Our residents have lived all manners of lives. They’ve raised families, retired from rewarding careers, served in the military, and traveled to distant lands. They’ve experienced the heartbreaks every person does, they’ve felt the exhilaration of true love, and nurtured their bundles of joy from birth to adulthood. No matter what they’ve done, it has been interesting. We learn that every day when residents tell the stories of their lives. And we want everyone who comes to visit our residents to know their stories, too—at least a piece of their remarkable lives.
To do this, we’re contracted with local writer, Vince Tweddell, to write our residents’ stories. Tweddell, who also has taught English for more than a dozen years, approached us in 2020 with his small startup, called Life Story. His idea is to write the stories of our residents, and we knew it would be a perfect addition to the services we provide. It’s another piece of Homeplace’s memory care program.
Here’s how it works. Tweddell creates a front-page style newspaper article about the life of each memory care resident to allow our staff, visitors, and families to learn about the history of this individual. Then we frame and hang this article in residents’ rooms.
It’s simple, but positive in so many ways. First, it allows memory care residents to activate their brains and talk about memories they may not have spoken about in a long time. Second, caregivers, fellow residents, and visitors can read and learn about the resident, which will spark conversations. Residents can find commonalities and talk about similar events they’ve lived through. Third, a front-page news article instills a sense of pride in our residents. They get to brag a bit about their long and wonderful life.
Formerly a newspaper reporter, Tweddell sits and interviews residents to prepare for the writing. He also obtains information from our staff and even interviews family if needed. The range of topics is endless, but he focuses on what each resident wants to talk about. After gathering information, he writes up the article and formats it in the manner of a front page, with headlines trumpeting the resident.
Tweddell’s philosophy is that everybody has a story to tell. We have a feeling he’ll hear more than just one from our residents. We know our residents have lived and are living full lives, and we want everyone else to know it, too.
To learn more about Life Story, contact Vince Tweddell at vince@lifestorybios.com, or visit lifestorybios.com.
To contact the Homeplace of Henderson, email Jessica Beaven at jessica.beaven@homeplaceofhenderson.com, call at (270) 577-0534, or write to 3104 Green River Road, Henderson, KY 42420.