'Happy' 90-year-old dances down Hempfield Manor hallways

A walker now might help Sarah “Dolly” Ponchak with her balance, but she still doesn’t miss a beat.

To prove it, staff at Hempfield Manor — where Ponchak lives — recently danced down the nursing home hallways with the 90-year-old. Her family and others posted a video posted on the facility’s Facebook page.

Ponchak, formerly of White Oak, “loves to dance, and we wanted to let her family know she was doing OK,” said activity assistant Teri Copper. She played “Happy” by Pharrell Williams on her phone as several staff, all wearing protective face masks, joined in the dance. The video is part of a “Let the Fun Begin” series the staff has produced.

“It doesn’t matter where she’s at. If there was a song, she would just start dancing,” said Ponchak’s daughter, Tammy Sullenberger of Irwin. “She still likes to do that little twist.”

Sullenberger has taken advantage of other alternatives Hempfield Manor uses to keep residents and their loved ones connected. Visitors have been excluded from the building since the second week of March as a precaution against spreading coronavirus infections.

“I’ve gone up to my mom’s room window and talked to her on the phone,” Sullenberger said.

When a FaceTime visit between Sullenberger and her mother fell through, the staff made and posted the “Happy” dance video.

To help protect residents and staff during the pandemic, Copper said, large common areas at Hempfield Manor are off-limits, including the activity room.

Ponchak and the other 109 residents still are able to play bingo. The staff help residents check their bingo cards in their rooms as numbers are announced over the public address system.

Maintaining outreach

Visitors who came in person to lift residents’ spirits continue to reach out — just from a distance.

Guitarist and vocalist Joe Brucker, of Plum, had visited Hempfield Manor monthly to entertain with tunes by 1970s singer-songwriters. Now, he posts YouTube videos of his performances that Manor staff play for residents.

“One of the ladies has been there a long time, so I would play ‘Detroit City (I Wanna Go Home)’ for her,” Brucker said. “They asked if I could post a video of me doing that song, so that’s how it started.”

Don Leasure of Hempfield made weekly visits with his therapy dog, Reggie, an English cream golden retriever. Now, he submits photos so residents can see what the pooch is up to.

“It’s of whatever he’s doing that day,” whether taking a walk at Mammoth Park or visiting with a family friend’s Labrador retriever, Leasure said. “Everybody looked forward to seeing him, and he misses it, too.”

A team of other therapy dogs has visited Hempfield Manor and other care homes, coordinated by Youngwood Top Dog Services owner Rodney Little. Now, the dogs visit with residents via FaceTime and an iPad operated by a Manor staff member.

“It breaks up the day for them to see the dogs,” Little said.