Lois Tiner was 100 years old when she first participated in the Austin Games. This will be her fourth year racing against other women in her 100+ category, as well as competing in the shot-put and discus events. At 103 years old, she expects to be the oldest resident but still plans to bring home medals.

Back at Gracy Woods II Nursing Center, one wall of Lois’ room is filled with medals from her past wins, together with photos of her beloved family. Lois came to Gracy Woods II in 2009 and with the help of her daughter Mary Ellen, she has remained active and involved in the activity program. She often has to be persuaded to take a nap, especially if it’s before one of her favorite crafts activities or bingo!

Lois was born on September 4, 1908 in Arkansas. At the time, Theodore Roosevelt was president and construction of the Titanic was underway. As a young woman, Lois was a school teacher in a one-room schoolhouse where she taught children of all grade levels. Later, she received her beauty operator license and ran her own beauty salon. She can still tell a good manicure!

Lois remains humble about her Games for Life wins and says she likes being part of the action at UT—seeing all of the people and the team decorations and listening to the cheers. But just watch her when the announcer starts the race. Lois will never be too old or easily beaten!

Happy 30th Anniversary to the Games for Life – Austin. Below are the dates for each city’s games.

Austin – March 24, 2012

San Antonio – April 28, 2012

Temple – September (Exact date to be posted once confirmed)

This incredible event for residents of long term care continues to be more popular. Last year in Austin and San Antonio we had over 500 combined participants from 33 facilities. It was amazing to see everyone compete, cheered on by our fantastic volunteers, staff and spectators.

We can’t wait to see what this year holds. And we’re especially excited to bring the Games to Temple for the first time. We are tentatively scheduling the Games for Life – Temple for September.  We are waiting to hear back from a couple of venue selections. More updates will be coming. In the meantime, take a moment to watch our short promotional video from the 2010 Games.

The Fun has just Begun!

Games for Life: A CASACA Event from Chase Casanova on Vimeo.

The games are fast approaching and we have had some early commitments from last year’s competitors.  This year we will again have a good number of teams participating and all of them have their eyes set on the Grand Champion Award.  Our volunteer positions are posted on the website for anyone in the community who would like to help.  We would like to thanksto Tammie Cavanaugh for returning as our Games for Life Chairperson and encourage anyone who would like to be next year’s chairperson to sign up to be the co-chair to learn the ropes. Here are the details for the games.

Location:

Virgil T. Blossom Athletic Center

12002 Jones Maltsberger Rd

 San Antonio, TX 78216

Driving directions

Event Time:

10:00 am – 2:00 pm

You can download photos to your computer or order prints directly through the Picasa site. Feel free to forward the link to staff, family members, residents or anyone else that might enjoy seeing them.

Here are the results for the top five teams overall, and for the non age-based team and individual events.

Congratulations to all the participants. We look forward to seeing you again next year.

Grand Champion – Nursing Home Division: Windsor Duval
Grand Champion – Assisted Living Division: Vista Oaks Assisted Living
Runner Up Grand Champion: Gracy Woods II
Third Place: Heatherwilde Assisted Living
Fourth Place: Heritage Park
Fifth Place: Gracy Woods I

Banner Award
Gracy Woods I – first place
Windsor Duval – second place
Regency Village – third place

Spirit Award
Pflugerville Care Center – first place
Heritage Park – second place
Gracy Woods II – third place

T-shirt: Professional
Georgetown Nursing & Rehab – first place
Windsor Duval – second place
Heatherwilde – third place

T-shirt: Homemade
Monte Siesta – first place

Volleyball
Windsor Duval – first place
Regency Village – second place

Spelling
Summit at Westlake – first place
Trinity Care Center – second place
Stonebridge – third place

Racing: Activity Professional
Marbridge Villa – first place
Monte Siesta – second place
Summit at Westlake – third place

Racing: Administrator
Marbridge Villa – first place
Monte Siesta – second place
Stonebridge – third place

Racing: Support Staff
Trinity Care Center – first place
Gracy Woods II – second place
Windsor/Duval – third place

Dominoes 42
Hearthstone – first place                      
Trinity Care Center – second place
Deer Creek – third place

Dominoes
Heritage Park – first place
Monte Siesta – second place
Pflugerville Care Center – third place

Download the Print version of the Map (requires Adobe Reader)

PARKING INSTRUCTIONS

Please note: Dependent on the size of vehicle you are transporting your residents in, you will be sent instructions for your drop-off point. If you have not received your instructions prior to Friday 25 March, please contact Donna Shelton at 512 422-9123.

