Treemont Retirement Blog

Senior Living Houston: Resident Counselor Keri Shaw

Patience and good listening skills are key attributes of a resident counselor, working with families and residents seeking to find a senior community to spend their later years. This is what distinguishes Resident Counselor Keri Shaw. Executive Director Rodney Brooks lured Keri out of retirement 3 years ago to work weekends to provide 24/7 customer service to our future residents. Rodney says, “Keri was retired from an accomplished career in the senior living industry, including as a General Manager in Oregon. I saw that Keri had the skill set to effectively help guide seniors in their retirement living decision.” 

Keri says, “I like helping people. Making a decision to move from one’s own home into a community is a big decision. Sometimes it has become necessary for many different reasons. I try to help the seniors and their families because usually everyone

There are many benefits to seniors of living in a retirement community. One is “peace of mind” that they will be safe and secure with people around to check in on them, particularly as we approach hurricane season. Hurricanes often pose more damage risks than just wind damage. During the 500 year storm of Hurricane Harvey, the biggest threat to Houston was flooding. Treemont is fortunate to be located where there was no building flooding during Harvey. But Treemont still had to minimize issues related to the general impact of flooding on staff access and power outages.

Living at Treemont provides a layer of comfort since the community prepares for all types of emergencies. Independent living has a small power generator that can keep its kitchen refrigerators and freezer operational. From that, Treemont can power its phone system for the front office and connect some lighting for the lobby area. Treemont staff is present to distribute flashlights

Senior Living Houston: Housekeeping Director Evelyn Arriola

The beauty of retirement living is that life is maintenance-free, with daily tasks such as housekeeping a task of the past, as this service is included in Treemont residents’ monthly rent. We are fortunate to have Housekeeping Director Evelyn Arriola join our leadership team. Evelyn brings with her a strong background in housekeeping management that will provide renewed energy and structure to our program.

The Housekeeping Supervisor manages a team of about 15 to 18 staff responsible for taking care of Treemont Independent Living common areas and resident apartments units plus supervising our nursing home commercial laundry facility. With Covid-19, there is also the extra work involved in protection cleaning — virus prevention that is added to daily tasks. The goal is to keep our community in a clean and orderly condition, in support of our residents.

Senior Living Houston: Activity Director Rose Marie Lau

Social interaction, activities, companionship, new friends, and safety are key parts of community engagement. Seniors choose to join the Treemont family for those very reasons. Monica Muniz moved to Corpus Christi to start her dream of owning a food business. Thus, we are now welcoming Activity Director Rose Marie Lau to our Treemont family.

Rose says, “I know the importance of stimulating and engaging residents to partake in activities such as exercise, outings, socials, and more which are beneficial to the well-being of our residents. I like to be the “helping hand.” In her new role, Rose will implement new and existing activities to maintain a diverse range of programming. 

Treemont Management believes that a top-quality Activity Program is essential to attracting new residents and keeping our current ones happy and engaged. We believe that social interaction is a key component of a long, healthy life. At a retirement community, you

Welcome Caregiver Leslie Foston, one of Senior Allegiance’s newest employees, who has taken on a big role during COVID-19. Her primary task at this time is taking temperature checks on Senior Allegiance’s Treemont customers, Mondays to Fridays. Leslie then assists where ever needed with activities of daily living, typically on the morning shift, but she is flexible.

Administrator Karina Walker says, “Leslie is a very caring and loving caregiver that recently joined our team in February. During such difficult and uncertain times, it is refreshing for many residents to have someone to visit them on a daily basis, not only to check on their well being, but also to lift their spirits with a smile. We are honored to have Leslie as part of our team and look forward to her continued growth within our company.”

The primary benefit of senior living communities such as Treemont Retirement Community is its ability to provide a package of services designed to give seniors the support and care they need while also helping them maintain a good quality of life, all at a cost effective price.  “Treemont’s understanding of senior’s needs and our experienced staff are especially important during difficult times.  As a community that cares for each other and watches out for each other, these aspects have even greater importance in difficult times,” says Executive Director Rodney Brooks. “Treemont Retirement Community has been able to successfully weather hurricanes and power outages and is committed to being good stewards for our residents and staff during this time of coronavirus concerns.”

Treemont is following CDC and health department requirements and guidelines to protect its residents.  Treemont has restricted visits to its Health Care Center to essential people only, and those that enter are screened, have their temperature checked and must wear a mask.  The Independent Living side is discouraging all

Senior Living Houston: Driver Jessica Hinojosa provides support during COVID-19

Transportation service is often a key reason Treemont residents choose to move to a retirement community. Jessica Hinojosa joined the Treemont Transportation Team two years ago in January to provide additional support to Mark Thomas in providing transportation services for our residents.

What is the role of our Transportation driving team? Treemont offers scheduled transportation for: (1) doctor’s appointments within a 5-7 mile radius; (2) grocery store and Wal-Mart shopping trips; (3) pharmacy pickups and (4) personal trips such as to the bank. With about 300 residents, residents are asked to call the Front Desk (or leave a message for Mark or Jessica) one week in advance, to reserve a spot on the Treemont van or car. With fewer outside excursions these days, Jessica is also making sure all visitors answer the “coronavirus questionnaire” and get their temperature checked.

Retirement can be an exciting, relaxing time…or it can be dreadfully boring. For many older adults, retirement leads to boredom and dissatisfaction. When most of your life is spent working, and then that work is taken away, it can be hard to find purpose and self-motivated productivity. Moreover, many seniors living on a fixed income miss the money they made from their old jobs.

If this sounds like you, you might want to consider looking into a job you can do from home. Thanks to the technology boom, more and more companies are looking to employ remote workers. Some companies don’t even have an actual office, instead allowing their entire staff to work from the comfort of their homes.

This can be an excellent avenue for seniors since work-from-home jobs often