ALF # 13252

2940 NE 207th Street, Aventura, FL 33180 PH: 786.496.0142

Monthly Newsletter

Your Community Staff

July 2020

Keith Litman Executive Director

Laura Buitrago Director of Administration

Barry Ger Director of Sales &Marketing

Lourna St. Vil Director of Resident Care

Rolf Nettesheim Director of Food Service

Brenda Siino Director of Activities

Georgina Scott

Director of Resident Relations

Jose Cabral Director of Maintenance

& Housekeeping

Fun Facts about July • It is the second summer month after June. There are many countries which have their Independence Day during the month of July. These in-

clude the United States, Belarus, Venezuela, Argentina, Belgium, the Bahamas, Colombia and the Maldives. The national days for France and Canada occur in July as well.

• July is the warmest month in the Northern Hemisphere on average. It is similar to January in the Southern Hemisphere. • Sometimes the hot, long days of July are called the "dog days of summer". • It is sometimes called the Hay month because the grass dries out due to a lack of rain and can be made into hay. • July's birthstone, the ruby, is often associated with contentment, love, passion, and integrity.

Solution: Puzzle #1 Step up to the plate. Puzzle #2 The coast is clear. Puzzle #3 As the case may be Puzzle #4 Pop goes the weasel

July Happenings

July is: Special Days

From the Director of Activities

Canada Day July 1

Independence Day July 4

National Bikini Day July 5

National Kitten Day July 10

Bastille Day (France) July 14

World Emoji Day July 17

National Ice Cream Day July 19

Anti-Boredom Month Blueberries Month

Chess and Checkers Month Color Your World Month

Cupcake Month Hot Dog Month

Ice Cream Month Ladybugs & Lightning Bugs Month

Man on the Moon Month Outdoor Living Month

Parks & Recreation Month Patriotic Month

Picnic Month Swimsuit & Bikini Month

Unusual Crafts & Hobbies Month Water Gardening Month

Staff Birthdays Claire W. July 2

Beryl K. July 7

Sam N. July 7

Abraham A. July 10 Rose Z. July 20

Shirlee L. July 20 Fern N. July 29

Yedda G. July 29

What’s Lucky in July? Lucky Color: Gold

Lucky Animal: Panther Lucky Letters: V and H

Lucky Day: Thursday Lucky Plant: Viole

Celebrating July Birthdays

Rose Cange : July 13

Dahlia Webb: July 17

Altagracita Cloris: July 23

Louise Daniel: July 23

Babette Samuels: July 25

Birthstone – Ruby Flower – Larkspur

Tree of the Month – Walnut

July was first called Quintilis, which meant “fifth month.” When Jul-ius Caesar changed the Roman calendar in 44 BC, it became the seventh month of the year. Then, when Caesar was assassi-nated the next year, Quintilis, the month in which he had been born, was renamed Julius (July) in his honor. However, the name change was not made legal until four months later, when the appearance of a comet was taken to be a sign of Caesar’s power.

Dear Residents,

Thank you for the invitation to your socially distanced resident council meeting a couple of weeks ago. I always enjoy the opportunity to hear your input, answer your questions, and keep you informed of all that we do to make your stay enjoyable. Unfortunately, earlier this month we have been seeing the COVID-19 numbers surg-ing in south Florida. As a result, we are very much still urging you to not leave the building unless the visit is medically necessary as indicated by your doctor and cleared by Lourna. We will also be the ones providing transportation to and from any medically necessary appointment and ask that you follow the strict procedure we now have in place when you are leaving and returning to the building. You will receive a copy of this policy in your mailbox.

Alternatively, many of you with offsite physicians have been able to see your doctors via telehealth from the comfort of the Plaza. Our staff has been accommodating these appointments and they have been very successful. Lourna will be happy to arrange Telehealth visits with your physicians.

A new staff testing mandate has come from the Governor’s office. The State of Florida has mandated that all long-term care facility staff be tested every 14 days. We are waiting for the testing kits to be de-livered here and we will be administering them every 14 days.

Many of you are also requesting your own test results. According to the state-appointed testing compa-ny who tested you the other week, we would have been contacted if any of you had tested positive, so that is good news. Since they have had the results for a while now, I am working on getting the bulk re-sults delivered to The Plaza, so I can forward them to you.

Thank you all for the support all these months and for letting us keep you safe. We are at your service every day and confident that everything is going to be alright!

Sincerely,

Keith Litman

Your Executive Director

From the Executive Director

July Zodiacs Cancer (The Crab)

July 1–22 Leo (The Lion)

July 23–31

Dear Residents, Party like it's 1776! Happy Independence day, U.S.A!

The summer weather gives us a nice reason to sit outside and soak up some sun. In Florida we know, remain safe, but if you have any questions, please ask us.

Rain or shine, we've got activities. We've seen continued participation growth, which makes us happy. Even when there isn't a scheduled activity, it's important to keep busy; read, work on a word puzzle, or exercise your creativity, we can provide materials if you need. I encourage you all to participate in activities as much as pos-sible and have fun! I love seeing all of your smiling faces every day. Brenda Siino

Improved Memory Solving puzzles helps reinforce existing connections between our brain cells. It also increases the generation of new relationships. This, in turn, improves mental speed and thought processes. Better Problem-Solving Skills The ability to creatively solve problems and think critically is greatly valued in the workforce. Puz-zles help us develop all of those important skills. Puzzles require us to take different approaches to try and solve a problem since there’s a lot of trial and error involved. We also learn the value of formulating theories, testing hypotheses, and chang-ing our perspectives when something doesn’t work out according to plan. Improved Visual-Spatial Reasoning When solving a jigsaw puzzle, we have to look at different pieces and figuring out where they fit within the larger picture. Doing this regularly helps improve our visual-spatial reasoning. More Education Opportunities Crossword puzzles and other word games provide great educational opportunities. They help us improve our vocabulary, as well as our language, research, and spelling skills. You’re never too old to challenge yourself by learning new words and phrases, and puzzles provide a fun way to accomplish that. Increased IQ Puzzles provide improvements to our vocabulary, memory, and overall reasoning. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that one of the other benefits of puzzles is that they help raise our IQ (intelligence quotient). One researcher from the University of Michigan even found that adults could boost their IQ by four points after spending 25 minutes a day playing puzzle games. Delay Dementia and Alzheimer’s Even if you don’t care about raising your IQ, keeping your brain active with puzzles can help delay the symptoms of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Studies show that keeping the mind active through puzzles and other problem-solving activities can reduce the amount of brain cell damage that occurs in Alzheimer’s patients. It also supports the growth of new nerve cells and strengthens the connections between them. Improved Mood Another one of the benefits of puzzles is that they increase our brains’ production of dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that regulates mood and feelings of optimism. It also affects memory, concentration and motivation. Lower Stress Levels At the same time that puzzles challenge us, they also help us to relax. Our brains also go from a “Beta,” or wakeful, state to an “Alpha” state when we’re solving puzzles. The Alpha state is similar to the state we’re in when we’re dreaming. When you’re trying to solve a puzzle, especially a jigsaw puzzle with tiny pieces that all look alike, attention to detail is crucial. You need to train your eyes to pick out slight differences in color or shape that will help you put everything together.

What are the benefits of puzzles for adults?