Mount Carmel staff, dedicated to ideal of seeing, serving and loving God in all residents

Sister Mary Elizabeth Rougeau, DCJ gives out meds to Alicia Longoria.

Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

Residents at Mount Carmel Home have been through wars, the Great Depression and raised families. “They are our living history, a first hand account. You get that in so many different encounters,” said Sister Ann Elizabeth Cronin, DCJ, LVN, executive director of Mount Carmel Home.

Mount Carmel Home is a non-profit, Christian assisted living home, located at 4130 South Alameda Street in Corpus Christi. It is owned an operated by the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus whose convent is located on the same grounds.

Currently, there are 52 elderly residents living at Mount Carmel Home.

The Carmelite Sisters and the 21 hired staff members strive to provide residents with the highest level of care with dignity. According to their mission statement, they are “dedicated to the ideal of seeing, serving and loving God in all residents.”

Sister Ann Elizabeth Cronin, DCJ, LVN is executive director of Mount Carmel Home. Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

“When our congregation was established, our foundress said time and time again: ‘no facility, no institution.’ The goal is to preserve the dignity of the person. We definitely want to provide a home,” Sister Ann Elizabeth said.

“The employees are wonderful. They have been here for so many years…so long,” she said. One employee has been there for more than 50 years. Many others have worked at Mount Carmel, 20 and 30 years.

“Once the elderly become part of your family, so to speak, you’re hooked… you’re personally invested,” Sister Ann Elizabeth said.

Residents’ spiritual needs are provided for through daily Mass at 7 a.m. and Sunday Mass at 9 a.m. Some of the residents meet every day for devotions or to pray the Divine Mercy at 3 p.m. They also have Bible study and movies with religious or spiritual themes.

Mount Carmel Home offers a wide variety of services. The residents have 24-hour care, with licensed vocational nurses on staff, medication management and regular health monitoring. They get three meals a day and snacks. They also receive help with bathing and grooming and weekly housekeeping.

They have a Lifeline, private mailboxes, exercise rooms, garden areas, linen service and utilities, including cable. There is an on site beauty and barbershop and a hairdresser who comes once a week. In addition the staff provides transportation to residents for doctors appointments, banking, outings or shopping.

Activities include, games, resident council meetings, birthday parties and socials. Local musicians give of their time and talent for the enjoyment of residents.

“Many residents are actively engaged in outdoor, weekly transportation trips and the indoor activities are buzzing with laughter and there is a very happy companionship between residents,” said Sister M. Barbara Leary, DCJ who recently returned to Corpus Christi after a three-year term working in an assisted living home in La Mesa, California.

Mickey Hardigree, 85, stays physically fit by walking the grounds of Mount Carmel, as do many other residents. Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

Mickey Hardigree, 85, stays physically fit by walking the grounds of Mount Carmel, as do many other residents. Hardigree has been at Mount Carmel since May and she stays busy. She tries to stay fit everyday by participating in a variety of different games with other residents like bowling, paddleball and kickball. She also walks the home’s halls.

“I like to play games to keep my body and mind going,” she said.

A new resident Alice Cuevas said she looks forward to living at Mount Carmel Home. She lived in a neighborhood where people she knew were moving out and the house she lived in was getting harder and harder to maintain. She recently left her home in Tynan, Texas and came to live at Mount Carmel Home. “It’s a new adventure for me,” she said.

Margaret Kaizen recently lost her husband. Three years ago they came from San Antonio and decided to make Mount Carmel their new home. She misses her husband, but she knows she still has a family at Mount Carmel.

According to Sister Ann Elizabeth there are some misconceptions regarding the elderly. Many people, even some of the residents themselves, think they are just here to die. Some residents, because of the disease of dementia or Alzheimer’s, lose much of their personalities.

“They need to know they are not going to be forgotten. These are very real fears for them,” she said.

She said that the residents need to feel they are still worthy of attention, time, effort and care and “they need to know they are not a burden and that they are still loved.”

“What is really tragic is when the person themselves think they are not necessary. That happens quite a bit. I think if we can do nothing more than just convince that person that they still have worth, even if they can’t do anything–simply by being here–they are still worthy. They teach me every day to be more kind. You have to have a lot of patience–and they deserve it,” Sister Ann Elizabeth said.

Residents, from left, Lucille Grey, Frances McEvoy, Kay Bohrer and Elizabeth Freeman have fun tossing, kicking and spiking the ball as Sister Mary Elizabeth Rougeau, DCJ tries to get out of their way. Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic