Activity Sign-up Sheets

So you have created a terrific program idea for your independent living retirement community residents. You have advertised it well, and people are interested. How do you assure that those who want to attend go on the program and, if there is a charge for it, charge them?

At my retirement community, I have a space in the main lobby (also know as the club house by our marketing people), where I have a bulletin board and a place for sign up sheets. On the bulletin board are the posters for the on-going events and special programs that are taking place. On-going activities are to shopping trips, doctors offices, and religious services. I have them broken down into different binders: one for shopping (groceries and malls), one for doctors, sectioned in its own book by the direction the bus will travel (north, south, east or west). Each direction goes on specific days of the week and they are noted on the main calendar. And the last book for on-going activities is for religious services. This book is broken down by the day the bus  goes, Sundays or Fridays. For the most part, these on-going activities run smoothly as far as those who sign up, go, and those who don't sign up can usually add onto the bus without much concern. There are no fees for these kinds of buses in my community, so that is not an issue for me either.

The programs that I really wanted to address are those special outings that have a fee associated with them. I keep these sign-up sheets in a book that I call "In-House Programs and Activities Book." If you are like me, I have a few problems that have been issues forever. The first is that if I purchase tickets for a program, I make a sign- up sheet with that many spots on it. After those spaces are made, I stop numbering the lines and put the words WAIT LIST BEGINS BELOW. This didn't seem to work because the residents did not see those words and just assumed that if they added their name onto the page for the activity, that they were "good to go."  So, I started highlight the words in a different color on the sign up sheet. Still not much better.  Now, I started highlighting the entire section of the wait list. I've been saying now that if your name is in the colored section that you are on the wait list.

The wait list. What exactly does that mean to you and to your residents? That is problem number two. To me, being on a wait list means that the resident on that list is waiting to get a call from me to say that there is now space or ticket to go on the outing. I think that is pretty straight forward, but some folks don't understand that. That information is in their "Resident Guide to Services" book that they get when they first move in and is repeated on occasion in evening announcements that go out to the community on a bi-weekly basis.

The other problem that I have with sign-up sheets is that if a person on the list crosses their name off, that another person may come to the sign-up sheet and add their name to the list without consideration for the people's name on the wait list. Seems like they would be considerate, but people are people. I've been trying to pull the lists into my office when they are full and a wait list has started, but that does not always work. Then if a resident does not see the sign-up sheet, they have to either stop in or call me to have me add them to or cancel them from the list.

Another problem, though minor, that takes place in my retirement community is that sometimes people are mean and cross someones name off the list. It hasn't happened that often, but it has really happened. Sad. Not sure how to get around that, except to try and get that resident back on the list as quickly as possible.

And lastly, once the activity is going to go, I try to be in the lobby as the bus is loading to check off the people's names. This is not always possible, so what I've been doing lately is asking a resident volunteer to do it for me. Usually this would be a person on the list, but not always. If there are tickets involved, the volunteer will hand those out for me also. The problem occurs when a person who signed up, doesn't show up - especially if there is a wait list! It is so frustrating. Our policy is that if the resident doesn't show, and there is a cost that has been paid (not our own bus fee), that the resident will be charged for it. That makes it a little easier financially for the activities department budget, but that does not help the resident on the wait list who wanted to go. This is a problem that continues to annoy me.

Having a good procedure for signing up and charging the correct attendees for an outing is very important to the success of your department and to mine. I would love to see your thoughts on this subject. As you can see this is one area that I've been working on and still would like to get better!

Veterans Day Service

In our retirement community, Veterans Day is a very special event. This holiday honors the living veterans who served and are serving our great country. In our independent living community, we have Veterans from WWII, the Koren War and Vietnam War. Veterans Day is always celebrated on November 11 at 11:00 a.m.  (I think really it is suppose to be 11:11 am, but that might look funny on your calendar.)

Our program usually involves a few key elements. The first is that we ask the men in the community to make sure that we have the service stats so that we can announce their branch and length of service. This information may be printed on the day's program, used as part of a slide show or shared by the speaker leading the program.  We like to give our veterans a chance to stand out on this day. We ask them to gather together and proceed into the auditorium to sit in a reserved section for them. Sometimes I order a boutonniere or corsage for them to wear into the service, or give them a flag pin, bumper sticker, or other small special gift.

The program begins with the pledge of allegiance and is followed by prayers, songs and speakers. My community's chaplain is the principal participant in this holiday event. I have assisted him with decorations, creating the program, hiring a guest speaker, get a color guard from the area's high school, and making a special slide show that shows the resident in an active duty photo, followed by a current day photo. I was lucky with this and had a resident help getting the old pictures scanned and taking the new ones. Maybe you have that type of volunteer in your community. We also include the playing of each of the branches specific song and ask each person in the audience to stand when they hear a song that is special to them. This is very touching and moves me to tears each time as I look around and see the pride in the audience.  Remember in order to get a speaker or color guard, you will need to plan ahead. This date and time are the same for everyone, and they may be booked already if you wait to long.

In an effort to keep the Veterans Day service fresh every year, we rotate the use of a segment of our program. It is really designed for Memorial Day, but we include it every other year in our Veterans service. It is the White Table Service. Basically:

The table is round — to show our everlasting concern for our missing men.
The tablecloth is white — symbolizing the purity of their motives when answering the call to duty.
The single red rose, displayed in a vase, reminds us of the life of each of the missing, and the loved ones and friends of these Americans who keep the faith, awaiting answers.
The vase is tied with a ribbon, symbol of our continued determination to account for our missing.
A slice of lemon on the bread plate is to remind us of the bitter fate of those captured and missing in a foreign land.
A pinch of salt symbolizes the tears endured by those missing and their families who seek answers.
The Bible represents the strength gained through faith to sustain those lost from our country, founded as one nation under God.
The glass is inverted — to symbolize their inability to share this evening’s [morning''s/day''s] toast.
The chairs are empty — they are missing.
A Candle– Lit to remember that the light of America will always be the light in a world of darkness.



I found a great place for getting a free information, including a Veterans Day poster each year on the internet. There is also a place where you can learn about films that honor the fallen. You may want to use this in the evening following your service, or save it for Memorial Day. And lastly, I found a place that shows videos that celebrates Veterans:http://www.military.com/video/specialties-and-personnel/veterans/militarycom-celebrate-our-veterans/666271426001/  You might be able to save it onto your computer and use it in your service.

This is one of those days that I truly believe is a "must do, and must do right" program that you should have in your retirement community every year. It means so much to so many in your community.

Halloween

It's almost that time of year when you can get dressed up in a costume at work. Oh, wait, you are an activities director in a retirement community..... you do that on a regular basis. If you are like me, you have a "costume closet" somewhere at work or in your house so that you are ready for any theme party that comes your way. It is one of the fun parts about being an activities director.

If you are like me, what you want to wear and what is okay to wear to work are usually different. Halloween is no exception! In my community, residents pay close attention to my wardrobe and the last thing I want to do is offend anyone. Because of that, I do tend to dress a bit conservatively. For Halloween, I don't wear, or display, anything that is related to death or anything that is evil.

I've taken time, so that you don't have to, and found costumes that I feel I could wear (some with modifications -  like adding tights, etc) to work. I've eliminated anything that was to scary, gross, skimpy, childish, or that we, as activities professionals, get to wear from time to time in our jobs. There are some here for men, women and those that would work for either sex. Put your mouse over the pictures for details and click to go to the item's page. If you don't see anything below, click here to see them all. Most have free shipping and returns.

Now is the time to order so that you can assure that you have your costume for Monday, October 31st! Happy Halloween!