Over the past year, we have all struggled with being away from the ones we love and the things we used to enjoy. The residents at the F.J. Davey Home are no exception.
Thankfully, the activity department at the Davey Home has been doing everything they can to help bring joy to their residents. They have started taking them out for drives around the city in the Davey Home bus twice a week.
“Prior to the pandemic, we used to take the residents out weekly for lunch and picnics. Once the pandemic started, we weren’t able to do that anymore so we’ve started doing these city tours for just over a month now,” said Jennifer Mulvihill, activity therapist at the F.J. Davey Home.
Last week, one of the residents’ grandsons, Ryan Seabrook, offered to perform an outdoor concert in his front yard for the residents and his grandmother during the tour. The concert was a hit, giving residents an opportunity to sing and dance and enjoy themselves.
Seabrook, who has been performing locally for about a decade, tailored the concert to fit the likes of the residents.
“I did some Elvis, some early rock songs, Little Richard, some Neil Diamond,” he said. “I tried to hit a couple of the decades and do something they would enjoy. They seemed to have a great time.”
Seabrook’s grandmother, Ivy, was also able to see her great grandson, Rosko, during the concert.
He hopes to be able to put on these concerts twice a week for the residents from now on.
“The staff at the Davey Home are awesome. They made this happen and I really appreciate them getting the bus going and getting the residents out. They are wonderful people and are underappreciated,” Seabrook said.
During the hour-long bus tours, residents can choose where they would like to go around the city.
“A lot of our ladies like to drive past the church that they used to attend, but we change the route up depending on the preferences of the residents,” Mulvihill said.
“They love it. It’s great for them to see their community again and reminisce. If anyone sees the Davey Home bus driving by they can definitely give us a wave,” she said.