Q&A with Palmer Pioneer Home admin Joshua Shaver discussing senior support through the holidays

WASILLA — The Alaska Veterans and Pioneer Home in Palmer is working to support their residents through the holidays the best they can while working around the limitations caused by COVID-19.

Administrator Joshua Shaver recently participated in a question and answer interview to discuss their ongoing efforts to offer alternative ways to foster social connection with social distance and safety at the forefront of each endeavor.

Q: How have things been in general at the Pioneer Home?

“Things are continuing onward. It’s definitely not as lively as we would like it to be during the Christmas holidays. Normally, we have lots of school choirs and internal events, but we try our best to try and keep the holiday spirit alive.”

Q: What sort of things are you doing for the holidays?

“We had our Jack White annual Christmas party that they throw for all the residents this year, and they provide gifts and entertainment. It’s such a wonderful thing. That was done virtually through a Zoom teleconference… We’re doing all we can. We’re still doing Facetime visits with family members. We have enough iPads that we can accommodate quite a few at a given time… We’re just doing the best we can.”

Q: What other things do you have planned for the rest of the season?

“Well, we’re going to have special meals, and different celebrations inside the home. Fortunately we have a few staff members with some musical abilities and desire to serve the residents that way. So, that gives them some options there. We’ve got all of our decorations up inside.”

Q: Are you making any arrangements for family visits or video calls?

“So, any family that wants to arrange that just needs to reach out to us and our activities program and we schedule it through them.”

Q: So you’re allowing visitotrs then?

“Only through video conferencing; and we’ve done some window visitations where the family members are on the phone, standing outside the resident’s room.”

Q: So you’re still offering those window visits, and people just call to make an appointment to do that?

“Yes.”

Q: What else are you doing to support your residents through the holidays?

“I’d just say we’re pulling together. In times like this, staff are kind of filling in as surrogate family members with our elders. All staff here develop really close relationships with our elders. That’s really important, now more than ever.”

For more information about the Alaska Veterans and Pioneer Home in Palmer, call 907-745-4241 or visit dhss.alaska.gov/daph/Pages/palmer.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com