Ridge Activities

Deck the Halls!

2011-12-14T10:40:00.000-08:00

Here's wishing every one a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful Holiday season!

We were visited by some wonderful Christmas Carolers from Crossroads Church over the weekend. Of course, we all sang along!

Later in the day, at our annual Ridge Christmas Party and gift exchange, we had a suprise visitor all the way from the North Pole.

A Safe and Prosperous New Year to all!

On Common Ground

2011-03-24T13:29:00.000-07:00

Several years ago, I met with Reverend Danell Wheeler from Common Ground Corona. She wanted to do something for Peppermint Ridge. From this meeting, the monthly birthday celebrations were born. For well over three years, Danell, Jean, Karen, Trina, Terri and several others from the Common Ground Interfaith Spiritual Center threw a party for the Ridgers every third Friday of the month. We danced, played bingo, ate wonderful food and had an amazing time with wonderful friends. Volunteer Trina created beautiful handmade birthday cards for each Ridger celebrating a birthday that month. The birthday celebrations were looked forward to by all!

As often happens, Danell became stretched thin with the demands of running Common Ground. Volunteers were unable to commit as the day to day challenges of their own lives became more pressing . We were facing the heart breaking possibility of discontinuing our Monthly parties.

And as often happens, God stepped in. At the same time, we were contacted by Saddleback church. They were looking for a way to serve. We had just the opportunity for them! Common Ground sadly hosted their last birthday celebration in December 2010- and without missing a beat, Saddleback Church picked up the reins and hosted their first monthly birthday celebration in January 2011. They put their own spin on it, while keeping the feel and flavor of the celebrations alive. These parties are all about celebrating our fabulous Ridgers and enjoying the company of our wonderful friends.

I am so grateful to Common Ground (who are still very active with Peppermint Ridge) and Saddleback Church for starting and continuing our parties! We couldn't do it without our community! We are all truly "on Common Ground."

Spring Time!!

2011-03-18T09:57:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to welcome Spring! I can feel the excitement and anticipation of new life, new hope, warmer days and second chances. We are planning many fun activities for the Springtime, including our continuing Monday Night Fitness program, where we will take our workout outside on nice evenings, Our Venturing Crew program, with the help and support of our Sister Crew, Crew 107, and don't forget parties, parties, parties!!!!
The horseback riding program is going STRONG, with 21 riders now! We have a fabulous group of volunteers, including Tracy P who leads an arts and craft project every month. She recently ran into an "Angel" at the Cajalco Michael's Craft Store. This woman, who wanted to remain anonymous (her first name is Judy..that is all the info she gave), upon hearing the mission of Peppermint Ridge, donated $100 on the spot to purchase arts & crafts supplies for our program. Good people are out there!!!! I will post further updates about specific programs here at the Ridge very soon!

Norco Therapeutic Riding Center @ No Drama Ranch

2010-08-31T14:40:00.001-07:00

Our equestrian team has a new home! We are now riding with Norco Therapeutic Riding Center, located at No Drama Ranch in Norco CA. Under the direction of coaches Katye Smith and Donna Hyde, the new program has the goal of becoming THE premier therapeutic riding center in the Inland Empire.

Coach Katye is a graduate of the University of La Verne, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Athletic Training. She has fourteen years of experience with horses and several years' experience teaching riding lessons. Coach Donna, owner of No Drama Ranch, has 30 years of experience working with people who have developmental disabilities; ten of those years were spent operating a community care level 4G home.

Katye and Donna lead an experienced group of dedicated volunteers each week. Katye has designed and is implementing individual lesson plans for each riding student. In addition, Katye and Donna study at a Premier NARHA center, The Shea Center, in San Juan Capistrano.

Come on out to lessons, every Saturday morning beginning at 8AM, to see this quality program in action! No Drama Ranch is located at 3659 Pedley Street in the city of Norco, CA (horsetown, USA!)

Summer, Summer, Summer!

2010-07-27T16:28:00.000-07:00

"In summer, the song sings itself" ~William Carlos Williams

It is the little things that make me smile. A warm breeze, a butterfly, a moment of quiet reflection. Ridgers have many opportunities to enjoy the lazy days of summer in any way they would like. We have taken the train to the beach, where the most exciting moment was when I dropped my phone in the ocean. We cool off in the pool, with free swim time and scheduled aqua aerobics classes. This last week, Ridger Raymond worked with the instructor, used a kick board and swam across the pool twice. That was a smile-worthy moment. We have had the opportunity to sit in our beautiful garden to enjoy the beauty of nature-flowers, trees, breezes, birds and butterflies. We have celebrated our most patriotic of holidays, July 4th-Independence Day. As Ridger John will affirm, we are all Proud to be Americans!

Kevin Rolly come to the Ridge

2009-11-10T11:08:00.000-08:00

Los Angeles artist and photographer Kevin Rolly will be coming to the Ridge tonight to begin work on his latest oilgraph based on the last supper. Many of our residents will be models for this piece. What an exciting night. For more information on Kevin Rolly, please visit his website:

http://www.kevissimo.com/

Love Walk 2009!

2009-11-10T10:34:00.000-08:00

It is that time of year again! The 4th annual Love Walk for the Ridge will be held this Saturday, November 14th at Crossroads Church in Corona. Last Friday, the Ridgers decorated some of the Love Walk signs that you will see at the event. The Activities Department will have a booth at the walk...come by and decorate your very own tote bag!

This is an event that we look forward to every year..I hope to see everyone there!

Volunteer Program

2009-08-28T14:18:00.000-07:00

Peppermint Ridge is launching a new volunteer program! Please check out www.volunteermatch.org to see some of our volunteers opportunities. So many people want to give back to the community, and what better place to do so than at Peppermint Ridge? Volunteers will receive as much as they give.

The Ridge is also preparing for our fourth annual Love Walk. This yearly event is filled with fun, friends, family, festivities and food. (Sorry, I love alliteration!). Check out the Ridge website at www.peppermintridge.org for more details!

Colleen

Upcoming activities

2009-07-21T15:13:00.000-07:00

We have some exciting activities planned for the Ridgers in July and August. These include a performance by the New World Piano Quintet, A fishing trip, a luau, and a baseball game at the Lake Elsinore Storm. We have begun our weekly Aqua aerobics program on Thursday nights. This is in addition to our year round Monday Night Fitness class. Horseback riding continues on Saturday mornings. There are plenty of opportunities to keep busy here at the Ridge. I'm hopeful all of our residents will take advantage of some or all of this Ridge-wide activities!

My Ridge Family

2009-06-17T10:24:00.000-07:00

I have been away from the Ridge for over a month, due to the serious illness and subsequent death of my husband. Although this has been an absolutely devastating and heartbreaking time, I have been overwhelmed by the support and kindness showed to me by my Ridge Family. I can truly say that the Ridge is my family, without any hesitation. I feel so loved by everyone here. And the wonderful thing about the Ridge is that the family extends from clients, to staff, to staff families to client families. I have received support from coworkers, clients, client families, even Ridge volunteers. I am truly BLESSED to have this beautiful Ridge family. Thank you to everyone as Cassidy and I travel through this time of grief.

Annual Celebration

2009-03-17T09:54:00.001-07:00

The Ridge annual celebration will be held in Angel Hall at 1 PM, this Sunday, March 22nd. The Rejoicers have been practicing diligently in preparation for our performance. In addition, we will have a demonstration of our TRAP program, and our very own Herb Herod will perform. See you at the celebration!

Welcome to my new blog!

2009-03-14T14:18:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the NEW Peppermint Ridge Activities blog! I will be posting upcoming events and programs, and summarizing completed activities. Please check back often!