News & Upcoming Events
Small garden, Big Benefits at Loomis House
September 24, 2007
HOLYOKE - Compared to the family farm he operated in New York State, the 20-foot by 20-foot plot that retired city resident George R. Puffer oversees at Loomis House on Jarvis Avenue is no big deal.
The garden was set up this spring by Loomis House staff - at Puffer's request - in the northeast corner of the sprawling grounds, which sports 65 independent living apartments, 13 assisted living units and a 92-bed nursing home.
A widower, Puffer, 87, and his constant companion Jeff, his 17-year-old blond Labrador retriever, are at the garden every day. There, in the small patch that is bathed in the afternoon sun, he tends to the tomatoes, onions and scallions, lettuce, radishes, cucumbers, beans and turnips.
He's not alone. Another resident, John F. Miller, helped Puffer set up the garden and helps every day or two, paying special attention to the okra he planted.
A longtime resident of Knoxville, Tenn., Miller, 84, and his wife, Lorena B., moved to Loomis House in November 2004. In December, Lorena, who has Alzheimer's disease, had to move from the couple's apartment into a special unit at the nursing home on Loomis House property.
The couple celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary last week.
Miller, a retired mechanical engineer, said he and his wife for many years helped plant and can vegetables on her brother's northern Georgia farm. And this spring, he said, he quickly volunteered to work on the garden here with Puffer - as long as he could plant some okra.
Although the okra was having problems growing well in the cooler New England climate, it seems to be doing fine now after some advice from down home, Miller said.
Miller said most of his Loomis neighbors haven't developed a taste for the spicy okra, but that it is great in shrimp dishes and soups, or fired on its own.
As the garden's bounty is harvested, the produce is placed in a basket in Loomis House's main lounge, where residents are encouraged to take whatever they desire.
Susan L. Moore, marketing director for Loomis Communities - which also runs Loomis Village in South Hadley and Applewood in Amherst - said the garden was a way to give Puffer and Miller something productive to do. And the residents are benefiting as well.
"They appreciate it, they do," said Miller.
"We've got a pretty good little garden for our needs," he added. "And it gives us an activity that gets us outside . . . Because you can sit in the apartment all day doing nothing and it drives you nuts."
Puffer said he moved to the Pioneer Valley last year because his daughter Susan lives in Granby. He also has a number of other relatives in the area. But an older brother and his wife, who lived in a nearby community, died recently within days of each other.
Miller said it was his son Gregory, of Williamsburg, who urged his father to move closer and get help taking care of his ailing wife. Gregory found Loomis House on the Internet, and after one quick visit, Miller said, he was anxious to move in and did.
It was a decision he is glad he made for both himself and his wife, Miller said, citing the various levels of care the couple can and has received.
"We're the most fortunate people in the world," he said last week. "This is a wonderful place to live."
Reprinted with permission from The Republican
Located in Holyoke, MA, Loomis House is a Continuing Care Retirement Community, providing Independent Living, Assisted Living and Skilled Nursing Care. Loomis House is pet-friendly and an affordable solution for many seniors who seek a maintenance-free, active lifestyle.
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