Oak Park Arms residents throw youngest tenant a graduation party

Dominican grad ends 9-month internship at senior facility

Tuesday, May 10th, 2011 10:00 PM

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Memento: Dominican University student Yesica Sanchez holds up a gift from friend John Heflin, a resident at the Arms. The gift was a framed photograph of the two shot by Tribune photographer and Oak Park resident Chuck Berman.
J. GEIL/Staff Photographer

By Megan Dooley

Staff Reporter

Yesica Sanchez got a lot of attention in her nine months living at the Oak Park Arms. Male friends were vexed when they heard she was spending time with other men. Crowds gathered when she put an extra bit of effort into her appearance. Would-be matchmakers tried to set her up with eligible suitors.

"I tried to marry her off to one of my six grandsons, but it didn't work," said Gertrude Crowley, an Oak Park Arms resident, as she bid farewell to her friend Thursday afternoon.

Sanchez wasn't the typical Oak Park Arms occupant; she is many decades younger than most of her fellow residents. The assisted living facility became her home while she completed her graduate studies in social work at Dominican University. Ultimately, she wants to be director of a similar assisted living community, and Oak Park Arms became her field-study location. Logistically, therefore, moving in made sense.

But logistics aside, it turned out to be a rewarding experience for Sanchez, resulting in hands-on, in-depth job experience and lasting friendships. On Thursday, her friends threw Sanchez an early graduation party, in honor of her May 7 commencement and subsequent return to her home in California.

Crowley and Sanchez became fast friends right off the bat.

"When I first met her, I liked her because she laughed at my jokes," said the feisty Crowley. "And as time went on and she went from department to department, she listened and learned and practiced, and after she became perfect, she decided to leave us."

90-year-old resident entertainer George Rico fingered the ivory keys during the party, providing lively piano music while guests enjoyed the tri-colored wines, fruit plate, and an enormous "Congratulations Yesica" cake set out for the occasion.

Oak Park Arms Executive Director Moses Williams, whose duties Sanchez may someday emulate, also spoke on behalf of the recent boarder. "She definitely fit right in as a family member," he said. "She's going to go do wonderful things."

"The past nine months were quite an experience," Sanchez admitted to the crowd. Indeed, she smiles recalling the day she got dressed up for a night out with a fellow Dominican student. "It was not a date!" she insisted. But her resident friends wouldn't drop it. They were convinced she was getting all gussied up for a date. By the time the sixth-or-so person came up to tease her, Sanchez said, "I was already red like a tomato."

Sanchez has already landed a new job in a city in L.A. County in California. She'll be doing nonprofit work, in a position directly under the director. "I will continue to work with seniors," she said, and pursue her ultimate goal of becoming an executive director in an senior residential community.

Sanchez remembered her first day in Oak Park as a stressful one. She'd just arrived after a grueling road trip with no sleep, and had to move in, unpack, meet with Williams, and attend a Dominican orientation, all in one day.

"It was a really hectic day, very stressful," she said. "I said, 'This is just the beginning. What's the future going to look like?' But it was quite the opposite. It was rigorous, but it was doable. And then just having the support here — they were just so supportive."

In the end, her friends at Oak Park Arms felt equally grateful for their short-term tenant.

"It was really a joy knowing her," Crowley said.