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Poland Shepherd celebrates Halloween
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Policeman Joel Rogers (left) shared a smile with Shepherd of the Valley resident Irene Dent (right) on Oct. 29.
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Gavin Sackela (left) waved hello to mom and dad while getting some treats from Shepherd of the Valley resident Sally Parsons. Parsons dressed up for the Halloween event with a witch hat.
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Youngsters Taylor Stansloski (left) and Logan Stansloski (right) said hello to Poland Shepherd of the Valley resident Pauline Rohovsky (center) during their Oct. 29 Trick-or-Treat expedition at the facility.
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Poland Shepherd of the Valley's Halloween trick-or-treat event allowed families of many generations to meet. During their travels for treats, Julianna Davis (left) and her mom Kate Davis said hello to Shepherd resident Agnes Filip and her son Don Filip (right).
By SARAH FOOR
This year, Halloween at Shepherd of the Valley Poland was a family affair.
On Oct. 29, children and grandchildren of Shepherd residents and employees roamed the halls of the facility spreading lots of delight and fright, as they showed off their costumes during a trick-or-treat bash.
“We wanted to make this year a family celebration, because our young guests spend many hours at the facility throughout the year brightening our days. This is our way of thanking them for always coming to visit,” explained activity director Paula Blakeman.
On the three floors of the facility, residents sat just outside their rooms with overflowing bags of sweets for the young trick-or-treaters. The facility also offered healthy options to the young guests.
“Our in-house dietician helped us add rice cakes, apple juice and healthy snack packs to our celebration, which we fully support. However, I have a sweet tooth, so I added plenty of full-size candy bars and peanut butter cups to the mix as well,” Blakeman said with a laugh.
The wide variety of treats available meant that young guests left with bags filled with many delicious options.
After welcoming the extended Shepherd family for the celebration, the facility also hosted an Oct. 31 Halloween bash for residents that included plenty of food, drinks and dancing.