Photo by Neidy Gutierrez / SOC Images.
Editor’s Note: This is a sponsored post.
Jimmy Lee Williams can’t remember how long he’s been at Peace Care St. Joseph’s, but he remembers when he first moved into Jersey City.
He came from South Carolina, and worked at Newman’s Furniture, which was a beloved local spot that was at 487 West Side Avenue; from here, he delivered chairs, tables and more to 537 Pavonia Avenue, which was then-St. Joseph’s School for the Blind. He smirked when he realized it’s the same building he now lived in, just under a different name, “I ain’t know I was gonna end up being here.”
When asked what the place means to him, he nodded and simply said, “It’s a family thing.”
Williams is one of the hundreds of senior residents who have made Peace Care their home. Whether it’s Peace Care St. Joseph’s at 537 Pavonia Avenue in the Journal Square area—where you’ll find Williams—or its sister branch, Peace Care St. Anns, at 198 Old Bergen Road in the Greenville section, inside you’ll find dozens of residents getting hyped up for their next Zumba class, prepped for a paint and sip session or just there, ready to greet you with a smile and ask, “How you doing today?”
“We have activities [even] when the weather [is] bad [and] we have all the parties down here. They party all the time, every day’s a party…,” Williams laughed.
“And I thank God to be living and I can move and do what[ever]. I’m thankful for you, to see y’all [and] for having me to do this [interview].”
And behind the efforts to keep residents happy, cared for and entertained—which helped St. Ann’s get named as one of the Best Nursing Homes in the U.S.—there’s still a price tag that comes with it. And the ongoing federal government funding cuts to nonprofit organizations only makes that weight much heavier to bear.
All daily extracurricular activities are made possible primarily through donations: from Wednesday Bingo to gardening days or magic and music shows. And not only that, the nonprofit nursing home also depends on donations to help pay for residents’ new equipment—like wheelchairs or rehab machines—and infrastructure upkeeps—like windows and their new masonry—which all adds up, according to Gina Verdibello, Peace Care’s director of development.
Peace Care is prepping for the final campaign of the year, which is Giving Tuesday on Tuesday, Dec. 2.
“This is our last hurrah to get the most funds that we can… Whether it’s $5 or $25, whatever it is, it all adds up, and the goal this year is to raise $100,000… Everything that we do—[the] infrastructure and programming and activities and equipment—those kinds of things, it’s all going back to the benefit of our residents,” Verdibello said.
“… We’re providing care for two places, and that means over 300 people are being taken care of and it’s very necessary and we need to make sure that you continue caring for your elderly and these are your families, your sisters, your brothers, your moms, your dads that need this necessary care.”
Those interested in supporting Peace Care can donate at any time here: https://www.peacecarenj.org/make-a-difference/.
Meet The Residents Of Peace Care New Jersey
Real people live here.
That’s what Verdibello emphasized as she sat outside in one of the gardens at St. Joseph’s, overlooking the nonstop buzz of Journal Square, right near the Hudson County courthouse.
“This is an underserved population so to be in Jersey City, it’s very expensive… In my role, I’m trying to bring in a lot of community support and awareness because we’ve been here so long and yet I feel like sometimes the people are like, ‘Oh, I didn’t realize that was a nursing community…’” she added.
“I just want people to really remember that there are people that do live here that need your support… they’re very thankful for everything that you do give and we just wanna continue working with the community [and] with our donors and anybody that would like to volunteer… I am always here to bridge the gap between the residents and the community.”
In the other garden on the other side of the facility, is where Williams was taking in the summer warmth and cool breeze. After reminiscing about his past days at the beaches of South Carolina and working long shifts as a truck driver, he turned over the conversation to his—as he described—buddy, Tom.
Thomas Kane gave a bright smile as the sun glimmered over him, happily claiming Bayonne, New Jersey as his hometown.
Kane played sports his whole life: basketball, baseball and football. He’s been at St. Joseph’s for about a year and a half as he rehabilitates; even alongside his brother who visits and does therapy with him frequently.
The former athlete said he’ll be happy when he’s able to walk again, hoping to reach his goal of running a five-mile marathon.
In addition to being a short-term and long-term nursing home facility, Peace Care offers extensive services including:
At Peace Care St. Joseph’s and St. Ann’s, each facility has several floors and dozens of pocket spaces for residents, like their living rooms, dining rooms, activity rooms and rehab rooms, where they do their Outpatient Therapy, or their rehabilitation program. Along the halls of each floor are different decorations plus an Eldergrow garden to adorn the space.
And back on the third floor at St. Joseph’s—the center for their activities—is where “the party” goes down, as Williams said.
When Kane was asked if he likes it at St. Joseph’s, he said, “I don’t… I love it.”
“It’s [being] part of [a] family. That’s how I look at it. I’ve been here long enough… and [Peace Care] are what they preach, that’s what they do. They really care. They really do.”
About 20 minutes south of the city, you’ll find Peace Care St. Ann’s. Once a month, they have their “Move & Groove” session; the mix of music and ripples of residents’ energy were enough to draw more residents, visitors and residents into the room.
On one side of the room was Pilar Rodriguez, who moved and grooved within the circle before eventually moving into the middle to dance to “Dancing Queen” by ABBA, a classic party song from the 1970s.
Rodriguez makes one year at St. Ann’s in December. She told Slice of Culture that at first, she was nervous and scared. But thanks to friends she made and the nice aides who take care of her, she changed her perspective.
Now she participates in everything: cooking, planting, making bracelets and dancing whenever she can.
She used to be an elementary teacher in the Philippines and she used to organize a dance troop for a local Filipino organization in Jersey City. She smiled and giggled as she showed photos of her children and past activities at Peace Care.
On the other side of the room, the same day of the “Move & Groove,” was Elaine Carney. Carney didn’t get up from her seat, but she was active enough and made sure to get her friend, Ruby, who’s 101 years old, moving too.
December will also mark one year since Carney’s been at St. Ann’s. The Jersey City native said she had to get used to it, but now she’s happy to be in a good mood with everyone and her favorite activity is anything involved with arts and crafts.
“It is a lot of people, they don’t really know too much about St. Ann’s and I think they need to come and see for themselves,” she nodded. “… Like people might say, ‘Oh, I don’t want to leave my mother with this person,’ [but] we are all here watching over each other… A lot of us, we sitting and watch over each other.”
Aside from donating online to Peace Care, people can also purchase a star in honor or in a form of memory of someone, which will be placed on their Blessing Trees. It can be in honor of anyone, and doesn’t need to be a resident of either facilities. It just marks another way to donate and give back to the residents.
“I wanna thank anybody [for the] donations that they send to us, which is a very, very nice thing for them to do… This is my home and I have to try to make it as comfortable as possible,” Carney said.
