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Rosemary Park Welcomes Its First ResidentsRosemaryPark4 

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by Barb Quaintance

How fitting that on the day of Sister Rosemary’s wake, the first residents moved into the beautiful Sister Rosemary Park. The lovely residential area, comprised of sixteen homes and a park-like green space, will ultimately become home to 124 residents. 

Within Sister Rosemary Park, there are homes for men, women, ambulatory, semi-ambulatory and non-ambulatory residents. Some residents who currently live in other Mis homes will move into Rosemary Park; other residents in each home will be new to the Misericordia community.

The first homes to have opened, who each welcomed four current MIs residents, are St. Jude and Villers Homes. Sr. Paulette O’Conner and Rowe Homes will open before the end of July.

Once the state regulators do an initial survey, a home can open with four residents. The state then comes back to inspect the home and then the remaining residents can move in. In this first grouping of homes, three will have female residents and one will be for males. All these residents are ambulatory/semi-ambulatory; non-ambulatory residents will be welcomed in later phases.

Staff hiring for Rosemary Park began in January and continues. Staff have been training and working in other areas while awaiting state approval. New staff are now doing their on-the-job training in Rosemary Park.

Under the leadership of AVP Ashley Hespen, Rosemary Park is a welcoming and inviting neighborhood. The homes are bright and cheerful, as well as being highly responsive to residents’ needs. Ashley said that the designers learned from ‘missing ingredients’ in some of the current homes. For example, there is now a small family room in each home where residents can visit with their families.  Each bathroom has pocket doors, which allow for privacy, but also are easier for residents and staff to navigate. And there is much more storage for the resident’s belongings.

Pending state approval and the hiring of additional staff, it is expected that the remaining homes will open by the end of the year. What an extraordinary addition to Misericordia! Thanks to Ashley and all the staff at Misericordia who have made Sister Rosemary’s vision a reality.

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