2. Seven Day Adventist Church is a world wide
Church providing supportive and educational
programs
Adventist Church uses holistic approaches
Focus on Revival and Reformation
3. Church services are ethnicities
Evangelistic programs promoting healthy
aging experiences with community agencies
Educational programs promoting healthy
family dynamics and interactions
Dietary programs promoting wellness
4. Individuals are wired to be helping agents
Individuals exhibit altruistic demeanors
Individuals are social creatures
Five factors influencing individuals helping
others
Mindfulness Approaches
5. Individuals are receptive
Individuals can conduct chores
Individuals have a listening ear
Individuals can prepare meals
Individuals can help the bereaved
focus on good memories
6. Families provide moral support
Families provide spiritual support
Families provide opportunities of
reflective discussions
Families provide opportunities for
communal meals
7. Families seeking support from faith
based institutions
Services from faith based
institutions are free
Families seeking support from other
families within their church
8. Communities provide in-reach and
outreach programs
Communities provide collaborative
wellness services
Door to door services providing
dietary reformation programs,
healthy cooking classes, and
disease prevention
9. Church provides preventive health
provides to facilitate
transformational life experiences
Utilize system approaches to reach
communities
Holistic measures provides an
excellent opportunity to provide n
community wellness programs
10. Cultural norms, valves, and morals
and passed from previous
generations
Cultures provide guidelines shaping
grief and bereavement
Cultures shapes individuals,
families, and communities abilities
to cope with death
11. Culture must respect the
individuals right to make choices
Culture norms must provide guidance
to create peace and harmony
Culture should respect how
different ethnicities experience
life
14. Utilize life span perspectives
Meets individuals and families
physical, psychological, and social
needs
Provides individualized service
plans for families
15. Recognizes humans are unique
Involves the family in service
delivery
Helps individuals and families cope
with traumatic events
Fosters genuineness and empathy
16. Psycho-educational programs with
community agencies, libraries, and
educational institutions promoting
healthy eating practices
Community fairs discussing benefits
of healthy diets promoting positive
aging experiences
17. Collaborative efforts increases
opportunities of reaching
individuals, families, and
communities
Teaming with educational
institutions and counseling
agencies allows for resources to be
equally distributed among all
helping professionals
18. Collaborate efforts reduce costs
Helping Professionals provide free
services
Evangelistic goals of health,
wellness, and recovery guides the
members altruistic demeanors
20,000 budget provided for
19. Holistic themes decrease expenses
Most of the services occurs within
the church decreasing traveling
expenses
Biblical themes guides service
delivery
20. Elderly demonstrating healthy
eating practices
Elderly demonstrating positive
psychology
Elderly influencing relatives with
changing eating habits
Elderly benefiting from advances in
21. Helping professions must consider
the individual and family
lifestyles
Helping professionals must refrain
from imposing their beliefs
Helping Professionals must examine
internal and external factors when
developing service programs
22. Ethical Care must medical model
with providing preventive services
Holistic approaches satisfies
ethical considerations
Helping Professionals must engage
the individual and family in
service deliveries.
24. Allows for generational factors to
be examined for risk factors
Allows for external factors to be
examined for risk factors
Allows for protective factors to be
identified to promote healthy
eating practices and positive aging
experiences
25. Theories allows for individual and
family input in service deliveries
Theories shapes engagement
opportunities and rapport
development
Theories influences cultural
competence
27. Church members demonstrating
healthy eating practices
Church Members promoting healthy
aging experiences
Church Members sharing their
testimonies to encourage
individuals and families to change
their dietary habits
28. Exercise, communal meals, and
nature walks promoting healthy
eating practices
Reflective discussions enhancing
service deliveries
Positive Psychology enhancing
service deliveries
29. In-reach and out-reach programs
reaching individuals and families
Home visitation programs promoting
educational dietary programs
Empowering individuals in their
homes
30. Collaborate efforts employed by
other churches to promote healthy
eating practices for individuals,
families, and communities
Individuals and families will
change their eating habits
Individuals and families will have
positive aging experiences
33. Less stress, heighten perceptions
Healthy interactions
Communal meals
Improved physical and psychological
functioning
34. Increase in water consumption
Decreases in alcohol consumption
Decrease in caffeine consumption
A focus on health in all aspects of
life
35. The Adventist Church will achieve
its world wide mission of educating
all individuals, families, and
communities with having health and
wellness in all avenues of their
life to promote positive aging
experiences
36. Adventistinfo. (2013). Retrieved from www.adventist.org/world-church/
Bandura, (1977). Self efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84,
191-215.
Berk, L. E. (2011). Emotional and social development. In exploring lifespan development (2nd ed.). (pp.473-
499). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall/Person Education,
Berzoff, J. (2011). The transformative nature of grief and bereavement. The Clinical Social Work Journal, 39,
262-269.
