The Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook University (LISVH) has acquired two Tovertafel game consoles, funded by a $30,000 donation from local Lions Clubs. The devices are intended to support veterans with cognitive challenges and enhance their quality of life.
Tovertafel, which means “Magic Table” in Dutch, is a console that projects interactive games onto a table using a projector, infrared sensors, a loudspeaker, and a processor. It was designed for use in healthcare environments such as care institutions and daycares to engage people with cognitive difficulties.
“Last year I presented the idea that we needed some special equipment for our veterans, and it was very well received,” said Jaime McGrade, assistant director of development, medicine advancement, at the Long Island State Veterans Home. “Many Lions Clubs and friends made this possible, and we are celebrating today because of all of you who helped give us such a wonderful donation.”
Fran Beringer, district governor of Suffolk County Lions Clubs, explained how the project came together: “We were approached about helping to purchase two Tovertafels for the Long Island State Veterans Home, and we thought it would be a great Suffolk County project.” He noted that funding came from seven individual Lions Clubs in Suffolk County along with matching grants from the Lions Club International Foundation and the New York State and Bermuda Lions Foundation.
Local clubs involved included Mattituck Lions Club, Bay Shore Lions Club, North Babylon Lions Club, PDG’s Lorri & Fred Rieger, Patchogue Lioness Lions Club, Melville Lions Club, Lake Grove Lions Club and Brookhaven Great South Bay Lions Club. Each unit costs about $15,000.
“At the end of the day, we have a strong commitment to not only provide a good quality of care for residents who live here, but a good quality of life regardless of their cognitive state,” said Fred Sganga, LISVH executive director. “These multi-sensory Tovertafels gives us another way to provide the quality of care and quality of life that our residents deserve.”
LISVH is recognized as one of Long Island’s leading providers of long-term skilled nursing services and adult day healthcare. Since its founding in 1991 it has served more than 15,000 United States veterans. As an affiliate of Stony Brook Medicine fully integrated into the university’s health and educational mission, LISVH provides access to advanced medical technology and professionals in the region.
“Our veterans deserve nothing less than state of the art, and that’s what we want to provide for them,” said Sganga. “Forty percent of us will wind up in a skilled nursing facility even if it’s for a short period of time. While we all want to be home, we want to make LISVH an easy decision to be the second choice should a veteran need any kind of skilled nursing care. That’s our mission, and it’s groups like the Lions Clubs that help us achieve that mission. From the bottom of my heart I’m grateful to each and every one of you for making this happen.”
Robert Emproto
