News and Events

    St Luke's Home Newsletter December 2021 Executive Director Report Happy Holidays! What an interesting year we have had with so much happening at St Luke’s Home, in our community, our country, and around the world. Here’s some fun holiday trivia to help us feel some joy and laughter. The poinsettia was a plant the Aztecs called Cuetlaxochitl. It got its common name of “poinsettia” in the 1820’s when the first US envoy to Mexico, Joel R Poinsett, noticed Americans were using it to celebrate the holidays. Mr Poinsett send the cheery plant to his American associates as gifts, and the name (that Americans can pronounce) stuck.  North Pole Rudolph was born in Chicago in 1939 when writer Robert L May composed a Christmas poem for the Montgomery Ward…

    St Luke's Home Newsletter November 2021 Executive Director Report November is the month of gratitude.  Many of us have the tradition of saying what we are grateful for at the Thanksgiving table. Gratitude is the “thankful appreciation for what we have.” Gratitude helps us feel more positive emotions and keeps us in the present moment. There are many benefits of practicing gratitude, including increased feelings of happiness and being in a positive mood, improved sleep, reduced stress and burnout, and increased resilience. Gratitude has a huge impact on our emotional well-being. I love this quote from Epictetus, “he is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.” If we stay present with what we have,…

St Luke's Home Newsletter October 2021 Executive Director Report     I hope this newsletter finds you and your loved-ones safe, healthy, and happy.   We continue to provide a safe harbor at St Luke’s Home. Unfortunately, we also continue to battle COVID-19. The Delta Variant is surging, and we must stay strong in this fight. We now require that all visitors and vendors show proof of vaccination or have a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours before their visit. It was a tough decision, but it ensures the safety of everyone living, working, and visiting St Luke’s Home. We appreciate everyone’s cooperation to make the welfare of our family a priority.   If you haven’t got your Silver Chef Culinary Competition tickets yet, do it now (click here) because…

    St Luke's Home Newsletter September 2021 Executive Director Report Welcome to Fall! It has been one of the wettest and hottest summers on record in Tucson. It is so green that it doesn’t look like our beloved desert. Who knew we had green mountains? Fall is coming, the mosquitos will exit, and we will enjoy being outside again. There is lots of excitement at St Luke’s Home. The Silver Chef Culinary Competition is coming up on October 23, and we are planning a fun-filled day. Check out the article below for more details. The food, drink, and company will be better shared with all of you. On another note, the pandemic continues to roar, and we are taking all precautions necessary to keep everyone safe. We have mandated…

    St Luke's Home Newsletter July 2021 Executive Director Report I have always known that St Luke’s Home is a special place but now I know why. Hello Family and Friends of St Luke’s Home,  It has been an amazing month. I want to thank everyone for the warm welcome I have received from the Elders, staff, volunteers, the Board, and the community. I have met so many people that my memory is being tested trying to remember everyone’s name. There is so much excitement around here with new staff and Elders, the joy is evident when walking down any hall. We have had entertainment, volunteers, and families back in the Home and we had a big Hawai’ian Party. While we are still being diligent in keeping out COVID-19, we are welcoming–with…

    St Luke's Home Newsletter July 2021 CEO Report Hello Family and Friends of St Luke’s Home,  Allow me to introduce myself. I am Terri Waldman, the interim CEO of St Luke’s Home. I have been part of St Luke’s Home for some years on the Board of Directors and have long supported our vision and mission to:  Provide quality of life for low-income Elders to age with dignity in an assisted-living community. Change can be challenging and I am certain some of you are concerned about the CEO and other leadership changes. I want to assure you that St Luke’s Home is going to be just fine. The existing team of leaders, care partners, culinary staff, and housekeepers are committed to maintaining the quality of life that our…

St Luke's Home Newsletter June 2021 Fond Farewell It is with mixed emotions I report that I have decided not to extend my 2020-2021 CEO contract with St Luke's Home. My time here has been an amazing and life-changing experience. It has been a great pleasure to become friends and an advocate to our beloved Elders; to watch the professional growth of our incredible and compassionate staff; and to get to know the St Luke's Home families, especially our caring donors. These last two years, we have made great infrastructure improvements on staffing leadership, technological upgrades, budget savings, record keeping, safety, and donor communications. But our biggest success together is beating the odds of COVID-19. St Luke’s Home has surpassed all measurable statistics on the effects of COVID-19 in Long…