FAIRFIELD-SUISUN, CALIFORNIA
Rachel Kaufman is the activities director at Brandywine Living at Dresher Estates in Dresher, Pa. (Alejandro A. Alvarez/Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS)
When Covid-19 locked them down, this senior-living activities director kept fun alive in a ‘horrible’ time
PHILADELPHIA — A year ago, the job of activities directors at nursing homes and assisted living facilities was to get people out of their rooms and into their communities.
People like Rachel Kaufman organized movie nights, card games, exercise classes, parties and happy hours. These activities directors, AKA life enrichment professionals or, in Kaufman’s case, escapades producers, tended to be outgoing, upbeat, infinitely patient people who could make the most of tight budgets, said Kirsten Jacobs, director of dementia and wellness education with the senior housing organization LeadingAge.