Rehabilitation and Day Care Center
for the Elderly
Moscow, Russia
The Edward D. and Anna Mitchell Family Foundation Day Center for the Elderly, established by Chamah is a lifeline for the elderly, the infirm and the lonely. The facility provides a physical rehabilitation center for those who have suffered heart attacks, strokes, and other serious illnesses. It serves as a haven of social support for hundreds of seniors who benefit from the services the center provides.
When seniors step across the threshold of the Rehabilitation and Day Center, they enter a "home away from home." Whether arriving on their own, or brought by transportation provided by Chamah, the seniors engage in a variety of activities throughout the day and early evening that give them a sense of purpose and a boost to their self-esteem.
The Center is wheelchair accessible for the elderly disabled. Medical services including first aid, physical therapy sessions, and consultations with doctors and nurses are available. A geriatric doctor is on the premises daily as well as a psychologist who meets with the seniors informally and by appointment.
The state of the art kitchen is meticulously clean and well organized. Hundreds of men and women sit down to a delicious, hot five course meal daily. For many people this nutritious lunch is their only meal of the day.
The Center also provides auxiliary programs such as a laundry service, tailoring and a barberhair salon. As part of the laundry service, the seniors drop off their laundry upon arrival and pick it up before returning home, freshly washed, folded and even ironed. Maintaining a tidy appearance, wearing clean clothing and being neatly groomed adds immeasurably to the self esteem of these men and women.
Among the many activities scheduled throughout the day and week are arts and crafts, chess clubs, English language classes and Hebrew lessons. The walls of the Center are adorned with the artwork that the seniors themselves have created. In addition, a special music room is a favorite gathering place where seniors play the piano, sing and even dance as they forget their age and their infirmities. Day trips to the theatre and Jewish sites around Moscow are scheduled intermittently.
The Center offers a schedule of classes and special events for the seniors on Jewish heritage and tradition. Jewish holidays are celebrated in advance with festive parties. Educational videos are shown on Israel and Jewish communities throughout the world. Each month, the Center’s staff organizes birthday parties and distributes gifts to the birthday “boy” or “girl”.
The Center boasts a substantial library with thousands of books, periodicals, tapes and reference material. A number of rare volumes have been presented to the library by the seniors themselves.
A special travel club section in the library was initiated by the seniors of those who worked in remote places in the Former Soviet Union. Newspapers, coins and currencies, are brought in and displayed in the Travel Club.
Chamah outreach workers organize visits by groups of children and youth to the Center on a volunteer basis to spend time with the seniors, read to them and listen as they relate stories of their lives. This valuable program called “Golden Visits” creates a stronger link and greater understanding between the generations. It has received high accolades from social workers and psychiatrists.
The Rehabilitation and Day Center for the Elderly has become one of the most effective Jewish social facilities in Moscow, bringing hope and dignity to the elderly who deserve to be experiencing the joy of living in their "golden years."
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