Music at the Home

Last week at the Veterans’ Home I had a lot of fun.  The musicians that came were the same ones from last month so it was a little boring but we found a way to have a good time.  When I first arrived, the two people I volunteer with and I had some time to kill before the event started so we sat in the lobby and talked with one of the musicians.   It was really nice because we all had played instruments before and we were talking about our experiences.  It made me realize how much I miss playing in my high school orchestra (I always swore I would never miss that)!

             After a while of talking about our pasts it was time for us to go get residents for the event.  We ended up in a conversation with a group of men for a good while.  One guy told us that his cousin was the original guy that sang “Jingle Bell Rock”!  We thought it was really awesome! As much as we enjoyed the conversation, we had things we were supposed to be doing and it was rather hard to get out of the conversation.

            As we were leaving to go to another wing of the Veterans’ Home we asked a man if he wanted to come to the show.  He looked at us and began to cry.  It was really hard for me to watch.  It turns out that he was just having a bad day.  We ended up convincing him to come listen to the music and he had a good time.  It was really nice knowing that we helped cheer him up.

            Although we had already heard the show before it was still entertaining.  The musician that we talked to before the show brought a really cool guitar.  It looked like a shark and had a built in amplifier!  It was a really good day at the Veterans’ Home.

Busy Schedules

It has only been two weeks since I have been at the Veterans’ Home but it feels like much longer!  I cannot believe how much of a routine it has become.  If I remember correctly, tomorrow night at the Veterans’ Home should be live entertainment.  This is one of my favorite nights because we just get to sit there and listen to the music.  It is very relaxing after a stressful day at school!  It is also nice to see how much the residents like the music.  Last time the band came the singer sang the song “You are my sunshine”.  While singing, she went around, held each resident’s hand one at a time, and got him or her to sing with her.  It was really nice to watch. 

            Last week was probably the most stressful week I’ve had so far at Purdue.  Because of a Calculus exam I was not able to volunteer at the Veterans’ Home.  I really enjoy volunteering and I wish I did not have to miss last week but it is becoming very hard to juggle everything.  I am starting to get stressed by the mandatory thirty hours.  It really has been a hard transition from home to college mostly because I do not have a car.  Instead of being able to go somewhere whenever I want I have to plan out how I am going to get to and from where I want to go.  Volunteering would be so much easier if I could drive myself there!  When I volunteer on Monday nights I rely on the girl I work with to take me home.  I always have that worry that she will not show up one week and I will not know how to get home!  Thankfully everything always turns out fine! (: I hope everyone’s service work is still going well! 

Black Jack

Because of Fall Break I wasn’t able to volunteer at the Veterans’ Home last week.  I was kind of bummed because it was the ice cream social which I really enjoyed working the first time.  There will be more in the future so it’s okay.  Two weeks ago we played black jack and that was a lot of fun.  There were not enough residents at my table so I got to play with them while my friend was the dealer.  We would help the residents make their decisions and get really excited when we would beat the dealer.  Unfortunately I was not the best at black jack and lost.  Good thing it was only for fun!  After the game was over I walked a lady back to her room.  She really enjoyed black jack and even won at the other table! When we got to her room she had me put her prize on her shelf and showed me around her room.  I had somewhere to be so I felt bad telling her I had to go but when I did she hugged me goodbye and told me she loved me.  It was really sweet! 

            I really enjoy volunteering at the Veterans’ Home and getting to interact with the residents but I also really enjoy the people that volunteer with me.  It’s nice to be able to go and have a good time with people that are also students at Purdue.  I am the youngest volunteer in my group so they all give me tips and help when it comes to college.  Meeting them made things less stressful for me because they now give me rides and make me feel comfortable.  This English class is what led me to the volunteering at the Veterans’ Home but I will probably stick with it even after the class is over.  I have to miss volunteering again this week because of a math exam but I am anxious to get back next week!  I will keep you all updated! (:

Horse Racing

I realized that my last update was misleading. When I said that my next event at the Veterans' Home was going to be horse racing it came across like maybe we were going to watch horse races. That was not the case.  When my friend and I walked into the auditorium last Monday there were two guys standing there. One was a paid worker and he was very surprised that we were there. Apparently three volunteers was a lot for Monday night activities, which surprised me.  There was an oval shaped table in the middle of the room with different color tracks and wholes all around it.  This was the horse racetrack.  Only about seven or eight people showed up this week for the planned event.  I was surprised because I thought the residents would want to get out more and have some fun.  The residents that were there seemed to be the typical crowd.  They took turns passing the dice around while waiting for the game to start so they could practice.  I thought it was funny because to me, dice games are all luck.

         At six thirty it was time to start the game. They went around the table rolling to see who would get to go first.  The person with the highest roll went first.  The residents would roll the die and the number they rolled was how many holes on the track they would get to move.  It sounds like a boring game but most of the residents got really into it.  They would cheer when they got a high number and would hate rolling snake eyes. 

         I ended up sitting next to the guy that was not too interested in the game but more interested in having good company.  He told us we were lucky to be sitting next to the “oldest man in the room”, he was ninety-six! He had us all cracking up.  My friend said she was being a “smart Alec” and he responded with “you knew Alec?!”.  He talked about being in the Navy and training new recruits.  He was so nice and really nice to talk to.  I really hope he comes back next week.  I do not know what tomorrow’s game is but I’m really looking forward to it. (:

Ice cream Social

Monday was my first day volunteering at the Veterans Home.  I am working events every Monday and this week was the ice cream social.  Since this was my first time I had no clue what to expect.  What I pictured in my mind was a group of friendly elderly people gathering in a hall eating ice cream and having a good time.  In reality it was not like that.  Don't get me wrong, there were a lot of people there who were friendly and having a good time, however some were not.  Some residents should not have been there at all which put us volunteers in a tough spot.  As a volunteer we are not allowed to feed any of the residents so when a resident was having a hard time eating their ice cream we had to try and figure out what to do. 

The first thing I was assigned to do was go and get residents to bring them to the ice cream social.  That was fun because we got them really excited about coming.  We'd ask what their favorite flavors and toppings were and they usually had a special order they got at every one. One thing that was hard for me was learning how to slow down.  I am used to power walking to class every day but walking with and elderly person or pushing a wheel chair really causes you to slow down.

When we arrived at the ice cream social we'd seat the residents and ask what they'd like. Sometimes it was frustrating because we couldn't understand what they were saying.  I always feel rude asking "what?" multiple times but I didn't know what else to do.

One of the best parts of the night was that two of the residents provided entertainment.  One played the piano and they both sang.  They were pretty good!  They would play military songs, slow songs, fast songs, and even some current songs.  One of the residents even asked my friend to dance with him which was really nice to see. 

Although there were a lot of frustrating parts of that night, in the end it was really nice.  I had a good time and it helped me slow down and look at things in a different way. I am really looking forward to my monday nights and the rest of the year.  Next week's event is horse racing.