Message from the President
Greetings friend, and welcome to the January Comfort Connection!
Many of you may have viewed a cantankerous Jerry Lewis in an interview he gave for The Hollywood Reporter. You can view it by
clicking HERE.
Many of us remember Jerry Lewis as the fun-loving entertainer on TV, film, stage, and radio. We watched for hours as the dynamic duo, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, performed with their zany acts. Who can forget the countless hours he spent for the kids affected by Muscular Dystrophy?
What was different in the last interview he gave compared to some other works we have seen him in? This interview targeted people who were still working in their nineties.
The first question is, “Have you ever thought about retiring?” to which he responds with a flat expression, “WHY?”
What I got from watching this interview is, he does not want to be treated any different based on his age. He’s still a brilliant, talented, and very capable individual. If you treat him any differently, he owes you no courtesy whatsoever. The interviewer fired questions at him for an entire seven minutes. Perhaps if he had shown more respect, paid him some compliments, and stopped to tune into his mood, he could have turned those precious moments around. Instead, Jerry Lewis was in a foul mood to the end.
In the care we provide, it is so important to treat our older adults with respect and dignity. They don’t want to be treated differently because they are older. Have you ever had a conversation about them, talking around them while they are in the same room? Unfortunately, I am still hearing about incidents that occur in personal care homes where the older adult is treated roughly physically with no communication about what is coming next. No wonder people act out with behavioural difficulties! It breaks my heart.
Its important to remember the older adults in our lives for who they were and what they have contributed. Maybe they can’t communicate the same, or contribute the same, but they are the same person on the inside.
Blessings,
Katherine
Katherine Peters
President & CEO
