A Moment of Gratitude
Now is a traditional time to rejoice and reflect. This year has brought many blessings even as it has tested us all in many ways. With the support of you, our family, friends, volunteers, and donors, St. Louis Center had an amazing year. We is grateful to you for sharing your strength with us, helping to provide our residents and community with resilience through a challenging year!
Thankful For Staff
Residents at SLC were very busy throughout the month of December as they prepared to celebrate the Christmas Season in many special ways. Last year, due to the epidemic, many activities were cancelled or changed from how they were previously celebrated. This year, activities are returning to more of a normal state, and the residents are happy to participate in all the festivities!
In November, residents in the Day Program began the project of planning gifts for the entire St. Louis Center staff. By using collected and returned bottles and cans residents purchased supplies to create homemade gifts for those that care for them while living at the Center. Residents added ingredients together to form salt dough which was cut into ornaments and dried. Residents helped to paint and decorate each unique and special ornament.
Once the ornaments were complete, the baking began. Several different kinds of cookies were made and packaged into festive bags. The final step was to sign the Christmas cards. After five weeks of working on the project, groups of residents accompanied by staff members visited all of the homes and offices on the SLC campus delivering the gifts to staff members.
Thankful for Crafts and Smiles
Residents enjoy exploring their creative side, especially during the Christmas season. Festive crafts are done throughout the month in various forms. With pretty colors and twinkling lights, it is hard not to smile when you see the hard work and heart being put in to each loving craft.
Activities Director, Laura, works hard throughout the year planning meaningful activities for all residents. Day Program Staff also plan crafts, learning time, and outings during the different seasons. Each residents learns, moves, and creates on their own unique level. SLC staff do an exquisite job finding what methods work best with each residents so that all residents can achieve greatness. The residents are grateful to staff for helping, and for the joy of demonstrating their own creativity.
Thankful for our Christmas Program and Independence College good cheer
The Christmas Program returned in 2021 for a one-night production on the SLC stage. After weeks of practicing the residents finally had their evening to shine. Smiles and laughter filled the room as the stage was lit up with talent. Residents sang familiar Christmas songs, explained what Christmas means to them, and enjoyed some tasty Christmas treats.
As something that many residents anticipate with pleasure each year, it was with great relief they were able to have a wonderful Christmas Program again, thanks to the hard work of the residents and staff. This program was live-streamed for families who were not able to attend.
On December 20th after dinner, residents from the Day Program Choir and Independence College loaded up in vans and went into Chelsea. The staff figured that they could put all that practice to more good use by spreading some holiday cheer around the Chelsea community. They visited at least a half dozen homes in one of the neighborhoods much to the surprise and delight of the homeowners. A couple houses even had cookies for the residents to enjoy.
Thankful for YOU, our St. Louis Center supporters!
The residents and staff at SLC thank you, the generous donors, for a year of generosity. Because of your support, residents have access to the tools needed to overcome the challenges of this past year. Without your generosity, life would not bring as many smiles to the stage of the Center and the artful crafts would sparkle just a little less. YOU help to make SLC a resilient, loving, and great place that residents are happy to call home. For this the residents and staff of SLC thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
Read more Stories of #SLCresilience here!
79% of donations received go to the care of the Center’s residents.
According to the 2020 audit, St. Louis Center administrative and overhead expenses were only 21%, in line with well-managed nonprofit best practices. You can be confident that your donation to the Center is going to good use.
St. Louis Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Federal Tax ID: 38-6038121