The great thing about wishes? It doesn’t matter if they are big or small, because they are all meaningful.
Take Eventide resident Monna Rae, for example. One day in passing, she told staff about how much she wished she could get together with family at her favorite pub for a toast and some appetizers.
Monna Rae’s dreams were realized when Eventide Foundation, the donor-funded arm of Eventide, booked space at the bar and picked up the tab as part of our Daydreams Program, a donor-funded initiative that grants wishes to residents.
Monna Rae had always been a big fan of The Bulldog Tap, the staff there even call her “Gramma.”
It had been a bit since she had visited so a few members of the Sheyenne Crossings Eventide team planned the outing. About 40 people gathered in her honor as she enjoyed chocolate bulldogs, a taco salad and played pull tabs.
Monna Rae holds a cake during her Daydreams Project outing: a trip to her favorite pub with family and friends.
About the Daydreams Project
The Daydreams Program was founded by staff at Eventide Jamestown in 2005. Wishes from residents were as simple as having a lutefisk dinner to a little more complex, like going on a helicopter ride.
Since then, residents like Monna Rae enjoy having their wishes granted, almost as much as our staff enjoy granting them.
“There’s something about it,” said Becky Butenhoff, director of life enrichment at Sheyenne Crossings. “One resident several years ago loved The Blenders holiday concerts, so we made sure she got to more concerts. She loved it, and so did we.”
Other wishes that have been granted over the years:
- The Blenders concert
- Helicopter ride
- Minnesota Vikings jersey and helmet
- Family reunion
- Shopping day with the girls, followed by margaritas
- Authentic German supper
- Countryside road trip with kettle corn
- Lutefisk feast
- Dinner and a movie
Creating moments of joy
Daydreams’ intent is to create moments of joy, though seniors do not have to be diagnosed with an illness to have a dream fulfilled.
If a resident can dream it, Eventide’s Daydream Project committee will try to make it a reality. Recipients just need to be care center residents of Eventide.
Residents, family members, friends, visitors and staff are encouraged to submit requests to the Daydream Project committee by getting in touch with their community’s staff.
Funded by Eventide Foundation
Eventide’s foundation, which gathers funding from donations, staff payroll deductions, grants and other gifts, supplies the funds needed for wish-granting.
You can support the Daydreams Project
To donate to the Daydreams Project and other programs that directly support activities and events for Eventide residents, click here.
Read more about the Daydreams Project
