As we reflect on the many things that we are grateful for, community involvement rises to the top of the list.

It’s no coincidence that Valley View Retirement Community (VVRC)—created by our local community to meet an unmet need for older adults—continues to be intrinsically involved with the neighborhood outside our doors. It’s a mutual relationship that benefits all of us.

On any given day, you will find Geisinger nursing students participating in clinicals, researchers from Penn State University Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing working on a study focusing on decision-making for residents, or a Penn State engineering department beta-testing how different lighting positively impacts resident wellbeing.

As you walk the halls or stroll the campus, you will hear volunteers playing guitar, see extra hands cleaning leaves off our sidewalks, smell their efforts of fresh baked cookies, or be delighted in hearing a volunteer reading to a resident. Some of our youngest volunteers practice their read-aloud skills with residents in the Terrace.

Valley View finds great joy in giving back and learning too. Ride along to a baseball game, where Memory Lane sponsors a Little League team and cheers from the sidelines. Sit in on community educational events about Amish culture and customs provided in partnership with VVRC and the Kishacoquillas Valley Historical Society.
Learn how to be a dementia-friendly caregiver, friend, or partner with the Dementia Friends information session. Help pack shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child or lace up your sneakers to participate in The Longest Day, a fundraising walk for the Alzheimer’s Association.

We are so grateful to be part of the community that surrounds us!