If you are dropping off a participant in your car or small van, we recommend you exit IH-35 at the MLK Exit. Then continue West on MLK and take a right on Trinity (this becomes San Jacinto). Participants can unload at the corner of 20 1/2 street or on the sidewalk of San Jacinto in front of the Rec Center and just past the guard station. Please do not stop in the bus stop area.

Heading North on I35:

• From North-bound IH-35, just past the 15th Street exit, move to either of the left 2 lanes to take the lower deck.
• Take the Manor Road Exit (exit 235B)
• Go West on Manor Road towards the UT Campus.
• Cross Red River and continue to Robert Dedman Drive.
• Turn left on Robert Dedman Drive.
• The Manor Parking Garage is on your left.
• The RSC is on your right. Pull into the alleyway or alongside the curb, depending on instructions from Parking Officials.
• If you are dropping off a participant in your car or small van, we recommend you exit IH-35 at the MLK Exit. Then continue West on MLK and take a right on Trinity (this becomes San Jacinto). Participants can unload on the sidewalk of San Jacinto in front of the Rec Center and just past the guard station. Please do not stop in the bus stop area.

Heading South on I35:

• From South-bound IH-35, just past the 51st Street exit, move to either of the left 2 lanes to take the lower deck.
• Take Exit 235B which is the Manor Road exit
• Go West on Manor Road towards the UT Campus.
• Cross Red River and continue to Robert Dedman Drive.
• Turn left on Robert Dedman Drive.
• The Manor Parking Garage is on your left.
• The RSC is on your right. Pull into the alleyway or alongside the curb, depending on parking official instructions.
• If you are dropping off a participant in your car or small van, we recommend you exit IH-35 at the MLK Exit. Then continue West on MLK and take a right on Trinity (this becomes San Jacinto). Participants can unload on the sidewalk of San Jacinto in front of the Rec Center and just past the guard station. Please do not stop in the bus stop area.

LOT 41
Lot 41 is only to be used for parking facility buses/vans once you have dropped off residents.

EMS PARKING
Two EMS vehicles will be parked in the alley once all buses have unloaded.

PARKING FEES
The UT Garages do not have a cashier at the weekend. You will need to take your ticket to the cashier station, insert it and pay, then the ticket will be given back to you. Use this ticket to exit through the barrier.

Do not park in the lots behind the RSC or you will receive a citation.

PARKING OFFICIALS
We will have volunteers directing traffic to the pay parking lots and to the unloading areas. Please follow all instructions given as the area will be congested and we want to minimize your wait time.

METERS
All parking along San Jacinto through campus is permit only.  There are meters on the other side of San Jacinto (across MLK) and also on Trinity. If you park here, just walk back along San Jacinto to RSC – it’s on the right, just past the School of Social Work (approx 8-10 minute walk).

There is still time to sign up. Get your team together today! Don’t let your residents miss out on the opportunity to showcase their talents and competitive spirit in the Games for Life. We “hooked em’” in Austin and we are trying to “spur” you to participate.

• TRISUN Care Center Windcrest
• Mesa Vista Inn Health Center
• TRISUN Care Center Wurzbach
• Sundance Inn Health Center
• Princeton Place Rehabilitation and Healthcare
• Blanco Villa Nursing and Rehabilitation

This year will be even better. We are looking forward to the Games for Life in Austin and for the first time ever, in San Antonio. The call for volunteers to help with the games is now on. If you know of someone who wants to help, let us know. The games are a great experience and you will not want to miss it. Volunteer for either location today!

The Games are scheduled for Saturday March 26 and will again be held at the UT Recreational Sports Center on the UT Campus. This is a great facility and we are thrilled to return here for the third year.

We will soon be looking for help with sponsors, volunteers and more, so if you would like to be involved please contact us. We have lots to do!

Keep checking back for more updates.