Meet Sandra Caselli

Sandra Caselli has known of the Harrisonburg area for a while. Her brother and his wife had a time share at Massanutten, and for several years her family would get together there for a yearly reunion. Barbara Boothe, a resident here, was a good friend and they would visit each other. Her visits here with Barbara would be her first encounter with Sunnyside.

Sandra was not planning to move. She lived in Lynchburg and enjoyed her life there. One day Barbara convinced her to just go and talk to Nancy Wayland. Just go to look, talk, and learn about Sunnyside. Well, Nancy showed her a cottage she really liked. It turned out to not be available then, so she decided to just wait and see what happened. By this time, her brother had bought a house in Massanutten, so she would have family nearby. Then the cottage became available. She asked her brother if he and his wife would come look at it. Though not convinced it would be a good move for her, they agreed to just come and “look and listen.” They did come over to see the cottage, the Sunnyside campus, and talk with Nancy. At the end, their opinion was clear. Sunnyside was the place she should be.

Sandra also wanted to know what her daughter, Kathy, thought about it. Kathy also thought it too risky. “You don’t know what kind of health care you will have when you need it.” But she agreed to just “look and listen.” There again after seeing the cottage, learning that Sunnyside had an Overall Medicaid and Medicare Rating of five-stars, and talking to the Director of Nursing, she agreed it was the place for her mother to be. Sandra moved to Sunnyside in late August and since then has been settling in.

Life before Sunnyside? Sandra was born in Nyack, New York, to Jack and Eunice Perry. Nyack is a small town located about 30 miles away from New York City. She grew up in Nanuet, an even smaller town close to Nyack. She performed secretarial work for a church. It was a wonderful experience for her; she had a great boss, and her daughter went to school nearby.

When she was younger, Sandra was married to a soldier and went with him to Germany for a year. It was a wonderful experience. She noted her memories of that time grow fonder as time passes. Sandra’s second husband’s oldest son attended Lynchburg College. Her husband liked Lynchburg so well that he decided to retire there. They moved to Lynchburg in 1983.

Sandra’s daughter and her husband now live in Chesterfield, Virginia. She is an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, a top ranked research university, doing research to find a way to make drugs not so habit-forming.

Sandra finds peace of mind at Sunnyside, knowing assisted living or health care will be available as needed right on campus. She will always be taken care of. One of her favorite things is having a full basement! Plenty of room for a lot of her stuff! She is finding that same sense of community that she enjoyed in Lynchburg is available here at Sunnyside. She has tried line dancing, has joined a Bible study group, and is looking forward to more wellness activities as time goes by. It pleases her she still has a little place to garden. She enjoys shrubs, flowers, and a nice landscape. She has found everyone here to be pleasant and helpful.

Sandra moved here alone. That did not last. She lives alone no longer. She slipped up and told someone she could consider having an older cat in the future. Of course, “someone” had the perfect kitten for her right now! Caught in a weak moment, she said o.k. Now she has a calico kitten appropriately named Callie.

Sandra, know that you and Callie are welcome here! --Kat Marlowe