Ohio Jewish Chronicle, 1994-08-18

              The Ohio Jewbh Chronicle
Sennng Columbus and the Central Ohio-
Jewish Community since,1322   .< „
VOLUME 72
NUMBER 33
AUGUST 18,1994
11 ELUX 5754
History marches from Israel
to Jordan and back again
page 2
Attacks on Diaspora Jews
raise new questions about
an old relationship
page 3
Selihot Service to ah*
on WOSU-FM August 22
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EXTRA • ORDINiVRY PEOPLE
Wexner Heritage House sends in the clown9
By Ina Horwitz-Whitmore  '-.
Rosie Sadzewicz, an activities therapist at Wexner Heritage House, is not just clowning around when she and her
comedy cart visit different
units of the facility on Mon-.
day afternoons.
In fact, she takes her role ;
very seriously, working hard
to bring humor to residents
and staff alike and to uplift
everyone's spirits. "Part ofthe
whole concept of what I try to
do each Monday is to create
an atmosphere to enhance life
and increase good health for
our residents, to make life
seem more positive by using a
light-hearted approach," she
said. "The responses can range
from a smile to a loud guffaw."
"The Comedy Cart With
Rosie" has been a weekly
event at Wexner Heritage
House since June, 1992. Sadzewicz, 51, who had seen a
similar program at Children's
Hospital, said that her routine
began with the collaboration
of the activities department, in
particular, Cynthia Huhn, director of Activities/Volunteers.
Sadzewicz works with residents on a one-on-one basis,
sometimes in clown costume,
sometimes not. The idea is to
touch the lives of those on the
units who don't participate in
other activities. On a broader
level, she feels she tries to offer, for a short period of time,
a "moment for those who
might need that moment."
Her cart, with a multi-col
ored cover donated by Auxiliary volunteer, Esther Antler,
is often full of surprises. On
one of her recent rounds, she
had a stuffed parrot which re-
< peated whatever a person said.
That prompted a happy response from resident Rae
Janowitz, who also enjoyed
smelling the different sachets
that were on the cart.
"Oh, that .has such a nice
smell," exclaimed Janowitz.;,
"I really enjoyed visiting with
you, Rosie."
The feeling shared by Sadzewicz was mutual. "My philosophy is that as we grow up,
we can lose our sense of wonder," she said. "I want to bring
that back to residents and to
hold onto it myself. I get a lot
of satisfaction out ofthe small
victories and the small successes. And there are many of
them."
Sadzewicz not only entertains the residents with novelty items from her cart, but has
blown bubbles, used puppets,
read joke books and had other
residents, such as Faye Raf-
feld dress up in clown gear and
make-up.
Sometimes Sadzewicz assists residents by just talking
about feelings with them, taking them for a, walk outside,
even sewing on a button. She
said her comedy role i$ meant
to be therapeutic.
"I focus on the best I can,
where I can do the most
good," she believes. "I think
we can make a difference,
each in our own little space."
Around the various holidays; Sadzewicz will come by
with a special hobby cart. She
talks with residents about
their family customs at differ- .
ent seasons. "They really like
to reminisce and share humorous stories about their lives,"
she said.
Sadzewicz didn't start as an
activities therapist and definitely not as a clown when she
came to Heritage House 15
years ago. She began as an aide
in occupational therapy and
then received her COTA/L
(Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant license).
Through departmental
changes over the years, a togetherness between the occupational therapy and activities
area evolved with the united
purpose of bringing "life with
dignity" to residents by adapting their abilities, using new
skills and enabling them to enjoy a wide range of options.
Sadzewicz became a full
time activities therapist in
February 1989. A few years
ago, Executive Vice-President
Gerald N. Cohn asked her to
establish a comedy or humor
group, which became known
as the "Laughing Corner."
She had already been giving
small programs on different
units, on thinking and remaining active. She' also talked
about how colors can affect
people's minds.
Her clown gear and makeup attest to that belief.. Her
costume, purchased from a retired clown, is multicolored as
is her wig. Her face, which
takes her about 20 minutes to
do, is clown-white with bright
red smiling lips. And her
pointed red boots she calls a
"fashion adventure."
She noted that residents
love to watch her make up,
and she has made a video of
herself getting into the clown
role.
Sadzewicz didn't start clowning until the mid '80s after
clowns from the Rockwell International Clown Unit visited the facility's Special Care
Unit.
Her interest led to her taking a five-week CAP (Creative
Activities Program) course at
The Ohio State University.
Taught by a professional clown,
the course gave pointers.on
make-up, dress and general
deportment for clowning.
Noting that there are many
different clowns (In fact, a
clown's face can be copyrighted by law, she said), Sadzewicz
began experimenting with her
facial look after attending a
clown workshop at Rockwell.
As a clown, she is now a complete, unique personality with
the name, "Schatzy," which
means "precious child" in
German, she noted.
She got that nickname, in
high school from some girl
friends. "I've always had a
positive outlook, which may
be why I turned to clowning,"
she said. "I think the name is
really appropriate."
Sadzewicz has taken her
see CLOWN pg. 3
i'.'s
r-'ii X'."
M.
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