MORE HIGHLIGHTS FROM LIFE   

LIFE is a diverse community and residents celebrate the holidays in different ways according to their faith.  At LIFE, there is respect for each resident's belief and staff provide supports for individuals' seasonal celebrations, often facilitating transportation to places of worship. Tara Gertel celebrates Hanukkah, and each December her parents host a Hanukkah party at the LIFE Mashpee recreation center.  All residents are welcome to attend.  It is a festive celebration with traditional Jewish food, decorations, and games.  "I love that my parents do this", said Tara. "We have such a great time, and it's nice to share my traditions with my friends."  Eileen Flaherty usually leaves in mid December to celebrate Christmas with her family, so she begins decorating her home early.  Walking into Eileen's condo in November is a trip into a winter wonderland; every table top lends a home to her collection of nutcrackers and holiday decorations.  But the piece de resistance is her dazzling Christmas tree, full with unique ornaments that Eileen has collected throughout her life.

   For LIFE residents, December is a celebratory time, but they never forget those who are less fortunate in our community.  Hyannis residents recently collected food for a huge Thanksgiving basket, that they delivered to the Salvation Army. And throughout December, residents at the Mashpee and Hyannis communities will contribute to the local homeless shelters and food pantries, and they will again participate in the Salvation Army's "Dress a Live Doll" project. 

  So, however you celebrate the Holiday season, we wish you warmth, generosity, joy and peace.   

A Dreamer and Doer....   

"They say dreams can come true, it can happen to you..."  So goes the song, and these words certainly apply to two poet/artist Cynthia Goldberg of LIFE at Mashpee.

Cynthia has always particularly loved reading in public and performing on stage.  During an art opening at the Cotuit Center for the Arts last winter, she was given an opportunity to read two of her poems to the attendees.  That was the beginning of a lasting relationship.  For the past 6 months, Cynthia has been ushering at the center's performances and performing a variety of other tasks there.  "Since I love theatre and plays, this is has been so great for me", she said. "I thought that maybe I would have the courage to audition for a part someday"; and so she did...Cynthia is now a member of the chorus of the Winter Solstice Celebration performance at the center. Bravo, Cynthia!  (check out the schedule at cotuitarts.org )     

Tripp Gillespie of Mashpee has been happily employed at Jiffy Lube for over four years. We are happy to share that Tripp's great attitude and customer- friendly attitude has resulted in his receiving a great promotion. Tripp has always loved dealing with customers and his helpful attitude has not gone un-rewarded. Tripp is now a Greeter Service Reviewer at Jiffy Lube.  In his new role, after cars are serviced and inspected, Tripp deals directly with customers to suggest products and services that will keep their cars in tip-top shape. He also does double duty as a cash-out-greeter when needed.   Dan Fellows, Tripp's supervisor, said that Tripp is really excelling in his new position. "He is just perfect for this job and we couldn't be happier with his performance", said Dan.

Kudos to you, Tripp.  The entire LIFE community congratulates you for a job extremely well done!

NEWS BLAST: We have introduced an exciting new fitness initiative at LIFE..."The LIFE Challenge".  This innovative new program is a real fitness motivator in that it engages residents *and* staff members to form teams for some friendly fitness competition.  Teams earn points for running miles, walking, engaging in sports and regular workouts, and even for engaging in "no sugar" days -a tough one for some of our staff members :)

The program, which is supervised by Fitness Director, Ian Saarmann, and Fitness Assistant, Kim Cassim, has been a big hit and almost all of the staffers are participating on teams. Everyone is losing pounds and getting stronger.  "Even some of our staff 'hold-outs' have now signed up as alternates; they are beginning to feel left out, if they are not participating in the fun", said Kim.  Stay tuned to future e-letters- we'll be filling you in on the next episode of our very own fitness reality show!    

                              Kim with resident, Mike Shapiro              

All rights reserved, LIFE, Inc., 2011