There has been tremendous growth and transformation in the Sidney Plains region in the last year, with the addition of three new amazing community homes – Parkview, Mountainside, and Pine Creek. With this expansion, there is a lot to reflect on and celebrate, and what better way to do that than to hear from the people who experienced it first-hand? To celebrate the staff and residents of Sidney Plains, a celebration was held in January with bowling, food, and games. Leading up to the celebration in January , the staff and residents of the Sidney Plains region community homes were interviewed about their experiences in the last year.
Stephanie Davy, director of Community Homes at Springbrook joined in August of 2021, and her hard work has been fundamental to the success of the Sidney Plains region. Her excitement about the many accomplishments in the last year is contagious!
Stephanie shared that one of the most rewarding aspects of the Sidney Plains region expansion was the “abundance of opportunities and resources, creating an exciting foundation for diversity, new relationships, and goals for the future.” Stephanie commended staff such as Tyeshia Stevens and Kelly Gardepe for their hard work and initiative. She shared that the staff’s dedication and care for the residents created a bridge to support the integration of Parkview, Mountainside, and Pine Creek into the Springbrook community.
Assistant director of the Sidney Plains region community homes, Gordon Mumbulo, echoed many of the sentiments Stephanie shared. For Gordon, the past year in the Sidney Plains region has been about creating a solid foundation for leadership, teamwork, and, most importantly, support. His leadership style is all about bringing people together, making people feel like someone has their back, and creating systems so that teams can work together to achieve their goals.
One of the best things to come of the expansion in the region, Gordon shared, has been the considerable amount of support that can now be provided for staff and residents. Resources and staff support have transformed the community homes in the Sidney Plains region. It has connected them to a larger network of talented staff to help them with decisions, challenges, and new projects. In turn, this has brought even more abundance into the lives of the residents living in the region. Moving forward, Gordon hopes to see the region continue to flourish, and with his dedication, we know it will!
Mountainside was the first stop on the visit to the Sidney Plains region community homes. This home is true to its name, situated on a beautiful mountainside and surrounded by nature. Mountainside strives to create a welcoming environment, with residential manager Lyndsay Carey greeting guests at the front door. Lyndsay has been more than impressed by the resources now available to the folks living at Mountainside since the expansion. Lyndsay’s priority has been to make the house feel like a home, by helping to personalize all the bedrooms to each resident’s interests and by excitedly looking forward to the upcoming renovations in the home.
Lyndsay shared that one of the benefits for the residents of Mountainside is accessing the Springbrook Physical and Occupational Therapy departments. Walter, a resident at Mountainside, began receiving supports from the PT/OT department in the last year. Staff from the department came to Mountainside to ensure that he had the proper lift and that his bed was functioning properly. Having the right equipment has given Walter a chance to live his life more independently.
The next stop in the region was Parkview, where Tyeshia Stevens, a registered nurse for the Sidney Plains region was working for the afternoon. Tyeshia is dedicated to the people she supports at Springbrook; she is responsible for providing nursing services to five community homes and 32 residents!
Tyeshia is efficient and always looking for ways to help, whether that is working with residents or helping out her fellow staff members. She has supported residents and staff through this past year’s expansion in the Sidney Plains region, all while pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree! Tyeshia is a Springbrook Scholar and will graduate in May 2023.
One thing that has stood out for Tyeshia within the past year is the teamwork and support that has come with the integration of Mountainside, Parkview, Pinecreek, Johnson Circle, and Bird Avenue into Springbrook Community Homes. Additionally, Tyeshia highlighted Jessica Weston, director of nursing at Springbrook for her outstanding leadership skills, and Alana McCann, LPN, for always helping out when Tyeshia cannot get to something.
The last stop on the visit to Sidney Plains was Pine Creek. Assistant manager, Tashina Azzarella, has been working with the residents at Pine Creek since 2013. While Tashina was initially nervous about the expansion of the region, she shared that the change has been very beneficial for the house. One of the highlights has been the presence of the Springbrook Facilities department, who are always there to make repairs or are available for scheduling when something needs to be fixed around the house.
One resident that has truly been impacted by the expansion is Brandy Parker. Brandy is currently a resident at Pierstown community home in Cooperstown. Before moving to Pierstown, Brandy lived at Parkview community home for over 15 years. Brandy saw first-hand the benefits of the Sidney Plains region expansion, which gave her the opportunity to grow and meet an amazing group of friends at Pierstown. Brandy has also been able to achieve her dream of becoming a pet owner since her move and now has a bearded dragon named Bella!
The one-year anniversary of the Sidney Plain region culminated in a celebration on January 26th. Residents and staff came together to celebrate one year of the expanded region of community homes at East Main Lanes & Lounge in Sidney. The day was full of bowling, delicious food, and fun! A shared goal amongst the managers in the region, including Lyndsay, is to spend more time getting to know the residents and staff from other community homes, and they are looking forward to warmer weather and the opportunity to spend more time getting to know each other.
With all of the incredible people living and working in the Sidney Plains region, it is bound to experience many more years of success! Click through the photo gallery below to see images of the Sidney Plains region, and their 1-Year Celebration!
