IF YOU GO Three Links Health Services is hosting an anniversary celebration on Thursday, July 18 from 4-6 p.m. at Odd Fellows Park, 1011 Forest Ave. in Northfield. The event features a bouncy house, face painting, balloon art, live music and food. A free will donation will be taken. For more information, log onto
threelinks.org
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A Northfield landmark is celebrating a landmark anniversary this summer. This month, Three Links Health Services marks 125 years as a sanctuary space that began as an orphanage and developed into an assisted living center for seniors.
To capture what’s working for such an esteemed Northfield institution, Amanda Gruber, director of life enrichment, reached out to some of her colleagues for their comments.
“The longevity of our staff is incredible,” she explained. “We have four staff that have provided service for nearly 40 years each. That is almost 160 years of experience alone. As well as countless staff who have worked here 20, 10, and 15 years. They stay, because Three Links is not just a place to work, it is our family. I am proud of where I work, and how we have continued with the original goals of our ancestors — provide excellent care with friendship, love, and truth.”
Carol Raw, chief executive officer/president of Three Links Health Services, St. Francis Health Services, said the entire team was “deeply grateful to the Northfield community for entrusting us with the care of their loved ones. Our heartfelt thanks go out to our dedicated employees, whose hard work and compassion will always be the cornerstone of our success. As we celebrate this milestone, we look forward to continuing to ensure we meet the evolving needs of Northfield’s residents.”
Marianne Loftus is an Adult-Geriatric Nurse Practitioner, who said when she walks through the doors of Three Links, she feels at home. “From the first day I visited my grandma at Three Links as a child, I felt at home,” said Loftus. “I worked my way from a nursing assistant to Director of Nursing, and then became a Nurse Practitioner. Nothing has changed in all these years.”
Royce Code, a current staff member who received the 2015 MN Caregiver of the Year for LeadingAge of Minnesota, said that after serving his community as a nursing assistant since 1984, he has moved to his “retirement job” as a life enrichment assistant.
“Whether it’s nursing or activities, we just try to fill any needs they have and do it with dignity and respect,” said Code.
Mary Carlson, who recently retired as a nurse practitioner, said that during the Covid pandemic in 2020 Three Links staff became family for the residents, since their families couldn’t enter the building. “Staff showed up, putting themselves at risk for the sake of the residents,” said Carlson. “They held iPads so families could see and talk to their loved ones. The Three Links staff came to work ready to love and care for the residents in the worst of times, and in so doing, created an exceptional community of caring.”
Barb Starch is a registered nurse and has worked at Three Links for over eight years. It is a privilege and an honor to work at Three Links Health Services for over the past 8 years, said that serving the veterans and seniors in our community was very important to her since she comes from a military family.
“Our veterans especially deserve the best for serving our country,” Starch said. “We have an amazing, compassionate, caring team. We provide a variety of services to our community and provide many employment opportunities for our community as well. We are also thankful for all the volunteers in our community who give their time and talents to our residents.”
Lindsey Swartwood, licensed assisted living director at Millstream Commons, explained that her history with Three Links started back in 2002 when she took her certified nursing assistant class on the Three Links campus when she was a junior in high school.
“After nine years away from Northfield I returned to the town I grew up in,” she said. “Upon my return I applied at Three Links to work as a certified nursing assistant and my Three Links journey started the day as a certified nursing assistant and eight and a half years years later I was asked to apply for an Executive Director role within the organization; after working in many different roles where I grew my skills and experience as a leader.”
Swartwood said Three Links has been a huge supporter of advocating for their employees and supporting their career growth; whether that is supporting schooling with scholarships or seeing skills in individual employees and putting them in positions where they will be successful.
“There are numerous examples of employees advancing their career while working at Three Links,” she said. “Whether that’s a culinary aide becoming a culinary manager or a certified nursing assistant becoming a RN clinical coordinator to then the Director of Nursing.”
So many times, I hear stories from family members or new employees saying, “my grandma lived at Three Links and the staff were so good to her,” or “my grandma worked here as a housekeeper many years ago and she loved the people she worked with.” There is story of orphans that met here on this very campus, got married, worked at Three Links and then lived on campus- Three Links was a huge part of their lives.
Gruber, who has been at Three Links since 2007 and was named LeadingAgeMN Caregiver of the Year 2020, said describing what Three Links meant to her was a deeply personal reflection. “It was written in the 1899 commemorative book of Odd Fellows Home, Northfield, ‘Home is not merely four square walls, Though with pictures hung and gilded; Home is where affection calls, Filled with shrines the heart hath builded.’”
“Three Links is home,” said Gruber. “In the 125 years of our service to the community, we have impacted countless lives. It is difficult to find someone in this community who has not had a family member, friend, or they, themselves, have a connection to Odd Fellows Home, Three Links Care Center, and what we are now known as Three Links Health Services. Different names throughout the years, but always the same care and dedication. In 1899, the Northfield community came together to serve Northfield and surrounding communities.”
Gruber explained that the “purpose” and the “why” has always been to provide excellent care with compassion, dignity, and respect, and that is truly the reason for our success of 125 wonderful years. “I have worked in nursing homes for 29 years, and I have stayed at Three Links for 17 years because of the dedication to care, service and the commitment to educate ourselves on how we can be innovative and learn how to be better than we were yesterday.”
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