Miracle Needed- St. Joseph’s Adult Care Home’s Building Expansion Project in Sloatsburg is in Jeopardy!

BY BARRY WARNER

St. Joseph’s Adult Care Home is a nonprofit facility that is owned and operated by Sisters Servants of Mary Immaculate for 75 years. The Byzantine Catholic Order home accommodates 31 residents, who are men and women from all walks of life, including aging retired health-challenged Nuns and Priests. Its primary aim is to make each resident’s stay, one of quality with an emphasis on providing optimal care.

Administrator Sister Michele Yakymovitch told The Rockland County Times, “Becoming an Assisted Living facility means that our current residents will not have to leave us because of health care needs, such as Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease that we cannot accommodate at the present time. We are already at the point that we cannot accept any more people on the waiting list. Assisted Living services for a total of 50 residents will include medication management, bathing assistance, dressing, assistance to meals and activities, toileting plus insulin injections by an RN. We are praying for a miracle, because if we do not come up with the funds to start our $7 million building expansion in the near future, we will lose our Assisted Living license application. Thousands of dollars have been spent so far on fees and permits. The Order had to sell 40 of our 260 historic acres eight years ago to provide support for itself and general upkeep of the buildings on the property.”

The $7 million single-story building expansion project will add 19 more handicapped accessible rooms with private baths, a second nurse’s station, an expanded dining room to accommodate the additional residents, an atrium with a kitchenette, a laundry room plus updating of the security, electric, septic, heating and AC systems.

Secretary Kathleen Hrusik said, “Sister Michele Yakymovitch is a gift to the residents, as she loves and cares for them. It is heartbreaking when residents have to be transferred.” Resident Janet Wanamaker said, “I talk to the new people when they come in and the Sisters take very good care of us.” Resident Mary Trusewicz said, “I enjoy playing Bingo and walking on the property during springtime.”

A GoFundMe page has raised more than $18,000 and overall donations have reached about $500,000. GoFundMe is a crowd-funding platform that allows people to raise money for celebratory events as well as challenging circumstances, such as St. Joseph’s Adult Home expansion plans.

The hilltop property in the Village of Sloatsburg was once the home of William Hamilton, who was the great, great grandson of Alexander Hamilton, the nation’s first Secretary of the Treasury.

A fundraising art auction will be held on Saturday Evening, June 3, 2017. For additional information, call Sister Michele at 845-753-2555.

  assisted living, Sisters Servants of Mary Immaculate, sloatsburg, st. joseph’s