For half a century Fountain View Manor has been taking care of the health needs for senior citizens and disabled.
That 50 years is going to be celebrated Wednesday with an open house and administrator Jennifer Clason has invited the entire community to stop by.
Fountain View got its start in a nursing home of South Sixth Street but Bessie Gavras wanted to do more for the community.
She made plans to have a modern, comfortable facility that could provide long-term care and rehabilitation.
In 1967 that became a reality when the original 55-bed facility opened on Lake Road, a mile south of Henryetta.
“We had 33 patients that first day,” recalls Bessie’s daughter Sylvia Molet Kramer. “We filled up all the beds almost immediately.”
Sylvia, who became a registered nurse after graduating from Henryetta high school, has been a part of the family-owned facility from that first day. She has since become a licensed practical nurse and is a licensed nursing home administrator. “The next summer, we added another wing to the building in order to do more for local families,” she recalled.
Since then another two wings have been built as well as the Grace Alzheimer’s wing. The facility offers The facility is a good choice for individuals at all stages of dementia or Alzheimer's who need attention with day-to-day tasks and monitoring to avoid wandering. They can also accommodate individuals who are seriously ill and require assistance with daily activities and who must have regular access to medical services.
There are 83 people working at Fountain View ranging from health care professionals to kitchen help.
The facility provides nursing services and intermediate care that can include speech and language pathology services, psychiatry services, nurses on staff, occupational and physical therapy.
Residents at Fountain View have available a number of daily activities including movies, games and parties.
“Henryetta is our home town and we feel a need to take care of our citizens when they need our help,” Kramer said. “We try daily to make this a place where our residents feel welcome and accommodate their needs to the best of our ability.”
That dedication to the community has stayed in the family.
Clason, Kramer’s daughter, is now the administrator for the facility and has been involved in the community. She currently serves as mayor for the city and has been on the city council for seven years.
The public is invited to stop by and tour the facility during the open house from 10 a.m. to noon.