December Birthdays .................................1Resident of the Month .............................2Dining ..........................................................3

Health Notes ...............................................4Naples at RGP ............................................5Naples at RGP ............................................6

DECEMBER 2020 kislev-tevet 5781 VOL 21 NO 2

Survival and Renewal

Staff

Emma Davis, Director of Programming 415-345-5098 Adrienne Fair, Assistant Executive Director 415-345-5077Ira Kurtz, Executive Director 415-345-5080Eric Luu, Chief Financial Officer 415-345-5083Christine Leung,Business Office Manager 415-345-5073Samson Legesse, Director of Facilities 415-345-5088 Candiece Milford, Managing Director of Marketing 415-345-5072Corey Weiner, Director of Food and Beverage 415-345-5066Elizabeth Wyma-Hughes, Director of Resident Services 415-345-5085

2180 Post Street San Francisco, CA 94115

415.345.5060; 415.345.5061 (fax) www.RGPlaza.org RCFE #385600125

Rhoda goldman plaza

Don AbramsonKaren Aidem David DossetterNancy GoldbergDr. Carl GrunfeldDr. Lawrence HillBernie NebenzahlJaimie SanfordPaul SiegelJim ShapiroJosh SmithRonna StoneMartin TannenbaumDr. Anita FriedmanKaren Staller

Board of Directors

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December BirthdaysBetty Sekhri 9 Andre Diedrichs 15 Paula Smith 17 Connie Manning 19 Judith Rosenthal 23 Beverly Baker 25 Stephanie DiGiorgio 25Rivka Spiegel 25

Survival and Renewal

These days I wish I had a few drops of Hanukkah oil or a slice of miracle. When months of COVID isolation drags me down, I want an uplift that will cause me not only to survive but enjoy life. The Hanukkah miracle is that a one-day supply of oil burned for a week. And the fact that it burned for a week made it possible to rededicate the temple in Jerusalem. Even something seemingly as insignificant as a cruse of oil had the power to renew national religious observance for an entire people.

The historical event—the heavily outnumbered Maccabees revolted against forced assimilation by the Greeks and overcame the army of Syrian King Antiochus IV. The Maccabees recaptured the Temple, removed the pagan idols, and began rededicating the temple. Needing pure holy oil to rededicate the temple, they found only enough oil for one day, yet it burned for eight days!

The lessons of Hanukkah? Never give up; what determines victory may not be in our hands; and that an apparently small miracle has repercussions far beyond the single event.

We hope that a COVID vaccine will be a “miraculous” step in allowing everyone to reconnect with families, friends, and community to live fuller, happier, and more exuberant lives.

Resident of the Month—Ira Kurtz

“I am the son of survivors,” stated Ira Kurtz, Rhoda Goldman Plaza resident and Executive Director. Both my parents were Holocaust survivors, all their friends were Holocaust survivors, and I learned from them how to live. In fact, my thirty-seven-year career as an administrator in the Assisted Living and Nursing Home industry is a story of professional survival.

Since my parents and all of their friends were Polish survivors, I grew up in a survivors’ world. Some were in the camps, others were partisans; all had different stories; all were very resourceful people. I listened to their stories and respected them for what they had gone through. It was a very close group—only survivors—which became a kind of extended family. Fearlessness, an unflagging sense of humor, and refusal to give up…. that’s what I absorbed from them and articulated throughout my life.

My uncle was employed at the Workman’s Circle, the group which had a major influence on my life. From them I absorbed the values of equality, social justice, and progressive Jewish values. While at college, I worked summers at the Workman’s Circle Camp Kinder Ring and Circle Lodge in Hopewell Junction, New York as a waiter and busboy. There were many survivors who stayed at the Lodge; I enjoyed working there and realized that I had an affinity for older people and enjoyed listening to their stories.”

After graduating from George Washington University with a BA in Political Science, I worked for Bella Abzug—a fascinating experience. Although I had been interested in politics as a university subject, I found that the real-world political environment was not for me. After working for a few years, I decided to return to George Washington University to get an MA in Health Administration with a specialization in long-term care. My residency was at the Jewish Home in Detroit where I learned how complex running a facility really was. My mentor was exceptional; he was a charismatic, brilliant, dynamic, a very humorous individual who gave me difficult assignments through which to learn essential lessons in administration. He served as a great role model throughout my life.

My first job at the Jewish Home in Brooklyn, NY was the beginning of a long career in assisted living and nursing home administration. Administration is complex; I love the challenge, find the diversity and many facets of administration challenging. I really enjoy working with people and get a lot of satisfaction from making older peoples’ lives rewarding and their families happy.

Through my years of experience working with many kinds of people and organizations, I’ve learned that people do want to do a good job; it’s important not to judge people and to give them a chance. I am definitely a Theory Y manager—people are good, money is not the primary motivator, and staff should have the freedom to creatively solve problems. For me, it is difficult to work in an organization where profit is paramount, management is hierarchical and work is rigidly controlled.

I love living at Rhoda Goldman Plaza. It’s a great community, a wonderful location, the food is delicious, units are comfortable, and residents are very interesting. When I came to RGP almost six years ago, I was very impressed with RGP’s potential to become an outstanding community. I was lucky to have the opportunity to build a dynamic management team and never doubted that things would work out. I can’t think of a better place—really the crown jewel of my career—to live and to lead.

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Oil

Corey Weiner,Director of Food and Beverage

At this time of year, we celebrate the miracle of…let’s face it... Oil. Greasy, fattening, slippery, deliciously dangerous oil. We do this so that we can eat fried food. Perpetuated by Kentucky Fried Chicken, we have been stealthily inundated with fried food which has slowly expanded from fried chicken to Latke and then subversively it became a major lifestyle decision.

How do you find the right motor oil for your car? No wait! Your face? No. Which one to sauté with, which one to dress your salad? I use olive oil to hold my oil brushes between uses, although they say walnut oil is better. In which oil should you fry your latke, your donut, or your cheesecake-bacon burrito? What oil should be seen on your kitchen counter? Only the most virgin, and unfiltered at that! Fancy and expensive extra virgin olive oil in a tiny bottle (to go with your even tinier bottle of aged balsamic vinegar?) But, what do we use for Chanukah?

For our favorite miracle, the Maccabees (probably) used olive oil, though some used sesame oil (better for stir fry …Moses had a thing for Chinese food.). Today we have a wide range of choices.... ACAIA Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil 16.9 fl oz (500ml), at $126.00. Lambda, the world’s first ultra-premium couture olive oil is estimated as the most expensive cooking oil on shelf, at $50.00 a bottle (minimum order 2), or $200.00 per bottle in a signature gift box? Such a deal! Almost like your daughter marrying a surgeon—truly a joyous occasion.

Oil lamps or lanterns burn about a 1/2 ounce of oil per hour. Let us see.... that’s $126.00 divided by 16 which is $3.72 per hour. I think electricity is cheaper.

So many oils, so little time. There’s sesame, olive, canola (what plant is that)? More exotic oils you may never have heard of are Ethiopian Black Seed Oil, Cacay Oil, Dende Oil, the dreaded Chia Seed Oil and so many more... which causes Word’s spell check a nervous breakdown. At least there are no Kale or Green tea oils…................yet...........

Now, you know, you must be very careful about how you store your oil. Of course a cruse is quite safe; Target carried them in ancient times. But a better, or shall I say, more apt vessel is a donut, filled not with custard…but with (you know where I am going) and the donut hole as a cap. You must seal it with chocolate icing so no air gets in. Back in Greek times, for the common folk they used sprinkles; for kings, jewels. Bless their hearts, cholesterol did them in, worse than the plagues. Good thing they didn’t know about cronuts, right?

As an afterthought, we could have taken care of the Egyptians too. Though that would have been the eleventh plague—Kelly would have sent Chia Seeds which they could have spread on their cruses and double-purposed them as

pets. Roasted Kale is my very least favorite thing in the world. Green Tea Pudding—Plagues 12, 13 and 14. Take that Pharaohs!

So much to eat, so little time.

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Survival, Renewal, and Hopes for a Vaccine

Adrienne Fair, MSN, RN, Assistant Executive Director

Health Notes

As the saying goes, “The darkest hour is just before the dawn.” Dare we hope for a vaccine in the coming months? Are we nearing the end of the COVID pandemic? Can we all give our families giant hugs and have a big dinner party by spring?

First off, we will all need to focus on survival. The CDC predicts that 1,100,000 to 2,500,000 new cases will likely be reported during the week ending December 19, 2020 in the US1. New weekly cases in San Francisco County may reach 100 per 100,000 population during this time. By comparison, the rate per 100,000 in SF on December 1st was only 16.7 cases2.

In other words, we must stay vigilant! Wash those hands! Forgo that hug! Keep that mask up over your nose! And, of course, try to relax, eat well… and avoid stress and hypertension from watching too much evening news.

Thank you to everyone who pulled back on their Thanksgiving plans in order to minimize risk to the RGP community. The few residents who did go out are in the middle of a 14-day quarantine as I write this. Thank you in advance for minimizing your Chanukah and New Year’s plans.

