Village at Belmar

Senior Living Blog & Events

The Importance of Calcium and Bone Health in Aging

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Calcium is a key nutrient that many of us overlook in our diets. Almost every cell in the body uses calcium in some way, including the nervous system, muscles, and heart. Your body uses calcium to build healthy bones and teeth, keep them strong as you age, send messages through the nervous system, help your blood clot, your muscles contract, and regulate the heart’s rhythm.


If you don’t get enough calcium in your diet, your body will take it from your bones to ensure normal cell function, which can lead to weakened bones or osteoporosis. Calcium deficiency can contribute to mood problems such as irritability, anxiety, depression, and difficulty sleeping.
To learn more about calcium and how to best protect your bones and overall health from HealthGuide, CLICK HERE.

COVID-19 Update – February 26, 2021

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Dear Village at Belmar Community,

For our regular update on our Covid-19 status, we have some good news to share regarding changing guidelines for indoor visitation. We can follow these new guidelines due to the fact that all of our weekly surveillance testing continues to be negative.

The best news that we are very excited to share is that families and friends are now able to visit without testing for Covid-19. Testing is encouraged as well as quarantining for 14 days prior to a visit, but they are no longer required. Outdoor visitation also remains preferential to indoor visitation, weather permitting, due to the increased ventilation.  

We will begin this visitation on Wednesday, March 3rd.  According to established state guidelines, visits may take place for 45 minutes in common areas of the community which have been identified for this use. Visits may not occur in resident suites unless there are extenuating circumstances, and it is approved in advance by our Health Services Director and/ or Executive Director. Children may visit if they are able to keep a mask on and abide by guidelines. The number of individuals that may visit each resident will be limited to two per visit and the number of visitor groups at any one time will also be limited.

Visitors must schedule their visit in advance using Sign Up Genius. The links for sign up are as follows:

Assisted Living:

Indoor: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B48AFAA23A7FF2-indoor

Dome: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B48AFAA23A7FF2-village

Monarch House:

February Dome Visits: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-february

February Indoor: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-monarch4

March Dome: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-march1

March Indoor: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-march

Visitors must check in at the front desk, be screened and their temperature taken. Visitors should not come to the community if they have a known exposure to Covid-19 or are experiencing the following symptoms: fever, chills, body aches, headache, sore throat, cough, loss of sense of taste and/or smell, diarrhea and/or vomiting.

Once the screening process is completed, visitors will be directed to the proper area for visitation and the resident will be escorted to that area. It is vital that all parties keep their masks on during the entire visit which will preclude sharing food during this time. All participants in the visit must remain at least 6 ft apart. Visitors must also remain in the designated visitation area. If assistance is needed, the resident should push their pendant or someone may call the front concierge desk. Please do not leave the visitation area to look for assistance.

The state has determined these guidelines must be followed even if the resident and/or visitors have been vaccinated. Although vaccinations have shown a high level of effectiveness, they are not yet known to be 100% effective. New strains of Covid are also being identified for which the effectiveness of vaccines has not been determined. Because of the vulnerability of our residents, we must still use caution in situations that may increase exposure.

The other change in guidance relates to residents leaving the community. Residents may now leave the community during the day without needing to quarantine upon return unless they are out overnight. We ask that all residents sign out at the front concierge desk before leaving the community and sign back in once they return.  We continue to encourage residents to limit their exposure out in the general community by being selective of where they go and always wear a mask when out.

We have been in continued close communication with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and Jefferson County Health Department and are following their direction and protocols, as well as those of our Medical Consultant, Dr. Gagandeep Singh.  Staff continue use of masks and proper infection control practices.

If you have any further questions, please reach out to Village at Belmar’s Executive Director, Rebecca Norris, at (303) 351-5455.

Sincerely,

Tom & Susie Finley

Get Moving, Seniors: It’s Good For Your Brain

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Want to give your brain a boost? Go for a swim, take a walk, or spin your partner on the living room floor.

A new study finds that aerobic exercise can improve older adults’ thinking and memory, even if they’re longtime couch potatoes.

To read more of this story from U.S. News & World Report, CLICK HERE.

