WellStar is MorningStar’s signature wellness program. The charge of our Wellness and Life Enrichment Teams is to present residents with creative ways to stay active and productive for man’s good and God’s glory.
At MorningStar, each day is filled with opportunities to ignite a plan that enhances health and wellness. Our activities integrate different modalities and senses to feed the whole body and brain. The result? Reduced pain. Less reliance on medication. A marked difference in mood and physical well being.
Below are examples of WellStar at work in our homes.
Physical Wellness:
We have fitness and movement opportunities every day, sometime indoors, sometimes under blue skies. In true Rockies style, we have a Flat Fourteeners Club where residents come together to walk the neighboring paths.
We created Wish Upon A Star to enable residents to live out their dreams—for to live is to hope and dream. For one resident, a quadriplegic who was once a competitive swimmer, that dream was to swim again. Her MorningStar team helped make it happen.
Spiritual Wellness:
Our lovely chapel is open to all faiths for prayer and meditation, with a non-denomination service held every Sunday. Devotionals, Bible study, hymn singing and group prayer are held during the week. Communion is shared monthly.
Intellectual Wellness:
For our S.T.A.R. speaker series, we provide regular presentations for inspirational, educational and interactive topics about life and issues, sometimes led our own residents. We also host My Memories, where residents are invited to reminisce about their lives, loves and triumphs.
Our residents, including those with dementia, especially enjoy educational games that work their brains. One 100-year-old resident is known as our Trivial Pursuit queen.
Social Wellness:
Everything we do in a MorningStar day is social. Activities. Exercise. Meals. Especially eating! Dining at MorningStar is a special occasion every day, thanks to our Certified Executive Chefs and the wonders they create to tempt us.
We encourage residents to use their own special talents and personality to enrich our community. One community boasts a Resident Choir who perform on occasion for the entire community. We’re known to gather around the piano for sing-alongs. And, of course, we celebrate seasonal holidays as a community of family.
Sometimes we hit the road in the MorningStar bus and head for a new movie release, special interest destinations, swimming at the rec center, or scenic drives. Shopping excursions are even more often
All this comes with the reward of not just relationships, but accountability (you are truly missed if ever you don’t show up).
WellStar is enhanced further by our Life Enrichment partners:
Active Minds
Adjunct professors, graduate students and other enthused teachers are brought in through Active Minds, a popular organization in Metro Denver serving seniors wherever they may live. MorningStar is proud to be Active Mind’s premier sponsor partner, furthering their mission to bring stimulating lectures on wide-ranging topics to seniors, both under our own roof and at gathering places around town.
S.A.G.E. (Seniors Aging Gracefully with Exercise)
Offering one-on-one training for functional fitness, both physical and social.
Bessie’s Hope
To build our corps of volunteers, we turn to organizations such as Bessie’s Hope, a non-profit group that trains people of all ages to work with seniors during interactive group visits. We love the inter-generational relationships that form through this outreach.
A Wiser Mind
A group of licensed clinicians, A Wiser Mind offers therapy to residents and their families, including brain activation.
It’s all on our calendar. Every day. Fun and healthy reasons to step out your door and join in.
Of course, true wellness is ultimately found, not in programming, but in the human touch. Touching reminds us we’re still here. It’s the antidote to loneliness—for all of us.
“MorningStar is different, beyond any other experience I’ve had in senior living. From the heart of our founder trickles down the freedom to truly love our residents. To look someone in the eye and assure them they’re right where they’re supposed to be. To hold their hand or give them a hug. That’s why I love serving at MorningStar.” (Nikki, Life Enrichment Coordinator)
