Adult day center opens at Memphis Jewish Home & Rehab
By Aisling Mäki – Daily Memphian
June 20, 2024
The Ronna K. Newburger Adult Day Center provides older adults with daytime social opportunities and specialized care while offering respite for their caregivers.
The center, located at Memphis Jewish Home & Rehab in Cordova, celebrated its completion with an open house in January. On June 5, the Tennessee Department of Human Services granted the Newburger Center its adult day service license.
With this license, the center can serve up to 16 people per day. There are only seven other adult day programs in the Memphis area, and the Newburger Center is the only one open seven days a week.
The program offers activities such as games, yoga, art, and music therapy, along with access to an outdoor garden and a relaxation lounge for quiet time. Participants have already shown increased engagement, becoming more conversational, open to new experiences, and enthusiastic about group interaction.
In addition to social programming, the center provides medical and rehabilitation services, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, and wound care.
The day center is named in honor of Ronna Newburger, a businesswoman, educator, and philanthropist who died in 2022. She was the first female president of the Memphis Jewish Community Center and a founding member and president of the Memphis Jewish Foundation.
Funded by Newburger’s family, the $1 million project added 3,000 square feet to the north side of Memphis Jewish Home & Rehab. Although attached to the main building, the center has its own separate entrance.
The program also provides nutritious, home-cooked meals and snacks tailored to dietary needs, including kosher options. While about 20% of participants are Jewish, the center serves older adults of all faiths and backgrounds.
Additionally, the center hosts a monthly caregiver support group called the Caregiver Cafe, held on-site on the second Sunday of each month and open to any caregiver in the community.