Serving Seniors with Excellence, Love and Dignity.
Radiant Care is a faith-based, charitable not-for-profit organization offering a full continuum of seniors housing and care at two sites in the Niagara Region.
Through our training in Montessori and dementia care, we have learned how reinforcing our residents' identities brings them comfort, joy, and purpose. As we get to know someone, we help them engage in meaningful activities that enable them to use their strengths and abilities.
We are always exploring new ways to help people connect and contribute based on their interests, skills, and abilities. Below are some of the activities that our current residents and tenants enjoy.
Doll therapy involves offering dolls (or mechanical cats) to adults who are living with dementia, with the goal of improving their comfort, engagement, and quality of life. Adults who have been caregivers throughout their lives are often particularly impacted by doll therapy because caring for others is such a significant part of who they are. Reinforcing the caregiver aspect of their identity brings them comfort, joy, and purpose.
Many people did household chores growing up or as an adult. Sorting and folding laundry is a familiar activity that helps validate someone’s identity as a contributor to the household. Folding clothing protectors or towels gives residents an opportunity to continue to contribute to their home, while folding children’s clothing can bring back memories and feelings of caring for their family.
Many residents and tenants who choose to live at Radiant Care have a Mennonite heritage or they spent a lot of time preparing food for their families, so baking is very familiar to them.
Tabor Manor hosts a perishky baking program every Thursday morning, which engages interested residents and tenants in preparing a delicious traditional Mennonite treat: apple perishky.
Engaging individuals in activities that are familiar and meaningful to them helps them experience mastery and purpose. We ask residents and tenants (and sometimes their families) about their skills, interests and hobbies. We use this knowledge to facilitate activities that enable them to continue to use their skills and pursue new or existing interests.
Music reaches into the soul. Many people come alive when they hear a familiar song or favourite hymn. We offer various opportunities for residents and tenants to enjoy and participate in musical experiences. Some of these include:
Many people who live at Radiant Care enjoy interacting with children. For some, visiting with children reminds them of their children, grandchildren or their own childhood, and for some it simply brings them joy to interact with little ones.
Providing seniors with opportunities to interact with children, teenagers, and young adults ensures a vibrant atmosphere in which people, both young and old, are valued, can share their stories and experiences, and learn from one another.
We help individuals find meaningful roles within our homes based on their history, interests, and abilities. Some examples include setting the table, watering plants, folding laundry, caring for babies/pets, working at a desk, and shredding paper. Filling familiar roles and doing familiar routines help individuals experience mastery and a sense of contribution. Looking forward to completing a fulfilling routine provides some people with a purpose to get up and go each day.
Many people who live at Radiant Care have spent much of their lives building and supporting their families, churches, and communities, and they continue to do so. This is a big part of who they are as people and, in many cases, as Christians. To continue giving back, some residents and tenants have initiated or gotten involved in serving people in our local and global communities through various initiatives such as knitting hats and mittens for students at a neighbouring school, hosting a food drive to collect food for Community Care to distribute to the Niagara community, and packing boxes for Operation Christmas Child so children living in desperate situations oversees can feel their love through a Christmas gift.
Therapy dogs visit Radiant Care to offer comfort, joy, and acceptance to residents who wish to pet, cuddle, and talk to them. The friendly attention and unconditional love of these four-legged volunteers is always greatly appreciated.
At Radiant Care, we value relationships. We believe that getting to know who an individual was and is, is important to be able to connect on a deeper level. One of the ways we foster relationships is by connecting residents and tenants with volunteers who share their interests or who want to learn more about them through one-on-one friendly visits.
Our MyndVR virtual reality headsets open the door to a variety of new and familiar experiences that are not limited by one’s physical or cognitive abilities. Residents and tenants are able to have meaningful participation in a virtual intervention that stimulates them emotionally, physically, socially, and spiritually. Staff assist residents and tenants in choosing virtual reality experiences that are tailored to their unique histories and interests, which could include travelling to Italy, watching a Broadway show, or enjoying some time on the farm.
Learn moreStaff have been using whimsical photos to spark creativity and bring meaning and joy through engaging storytelling. Making up stories together allows residents to use their imagination, and it shifts the pressure away from the expectation of memory.
Puzzles provide an opportunity for residents and tenants to participate in a familiar activity that is relaxing and enjoyable, while also stimulating them mentally and often socially. The half-completed puzzles set up throughout our homes are typically social gathering points around which multiple residents and tenants will gather for hours of chatting while they work together to complete the puzzle.
I really find value in seeing the older people interact with Randy. We bring smiles and laughter to the residents! It brings brightness to their lives. When the residents interact with Randy it gives them a sense of love and acceptance.
A Montessori home is a friendly place for the residents and staff. Since it was implemented at Radiant Care it has improved relationships between staff and residents by engaging them in meaningful activity.
Montessori continues to change our homes. We can see how happy the residents are! It makes them happy because we show them our love. When we learn what they like we can implement programs to help them connect to their past.
I donate to Radiant Care because the money is used wisely. We have fantastic staff here. My donations go to make improvements for those who live at Radiant Care. We can trust our gifts to Radiant Care will be used for a good purpose.
I have been making toques for about 20 years. I brought this here and we got some of the ladies involved. They weren't sure at first if they could do it, but we taught them. We have made thousands over the years and sent them to those in need.
Montessori is getting my mom engaged in meaningful activities that take her mind off of her worries. It’s helpful in keeping my mom in a place where she has a purpose, a reason to get up and go!
I felt happy again inside. I'm starting to get to know people and know names. It was hard at first when I moved in here, I was nervous. The staff helped me connect.
• Children’s clothing & newborn baby clothing
• Markers, pencil crayons, dry erase markers
• Non-toxic paint, paint brushes, table easels, canvases
• Watering cans and gardening supplies (e.g. hand rakes, shovels, dirt)
• iPods
• iPads
• Sewing needles & yarn (only yarn for TM)
• Simple puzzles
• Sorting activities
• Coffee table style reading/picture books