Looking ahead to renewal, we are ready to facilitate COVID vaccinations at RGP as soon as possible. We are enrolled with the National COVID Vaccination Distribution Program,to receive vaccines when they become available.

Speaking of which, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to the CDC just voted

today (12/1/20) to prioritize the COVID vaccine for Long Term Care residents and healthcare workers 3.

Pfizer and Moderna are both expected to have vaccine doses for 30 million people by the end of December. That said, Governor Newsom has stated that California’s priority will be healthcare workers and that “mass vaccination is not likely to occur anytime soon”4.

In other news, on December 1st, an RGP staff-member tested positive for COVID. The good news is that our robust twice-weekly testing program detected the virus as early as it possibly could. Thank you all for your resilience and patience as we shut down activities and group dining yet again. By the time you read this article, who knows what new developments, both local and national, will have unfolded.

Which brings me back to survival. I repeat: wash those hands, forgo that hug, keep that mask up over your nose… and keep enjoying those Zoom visits until we make it to the dawn.

1 CDC (November 30, 2020). COVID-19 forecasts: Cases. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-updates/forecasts-cases.html2 New York Times (December 2, 2020). Coronavirus in the US: Latest map and case count. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html3 Goodnough, A (December 1, 2020). Long-term-care residents and health workers should get vaccine first, CDC says. New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/01/health/covid-vaccine-distribution-cdc.html4 BBC (December 1, 2020). COVID vaccine: who will get vaccinated first in the US? BBC.com News: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55149138

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By Jeanne Halpern, Resident

What you have to know first, before I tell you about the garden, is that one of the happiest times in my life was the year Louis and I lived in Naples, Italy. Why? Because anything, everything we needed always turned up. A charming apartment in the Vomero? On our second day looking, we found a For Rent sign (Affittassi, in Italian) three blocks from the funicular to downtown. Someone to negotiate with a difficult landlord? Louis’s cousin Antonio knew an Italian woman who taught English in high school; Norma not only handled our landlord but also became our dear friend and guide. An indoor/outdoor café for cappuccino and pastry? At Piazza Vanvitelli, a few blocks down. And a job for Louis? A perfect one turned up, teaching English to adults, near the American Consulate. We had never felt as well-cared-for as we did that year in Naples. Now, as I pass my first anniversary of living at RGP, I feel the same way, especially since last month when I started my tiny native plant garden on the third floor Patio.

To understand why, you have to know that when Louis and I returned from Naples twenty-one years ago, we found our home, which we’d rented, in fine shape. And so were the upstairs and downstairs decks. But thanks to the rainy San Francisco winter, we couldn’t step off the downstairs deck without sinking shin-deep into the thatch of weeds and cast-off jade plants that had overtaken the cliff where we lived. Thus began the digging, bagging, and dumping that eventually led to my huge, award-winning California Native Plant Garden.

Though I’m a very out-doorsy person, I hadn’t made a garden from scratch since 1960. In fact, my only knowledge of plants came from some outdoor flowers my mother planted wherever we lived and the large, flourishing Victory Garden my father dug in our backyard during World War II A New Yorker at heart, I’d never even heard of California native plants.

It was Louis’s close friend, David Schooley, who had helped us clear the thatch from our cliff, who actually envisioned what became my garden. A savior of native plants and butterflies in Northern California and a contributor to the federal Endangered Species Act, David imagined the land outside our deck as a

garden that would reach clear across the cliff. And so, little by little, he taught me about native plants and also built all the trails up, down and across the cliff. I bought natives, planted them, watered them, pruned them, chatted with them, and, every Saturday morning, treated them to the Metropolitan Opera on my boom box. With the help of two gardeners, I watched my six oak trees and numerous shrubs, ferns, grasses, and a rainbow of flowering plants spread over the cliff for the two decades before I moved to RGP.

California natives are, basically, plants that predate the arrival of what we now call Americans. The Indian tribes who lived here used these plants for food, medicine, building, clothing, dying, weaving, cleaning, protection with bows and arrows – in other words, for living. For instance, the large, fist-shaped roots of the Soap Plant (Chlorogalum pomeridianum) furnished not only soap for washing clothes and bathing but also bristles for making small brushes and for medicine. In my garden, I loved watching its small, delicate white flowers unfold their petals every afternoon at about three o’clock, and I’d sometimes notice bumble bees sipping their nectar. In fact, many animals feasted on my natives: gophers, moles, voles, squirrels, butterflies, birds, skunks, raccoons and larger animals like deer and coyotes.

