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They’re all residents at New Hope Valley, an assisted living facility just outside Saginaw.
One of them, Margaret Clark, has a mean forehand.
The women are coached by Jamie Capp, who’s got them in a pretty intense game of keep-the-balloon-off-the-floor.
It’s a game they’ve only recently started to play again.
“The focus is on making sure that we bring life for the residents back to almost normalcy, without taking a risk in terms of their wellbeing and safety, right? So that’s a very delicate walk to walk.” Rumi Shahzad, New Hope Valley
As COVID-19 swept through Michigan’s long-term care facilities, thousands of residents died. Capp says those who lived were forced by the pandemic into an isolated existence with little contact with anyone outside of their rooms.
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People in long-term care facilities faced some of the highest risks from COVID-19. But now, many of those people are vaccinated. Brett Dahlberg has this story of how life is starting to get back to normal for people who spent much of the last year in isolation.
Margaret Clark, Diane Chisholm and Betty Doyle were residents at New Hope Valley, an assisted living facility just outside Saginaw.
Their game of keep-the-balloon-off-the-floor was overseen by Jamie Capp, who said it was a bit of physical therapy to get upper-body muscles moving and practice hand-eye coordination.
But Clark, Chisholm and Doyle have only recently been able to start playing this game again.