Story and photo by Darl DeVault, Contributing Editor
Community Relations Director Denise Diaz welcomed 51 Senior Business Solution colleagues to their networking luncheon on June 16 at their Edmond Iris Memory Care community. She explained their two-stage memory care philosophy of caring for residents at each stage of their disease in a safe environment at the monthly gathering of senior healthcare marketers and senior-focused company workers.
Sponsor Diaz outlined the importance of meeting a person living with dementia at the level and stage of their disease. “Not everyone has the same type of dementia, so providing quality, compassion-filled care with dignity is our focus,” Diaz said. “By meeting residents’ needs and providing emotional support and education to their families with monthly support groups and family-centered events, our Iris family becomes an extension of our resident’s family.”
She turned the meeting over to Bill Muir, CSA and owner of Compass Senior Living Solutions. He explained how important it is for executives addressing area aging agendas to network. Networking is essential to his company, as it provides a free placement service giving personalized tours to some 55 senior communities in the area at every level of need.
Many attendees were learning about their community peers for the first time. For others, it was apparent they had been attending the networking luncheons for many of the six years the group has been getting together.
Muir, another sponsor and the original organizer of the luncheons, also emphasized the services available from the Oklahoma Assisted Living Association. He said OKALA is a non-profit statewide trade organization dedicated to preserving dignity and choice for older Oklahomans and the quality of their care in the senior living setting.
Sponsor Joe Forrest with Re/Max First has been helping seniors in Oklahoma for 25 years via ownership, operations and management of senior healthcare organizations. He has worked in-home healthcare services, independent and assisted living, and rehabilitation. He has been a realtor for the past 20 years.
He expressed how important it is to have a robust group of experts to support the agenda. “Serving the senior population and their families is permanently embedded in my DNA,” Forrest said in an interview. “This SBS group is committed to quality care and smooth transitions when different levels of care are necessary.”
He applauded the gathering of dedicated caregivers on the many needs addressed to create a healthy way to address seniors’ needs in Oklahoma.
The luncheon continued with each invitee giving a few minutes of background on their employer and how they saw their role in helping seniors with their needs in the community. A few people outlined special events their venues were planning in the near future, inviting others to attend. Proveer at Quail Creek invited everyone to participate in a block party they were preparing for the following Thursday.
Lisa James represented the third sponsor of the event, CompleteOK, expressing the importance of attending to the needs of military veterans. As a community liaison based at their SW 89th Street facility, she said company facilities around the state were busy doing that. These Veterans Homemaker Program services can help veterans living in their homes and serve veterans of any age, paid for by the Veterans Administration.
