shop to get her hair done for her birthday. As she got her hair fixed, she had Sonny doing “high fives” and “shake” for treats. Her giggle was priceless when he took a treat.
When I think about our culture change journey, I am so blessed that we have Sonny for our elders.He brings them joy, security, meaningm and connectedness, which enhances their quality of life.
As we celebrated her birthday, Sonny hopped up in bed and laid his head in her lap. Ms. Walsh smiled, petted his head, and love filled the room.