Kate Keese, an occupational therapist at the facility, led her patients in this fun activity. Together, they made snowflake and baked-dough ornaments to hang on the rehab department’s Christmas tree, as well as giant wrapped candy decorations to adorn the entryway to the rehab gym.

“Christmas is about family, and some of our residents do not have family or have none in the area,” said Keese. “This was a great opportunity for fellowship. Many of our residents used to make their own decorations with their families, and this activity had special meaning for them.”

The project also helped residents with their fine motor skills, upper-body strength, balance, sequencing, following directions and other daily skills.

“Some of them would spend the whole day in the gym just to make the decorations,” Keese added.

The parade’s theme was Circus, Circus, and the facility float committee chose to base their construction on Generations of Fun at the Circus. The float consisted of current and old-time circus characters and performers.

Associates, family volunteers and residents dressed in costumes and rode on the float in the parade. Based on the old-time circus side shows, the facility had a two-headed lady, a bearded lady, a snake charmer, a strong man, a fortune teller, a tiger tamer, a gorilla and gorilla tamer, clowns and a ringmaster.

“It was a long day, but we enjoyed being a part of the celebration,” said resident Warren Ellis, who played the ringmaster.

Ellis’ wife, Corine, came with him on the float as the gorilla tamer.

“I had a lot of fun,” she said, “especially being able to talk to the kids who were on the float.”

Concessioners pulled old-time circus wagons along the parade route and handed out cotton candy and peanuts to the spectators. Several Cañon Lodge Care Center residents attended to watch their friends in the event.

The float won first place in the parade, including a plaque and a $300 cash prize. Associates put the money into the facility’s event fund for the residents.

“This was the biggest float (25 feet) we have entered,” said Katie Broughton, admissions and marketing director, who led the float committee. “The residents, associates and volunteers were excited about building the float, and the win was the icing on the cake.”

Broughton added that the facility hadn’t entered a float for the past three years but that the facility plans to continue putting their best float forward.

You can read the interview here.

Gorrell was expecting to spend her birthday quietly with her granddaughter from Minnesota, Gaye Montonye. To her surprise, 13 family members came in the day before the party, because they were not able to come on the day of the party. Grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren surrounded her, most of whom she had not seen in 20 years or never even met.

The day of the party, her granddaughter came with another surprise: more great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren!

Montonye had been in on the surprise for several months. She had sent pictures of Gorrell as a young woman, and Katie Broughton, admissions and marketing director at Cañon Lodge Care Center, made a special DVD for the event.

When Gorrell was wheeled down to the party and saw her family, associates, residents and friends filling the dining room, she was in disbelief. One hundred balloons graced the room for the occasion, and guests enjoyed deli trays of meats, cheeses and vegetables. Karl Aguilera, representative from the Colorado Commission on Aging, presented a certificate from Governor Hickenlooper, and she also received a letter from the White House, the Cañon City mayor and Willard Scott. Gorrell even had a special concert from Elvis tribute artist Dennis Thornberry.

“I was so surprised!” said Gorrell. “I don’t know what I did to deserve such a wonderful gesture.”

Born in 1911 in Waterloo, Okla., Gorrell had eight brothers and four sisters. After her father passed away when she was 5 years old, her mother remarried and moved the family to Colorado. Gorrell started working in her stepfather’s general store when she was 12, weighing small packages of coffee, sugar and other items that cost 10-25 cents.

Gorrell graduated from East Denver High School, where she played on the basketball team. She worked for 20 years as a supervisor in retired pay for the Air Force Accounting and Finance Center in Denver, retiring in 1971.

She married Cecil Graves, and the two had two children. After six years of marriage, however, Graves passed away. She later married Ralph Gorrell, an auto salesman for Ford. The couple was together for 37 years, until he also passed away in 1977. Gorrell now has five grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and eight great-great-grandchildren.

Gorrell has a wide variety of hobbies, from knitting and crocheting to crossword puzzles and listening to big band music. She loves ships.

“I lived a very ordinary life,” said Gorrell. “I went to school, got married, worked, had children. I don’t know why I lived this long; it’s a surprise to me.”