New facility to offer child care services and community wellness programs
Niagara Lutheran Health System is expanding its services in Western New York by adding a new childcare and wellness center to The GreenFields Continuing Care Community campus in Lancaster.
The new project, with a budget of $1.8 million, represents a new outside-the-box approach to help tackle one of the biggest challenges facing many employers in the region – staffing. By offering a lower-cost, high-quality childcare program on The GreenFields campus for employees, Niagara Lutheran’s new facility will help provide peace of mind for parents that their children are receiving excellent care during the day, especially during school snow days and holidays. The convenient on-campus facility will also allow parents to spend time with their children during meal breaks, and allows staff to have an available option to adjust their child care needs during planned or unplanned gaps in care arrangements.
“This program is a new extension of our mission of caring for people’s physical, social and spiritual needs,” said Chris Koenig, president and CEO of Niagara Lutheran Health System. “It demonstrates the company culture we’re developing where we can now support our employees in both their work life and family life.”
On-campus childcare is a unique offering, with very few other employers offering such daycare programs. With the addition of this new facility, Niagara Lutheran stands alongside global companies like Aflac, General Mills and Goldman Sachs that offer on-site child care options. By adding this new service on campus, The GreenFields will also be able to develop intergenerational programs for seniors and children to spend time together in a variety of activities and programs, benefiting both residents of The GreenFields and children in child care programs.
This project will also include adding a new wellness and fitness center on The GreenFields campus. This new center will be available for use by employees as well as for residents who want to keep fit and active, but who don’t require the services of the therapy clinic at GreenField Health & Rehabilitation Center.
The new wellness facility will offer more opportunities for residents to socialize with their peers as well as campus staff in an informal and social environment. This will help deepen the overall sense of campus community among staff and residents while offering an option to stay healthy and fit. The wellness center will also offer support from The GreenFields’ therapy staff members, and will open the door to increased collaboration with regional educational institutions, such as programs for physical therapy and exercise science students.
The timeline for completion of this project is still being finalized, though work is expected to be completed Fall of 2019. Niagara Lutheran is currently seeking donations and financial support for this new effort. If you would like to contribute to this project, please click here.
About The GreenFields Continuing Care Community
The GreenFields Continuing Care Community provides for the physical, social, and spiritual needs of residents in a Christian environment. In addition to skilled nursing, subacute rehabilitation, and outpatient therapy at GreenField Health & Rehabilitation Center, The GreenFields offers a variety of living arrangements and support levels based on individual needs. This includes independent living apartments in GreenField Manor; assisted living apartments in GreenField Court; and memory care and enhanced assisted living in GreenField Terrace.
