Much like the residents they care for, the team members at The Atrium at Boca Raton are a fascinating group of people! With hobbies that range from falconry to scuba diving to motorcycle riding, the team members at The Atrium bring a great deal of diversity to residents’ lives by sharing their personal interests and backgrounds. Executive Director Sandy Sternefeld sums up the atmosphere at The Atrium, saying, “Everyone on the management team has a passion for what they do, and we’re a family. That passion attracts like-minded people and it filters down and filters out.”
Ask Activity Director Amelia Verlin about the most interesting facet of life at The Atrium and she’ll laugh and say “Where do I start?” Amelia, a falconry enthusiast and former jeweler who makes handbound books with beautiful Japanese papers, posted a photo of her work on Instagram and in so doing, struck up a friendship with a Japanese woman named Setsuko who admired Amelia’s work and recognized the paper used. That friendship has blossomed and grown to include residents at The Atrium, giving the community a unique overseas friendship that continues to thrive (with a little help from social media)! Gifts and photos are exchanged regularly, and residents look forward to hearing from their Instagram “pen pal” in Japan!
International friendship via social media seems to be a theme at The Atrium. The residents have also befriended a photographer named Jake, a native of Marrakesh, who travels to exotic locales to take photos for the camera company Canon. The friendship began with a resident “liking” a photo Jake posted on Instagram, and the rest is history. Questions, photos and videos now fly back and forth regularly! In his recent travels to Africa, Jake shared some amazing pictures with The Atrium’s team members and residents. In return, the residents made a mezuzah for Jake, which now travels with him and is placed on the front of his tent wherever he may be.
Ana McKinney, Sales and Marketing Director at The Atrium and a native of Lima, Peru, notes that the residents and team members at The Atrium share a thirst for knowledge and a genuine interest in one another’s interests and backgrounds. She was thrilled to share details about the culture of her beautiful home country when residents asked questions, and says that each resident has a story to tell as well. Whether learning about falconry or Facebook, residents and team members delight in their diversity!
At Senior Lifestyle our skilled and compassionate team helps Senior Living residents learn, grow, and connect in ways they never expected. The best part is that we learn from our residents even more than they learn from us, which might explain why our programs and services continue to evolve and improve every year.