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Show 10 Tooele Traascript, Thursday, May 6, 1982 Longest Resident pholot by Conrad Helping Hands This W aller what a nursing home is all about: Poeple who need help and other people providing that help with skill, love and kindness. May 9 through 15 is National Nursing Home Week. Fred Malta has been at the nursing home longer than any other resident. Fred, originally from New Mexico, takes an active part in the many activ ities provided for him and until recently worked out on the grounds. far- is There Is Still Plenty Of Life Behind Nursing Hbnie 9s 'Boors You won't hear the most exciting adventure tales in town down at the police or fire station. You won't see them on Saturday night television or at the local Veterans of Foreign Wars. You will find them at Tooele Valley Nursing Home. The most fascinating people in the world live right here in Tooele county. There is Joseph, who once was a guard at Buckingham Palace. And can relate adventures lived while teaching school on an Indian reservation. Peggy, who was Wayne Newtons still corresponds with him baby-sitte- r, and was on a first name basis with many of the worlds entertainment greats who performed in Las Vegas. Or there is Manning, an easterner whose father wanted him to be an engineer. He chose the west and ranching. He has been everywhere from the top of Pikes Peak to the depths of the earth in his quest for adventure. If you want to leam about life, visit the local nursing home. There is still plenty of it behind those doors. Of course any week is a great week to visit a nursing home, but if youve Or-lea- -- been hanging back because you didn't know quite what to expect, now is your chance. May 9 through 15 is National Nursing Home week. Some of us have the idea that once the doors of a nursing home close on an individual, they become somehow different than they were before. Actually a nursing home is just that a home - a home for people just like you and me, people who need a little extra -- sing-along- plans. To Sophia Makris the nursing home meant the start of a new life, not a place to die. Being confined to a wheelchair " There is still plenty of time get into trouble. I haven't spirit. Since she has been there, this special lady, who has known hard work and difficulties all her life, has crocheted more than 150 beautiful afghans and crocheted gifts, a skill she taught herself over half a century ago. Her handiwork adds to really got around to doing all the things I like to do. " There are the homes personnel who are always there to give whatever help is needed. There are new friends to swap stories with - friends to lend a listening 1 'iMc HH-,- : A - . . X4 r i na.old until a year ago, this tive of Creece chuckled in the spirit that is typical of the folks living in the nursing home. Mrs. Makris (Sophie to everyone she meets) lived a life full of hardships. Boro on the island of Crete, where she tended sheep on her fathers farm, she came to America at the age of 17 to keep her ear. To name just a few activities, there are special classes, visiting performers, crafts and hobbies, Bingo games and special celebrations along with good homecooked meals three times a day and excellent nursing care. A nursing home means people - special people who live there, who work there or who visit there. They are part of us - our lives are entwined with theirs. Far from being a place of despair, the nursing home is filled with hope and time and help. In reality, life doesnt end for these people. For some there is more going on inside a nursing home, more to do, than there was for them outside. k ; ; - brother company. know I was supbe old until a year to posed "I didn't D0 ago." hasnt dampened Sophies exuberant Like many a young immigrant of 1910, she dreamed of America as the end of the rainbow; instead she found a life .of work and difficulty. In New Mexico, where she had gone to join her brother, she met and married Mike Makris, but the young couples plans for prosperity were interrupted when Mike was seriously injured in an accident. i Sophie struggled to care for an ailing husband and nine children against great odds. She was isolated from the rest of the community to a great extent by her inability to speak English. Trying to communicate her needs to tradespeople was very discouraging and caused her much anguish, like the time she asked for oranges and was given onions. She threw them out the door and sat down and cried. The family moved from New Mexico to Helper where the climate was better, but life no easier. Sophie baked bread outside in a neighbors beehive oven. Each mixing used 48 pounds of flour, and she willingly shared her bread with her neighbors. an elegant touch to the nursing home and serves as a legacy for her children and grandchildren. I didnt know I was supposed to be o Busy As Ever Strength and humor are reflected in the face of Sophie Makris. A native of Greece, Sophie s strong character was built through a life of struggle, caring for nine children and an ailing husband. At the nursing home she finds time to crochet, mingle with many people, and work on learning the English language. y'" t wei If you want to leam about life , visit the nursing home. There is still plenty of it behind those doors. Far from being a place of despair , the nursing home is filled with hope and plans. - After her husbands death, she lived with her children and eventually came to Tooele to live with daughter Helen Paulos. r The Strongest Typical of the indomitable spirit of the folks at the Tooele Valley Nursing Home is Manning Johnston. At 93 years (and four months) he keeps himself in shape for his next adventure by doing 82 push-up- s each day. 4 i Now, Sophie continues to share her talents and her sense of humor with everyone around her. Being in the nursvistas for her, ing home has opened new a chance to meet many new friends. Still handicapped by her lack of knowledge of the language, she finds joy in watchshows as ing television especially such Sesame Street which is helping with her numbers and alphabet and in conversations with her room mate who also helps her with her English. Everyone who knows her says Sophie Newcomer The folks at the nursing home are just like you and me. They have worked a little bit harder, lived longer and know a little bit more than we do. Ralph Carter, 92, still has an engaging sense of humor and a twinkle in his eye. He doesnt plan to spend his time sitting around. |