COVID-19 Update – February 17, 2021

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February 17, 2021

Dear Village at Belmar Community,

As communicated in our previous update letter, we would like to provide you with further details and updates regarding our community Covid-19 status. Based on the surveillance testing results from our most recent testing of staff, there were no positive results.  Our second Covid-19 vaccine clinic was completed on 2/11.  As a result of the resident and staff participation in completing their vaccinations, we plan to re-open our dining room(s) and offer small group activities, with proper social distancing.

Effective March 1st, the dining rooms for both Independent Living and Assisted Living will re-open.  Further details around scheduled mealtimes and seating protocols will soon be sent out to all residents by the Culinary team.  To maximize on staffing assignments and efficiencies during the re-opening of the dining rooms, we will no longer have staff available to provide “free” meal delivery.  Effective April 1, 2021 the meal delivery fee will be re-instated for both Independent and Assisted Living. 

Additionally, we will also begin offering small group activities in common spaces.  These planned activities will require that all residents and staff continue to wear a mask, with proper social distancing.  Our Life Enrichment team will send out a revised activity calendar to all residents.

Outdoor visitation will continue to be in place, with scheduled visits through the “Sign-Up Genius”. The links for the sign-up are as follows:

Assisted Living:

Indoor: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B48AFAA23A7FF2-indoor

Dome: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B48AFAA23A7FF2-village

Monarch House:

February Dome Visits: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-february

February Indoor: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-monarch4

March Dome: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-march1

March Indoor: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-march

We continue to be in close communication with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and Jefferson County Health Department and are following their direction and protocols, as well as those of our Medical Consultant, Dr.

Gagandeep Singh.

If you have any further questions, please reach out to Village at Belmar’s Executive Director, Rebecca Norris, at (303) 351-5455.

Sincerely,

Tom & Susie Finley – Founder & Principal

How Smell and Taste Change as You Age

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Sally’s Story

Sally looked forward to Thanksgiving dinner at her daughter’s house every year. She loved the smell of the turkey and all the fixings. She couldn’t wait to dig in. But, this year it didn’t smell like Thanksgiving and, when Sally ate the holiday food, she felt let down. It wasn’t as tasty as she remembered. No one else seemed to notice. Sally wondered what might be wrong: Could her senses be the problem?

Did you know that your sense of smell and taste are connected? As you get older, these senses can change, and, like Sally, you may find that certain foods aren’t as flavorful as they used to be. Changes in smell or taste can also be a sign of a larger problem. To learn more about smell and taste and how they change as you age from the National Institute on Aging, CLICK HERE.

COVID-19 Update – January 25, 2021 at 5:00 p.m.

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Dear Village at Belmar Community,

We wanted to provide an update to all of you regarding our community Covid-19 status. We are very pleased to report that we currently do not have any positive residents or associates at the community.  We are also pleased to report that we have completed our first vaccination clinic and are very much looking forward to our second one coming up on February 11th.  

Based on this information, we are very excited to begin outdoor visitation in our newly acquired visitation domes! Outdoor visitation will resume on Tuesday, January 26th.  Please use the Sign-Up Genius Links below to sign up for your preferred time slot.  We will continue to do window visits as we have been using the links below.  

Assisted Living Sign-Up Links:

Window Visits: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040b48afaa23a7ff2-assisted

Visitation Domes Outdoor Visits: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040b48afaa23a7ff2-village

Memory Care Sign-Up Links:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040B4AAFA829A6FD0-february

We will continue with testing our associates weekly as well as any residents who leave the community for scheduled appointments.  

Once we have our second vaccination clinic on February 11th, we will re-evaluate resuming in person dining as well as small group activities.  We are also working through plans to establish indoor visitation guidelines based on the requirements established last September.  We will be sending out additional communication in the coming week outlining these plans.  

We have been in continued close communication with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and Jefferson County Health Department and are following their direction and protocols, as well as those of our Medical Consultant, Dr. Gagandeep Singh.  Staff continue use of masks and PPE, and our leadership team is fully engaged in providing ongoing education and follow-up to ensure its proper use.

Please remember that you can always check our Hotline for regular updates and those can be heard at (720) 545-0363.

Thank you for your continued patience as we optimistically  inch ever so close to the end of this pandemic. If you have any further questions, please reach out to Village at Belmar’s Executive Director, Rebecca Norris, at (303) 351-5455.  

Also, please follow up on our Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/VillageatBelmar/posts/1802570549911118) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CKU3wYljLVm/) pages for more updates.  

Sincerely,

Tom & Susie Finley – Founder & Principal