One Saturday morning about a decade ago when I was watering my garden, I saw out of the corner of my eye a movement. Above me stood a young coyote, its thin tan legs planted on a trail perhaps seven yards above me, watching me as I watched him. Dumbstruck, I fastened my eyes on my hose and paid such strict attention to watering, I felt paralyzed. I couldn’t think what to do next. But I needn’t have worried. My handsome young visitor wound his way along the paths down the hillside and into the center of Malta Drive, where he continued his investigations.

Naples at RGP

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RenewalDuring the past five years, RGP, as an organization has used 2,300,000 sheets of paper. This amount of paper contains more than 200 trees, almost a small forest. In recognition of the negative effects of deforestation on the environment and the obligation to carry out Tikkun Olam, RGP decided to donate $500 to plant trees as a way of renewing what we have used. RGP contributed $500 to the One Tree Planted organization.

I quite literally fell in love with my garden. And so did the hundreds of others who walked through it every spring on the annual tour sponsored by the Yerba Buena Chapter of the California Native Plant Society. So many visitors came that I needed five guides to help me lead them over the trails David Schooley had built–and he was one of the guides.

Do you wonder how I can say, honestly, that leaving my pride-and-joy garden to move into RGP did not make me sad? No, I didn’t feel sad. For several years before moving, I had lost my gazelle-like ability to weave in and out, up and down the trails on O’Shaughnessy Cliffs. I loved looking at the garden. Sometimes I’d walk with friends along the one flat trail from the downstairs deck to the patio and past the engraved cedar marker in memory of my dear Louis, who died five years ago. Next to the marker stands the yellow Sticky Monkey

(Mimulus aurantiacus) plant David Schooley had dug in when our friends and I had a garden party there in Louis’s memory. But when the time came to pack and move to RGP, I got rid of my tools and pots and the shed that held them, donated my numerous native plant books to the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library, and held onto only a few photos and the notepads where I kept a careful record of the months when my plants bloomed like a kaleidoscope of changing colors. Otherwise, I gave no thought to my garden until, that is, one afternoon, when I’d lived here about three months and discovered the third floor Patio.

As our Covid months passed and I visited the Patio more often, I noticed that in the large wooden planter near the hose, three cubes had no plants. Then came a series of coincidences: running into Elizabeth in the hall one day, Carl another, then Joseph, and then Emma. Since they all encouraged my idea to perhaps start a tiny native plant garden here, I asked my neighbor Amalia to help me decide whether to replace my beloved maxi-garden across town with a mini-garden here. After she and I chose the perfect position for the cubes, I picked out plants on the Bay Natives website, rode out with Joseph to pick them up, and met Carl on the Patio with eleven plants and some new soil. Then I dug in and watered and labeled and staked what I hope will be the happy California natives of Rhoda Goldman Plaza.

I’m giving the spot of honor to a creamy-yellow Sticky Monkey plant. When, as time goes by and I care for it, I’ll remember my dear Louis, of course, and our well-cared-for year in Naples. But I’ll also think of RGP where, when I need something, a staff member or a resident always seems to turn up and encourage or help or be my advocate. Because of these special people, I’m happy here. Yes, that’s it. Like my cheerful little survivors on the patio, I’m transplanted and thriving in my new setting. And isn’t that a wonder.

Jeanne Halpern and her native plantsPhoto: Carl Kerwick

Rhoda goldman plaza 2180 Post Street San Francisco, CA 94115

415.345.5060 415.345.5061 (fax)

www.RGPlaza.org RCFE #385600125

Founded by Jewish Family and Children’s Services and Mount Zion Health Fund

Rhoda Goldman PlazaThe appeal of Rhoda Goldman Plaza is undeniable. Older adults and their families prefer our unsurpassed assisted living and memory care community enriched by culture and tradition.Residents enjoy superb, “made-from-scratch” cuisine that is always well reviewed by our most vocal critics; our residents! While our dining selections please the appetite, accommodations showcase spacious, private apartments designed to maximize space and comfort. In fact, we’re re-defining your life as Living Well With Assistance—we believe our community is every bit as good as a five-star hotel. And, professionally trained, courteous staff promotes your health and well-being with choices of activity programs both on and off-site.

Our Terrace Memory program provides specialized memory care to residents through therapeutic activities that enhance physical, mental, and emotional health. Both privacy and companionship are afforded on our self-contained Terrace. Living Well With Assistance is more than a promise, but a way of life for our like-minded residents and staff who share the vision of our upscale community.

Visit Rhoda Goldman Plaza today by calling 415.345.5072.

Founded by Jewish Family and Children’s Services and Mt. Zion Health Fund in 2000, Rhoda Goldman Plaza (RGP) was established as a non-profit assisted living facility to provide a better and more secure life for older adults.