What a week it’s been! Summer is supposed to be the time to take things a little easier. Not so this year—or at least not at the Association. Here’s a quick rundown on what’s going on:

A shutdown—or threat of one
Unless you’ve been un-tethered from all things electronic, you’ve heard plenty about the special session, the possibility of a government shut-down, and long-term care not being deemed an essential service by the governor, though that last item has now changed.

To each of these situations, I’ve wanted to scream, “What? Do you not get it?” but I know an outburst doesn’t change anything. Instead, it is the cumulative efforts made by you that educate, inform, and hopefully convince the governor and legislators to develop a state budget that prioritizes seniors and caregivers. For all the requests we have made so far: Thank you! Your rapid responses are truly appreciated. When asked, you quickly sent in photos for our Faces of Care special video message that was sent to the governor and legislators. When asked, you sent in stories about how your facility will be impacted if there is a government shutdown, which helped to support our petition to the courts.

And it’s not over yet—more will be asked of you.

I urge you, if you haven’t done so yet, please . . . contact your legislators. Tell them to do what they were voted into office to do—meet with the governor, negotiate, and get this budget settled. Send this video message link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WdpRuIHrK0 to your legislator—they need to hear from you that residents, caregivers, and families matter. They have to hear from you that funding for older adult services is a priority.

Yet, with all this frenetic stuff going on, I’d be remiss not to acknowledge all the good things that are happening. Let me just start with awards. This year, 119 nominations were sent in for 16 categories—that’s a lot of healthy competition! Recognition Committee members are busy reading and scoring the nominations—with 119, it takes some time. The only downside—and there really is only one—is that there can only be one winner for each category. However, many have said that the process of sitting down to write good things about a person was a reward in and of itself.

But back to those 119 nominations—you’ll find out the status of your nomination(s) late in July.

Next up is golf. Now, what’s better than playing 18 holes of golf on a perfect summer afternoon? Just one thing—when funds raised are used for scholarships for students furthering their long-term care careers!

Care Providers of Minnesota Foundation Golf Tournament is next month: Tuesday, July 19th. Novice and experienced golfers are encouraged to attend this annual fundraising event. It’s a best ball scramble, with great opportunities to network and have a lot of fun. You can still sign up and find out more about the tournament through the Association's website. I hope to see you out there—rhinestones and all!

Until next time—stay healthy.
Gail

Gail Sheridan
gsheridan@careproviders.org