Lakewood Care Center, located at 36th and Sheridan, is a nursing home that has opened up its doors to Mrs. Miller and the secondary students of ACA who volunteer their time, talents, and energy every Thursday afternoon. Providing an opportunity to earn points for their house, making friends, old and young, hearing fun stories from the elderly, Lakewood Care Center is a new and exciting part of Augustine Christian Academy.

Last summer, Mrs. Miller took time to find a service project that her junior high Bible class could do regularly. It was her aim to find a place in the school’s community where her junior high students could touch peoples’ lives and put themselves in other people’s shoes. When Mrs. Miller discovered that nursing homes provide opportunities for students to help the residents, she presented her idea for this community service project to Dr. Ehrlich and Mr. Post who in turn wanted to make it a whole school ministry rather than just restricting it to the junior high students. “I’ve always had a heart for the elderly,” said Mrs. Miller.

When the students go to Lakewood and return, they feel like they’ve actually done something to help and feel good about themselves, especially the junior high students. They feel needed and are happy to spend time with the elderly by playing table games such as cards, dominoes, and the favorite of the elderly—Hungry Hungry Hippos. The girls also paint the nails of the ladies and even trim the nails of the men as well as put lotion on their hands. The most important key in the success of this ministry was the interaction with elderly people.

We needed to “give to people who have been forgotten,” Mrs. Miller points out. “The elderly need to be touched,” she explains, “because most of them know that they will not leave until they are laid to rest. It is important to do the ministry and to be committed to it in order to be successful in reaching out to the elderly.”