Colleen Simpson started working with GEF Seniors Housing in 1994 and has worked at multiple sites all throughout the organization before landing at Cathedral Close, where she works as an Assistant Manager. One constant that she has noticed, right from her first position at the original McQueen Place, is that hoarding behaviour is prevalent in … Continue reading The Edmonton Hoarding Coalition
Before Lisa Kutzner joined the GEF Seniors Housing team, she worked in visual presentation with multiple retail outlets including the Edmonton Eaton’s store. It was arranging furniture in those spaces that sparked her interest in completing her Residential Interiors certification with the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Extension. And it was during her studies that … Continue reading Designing Small Spaces with Lisa
When Mesert first arrived in Edmonton from Ethiopia, she didn’t think there would be much of a language barrier. She had learned English before immigrating and was confident integrating wouldn’t be a problem. There was one thing she didn’t account for in the language barrier though. “I couldn’t understand anyone’s accents!” Mesert explains. “I called … Continue reading English Classes at Virginia Park
Duane Krautman remembers getting the call that someone had collapsed in the 12th floor laundry room of Ansgar Villa. He was working on the 10th floor and didn’t hesitate to skip the elevator and run up the stairs once he understood how dire the situation was. He arrived to find Mary Benjamin on the floor, … Continue reading Duane at Ansgar
Stephanie Mahé holds six bags of yellow and orange ribbons, smiling at the hard work from the four residents at Ottewell Manor who volunteered their time and efforts for the ribbons that are a part of international World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10. The residents at Ottewell Manor are no strangers to the struggles of … Continue reading Mysterious Barricades
On October 8, 2017, Ed Archer will turn 97 years old. When he tells people how old he is, they don’t believe him. This might be because at almost 97 years old, Archer still hasn’t really retired. After he moved into Rosslyn Terrace in 2014, he started asking around to some of the staff at … Continue reading Eddie’s Workshop
Miss Hofman officially retired from teaching grades one to 12 in Edmonton’s German Bilingual and regular program schools in the summer of 2013, but her teaching career didn’t. She’s taking her experience from teaching in schools and teaching English classes in Germany and applying it in helping some of GEF Seniors Housing’s staff improve their … Continue reading English Classes Build Stronger Connections at GEF
This story was originally printed in the Edmonton Journal's Today's Senior section in partnerhsip with Post Media and the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council on October 31, 2016, and in the winter 2016 edition of the Community Connections newsletter. A special big thank you to Loreen Wales from Revive Wellness and Imran Sumra from Our Parent's Home for their … Continue reading Focusing on the Importance of Food for Healthy Aging
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