Bowlby, J. (1991). The meaning of death. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press.
Birnbaum, L., & Birnbaum, A. (2008). Mindful social work: From theory to practice. Journal of Religion &
Spirituality In Social Work, 27(1/2), 87-104. Doi:10.1080/1542643082113913.
Brown, A. P., Marquis, A., & Guiffrida, D. A. (2013). Mindfulness-based interventions in counseling. Journal
of Counseling & Development, 91, 96-104
Cavanaugh, J. C., & Blanchard-Fields, F. (2011). Adult development and aging (6th ed.). Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth Publishing/Cengage Learning.
37. Corr, C. A., & Corr, D. M. (2013). Death & dying, life & living (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage
Wadsworth. ISBN: 978111840617.
Diehl, H., & Ludington, A. (2009). You-turn: Understanding, preventing, and reversing lifestyle
diseases. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Publishing
Gabennesch, H. (2006). Critical thinking: What is it good for? (In fact, what is it?). The
Skeptical Inquirer, 30(2), 36-41.
Haynes, C. J. (2009). Holistic human development. Journal of Adult Development, 16(1), 53-60
Magnusson, D. (2011). The holistic-interactiionistic paradigm: Some directions for empirical
development research. European Psychologist, 6(3), 153-162
Markus, H. R., Hamedani, M. G. (2007). Handbook of cultural psychology. Social Psychology:
The dynamic interdependence among self systems and social systems. New York, NY:
Guilford Press.
Morgan, L. A. & Kunkel, S. R. (2011). Aging, society, and life course. New York, NY: Springer
Publishing Company. Retrieved on 10/21/13 from:
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/capella/Doc?id=10453844&ppg=211
38. Saul, P. (2011). Let’s talk about dying. Retrieved from
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/peter_saul_let’s_talk_about_dying_.html.
Thompson, R. A. (2006). Nurturing future generations: Promoting resilience in children and
adolescents through social, emotional and cognitive skills. New York, NY: Routledge
Wacker, R. R., & Roberto, K. A. (2011). Community resources for older adults: Programs and services in an
era of change. Thousand Oaks: Sage. .
Editor's Notes
The Seven Day Adventist Church grew out of the world-wide religious reformation and revival occurring in the mid-nineteenth century (adventisitinfo, 2013) as
a result of a belief in biblical prophecies indicating the second coming of Christ was imminent. The Seven Day Adventist Church is organized in conferences to provide guidance,
resources, and support to the local churches with an evangelistic purpose of in-reach and out-reach programs focusing on holistic themes of healthy living and longevity
In my community the Adventist Church provides services for African Americans, Caucasians, Hispanics, Orientals, and various other ethnicities residing within the
vicinity of the church. The families are upper middle class, middle class, working class and the poor. Moreover the Adventist Church has collaborated with Child Protective
Services, Hospital, Law Enforcement Programs, local libraries and Community Agencies with providing educational programs and wellness programs promoting healthy lives,
improved family dynamics and longevity.
Humans are complex beings with a wealth of knowledge and experiences stemming from internal and external factors. The human mind is considered a sponge absorbing
stimuli from a multitude of events, circumstances, and phenomenon to be used in the future as means of coping with reality.
Corr and Corr (2013) adds credence to this tenet by revealing five factors impacts elements to be considered with helping individuals cope with loss such as the nature
of the loss, how the loss occurred, the bereaved coping strategies, the bereaved persons developmental history, and the presence of available support.
Kennedy (2013) further supports this position suggesting the grieving process is proactive, allows the bereaved to express their feelings, provides a supportive environment,
allows for reconstruction of the dire experience, and utilizing the experience as an opportunity of growth and new development.
Researchers (Birnbaum & Birnbaum, 2008; Brown et al., 2013) defined mindfulness as the practices of relating to one’s experience in the present accompanied by an unbiased,
nonjudgmental demeanor and an accepting attitude. The challenge of this approach is to help the individual decipher how past conflicts impacts present functioning and ambitions
Researchers (Birnbaum & Birnbaum, 2008; Dennis, 2012; Thompson, 2006) determined the following elements, receptiveness, available others having altruistic demeanors, and
helping with chores, as important factors helping bereaved person cope with their loss.
Corr and Corr (2013) noted social support is the most important element of the grieving process since this factor greatly influences if the bereaved will have a complicated or
uncomplicated bereavement experience.
Corr and Corr (2013) suggested families provide moral and spiritual support, opportunities to reflect on the deceased person’s life, as well as discussions of reorganization.
Thompson (2006) wrote communal meals are an excellent tools for families to use to discuss topics especially when free flowing discussions occur and each person is allowed
to express their thoughts and feelings regarding various life events. The importance of these occurrences is the development of coping mechanisms to help one manage with future loss.
Researchers (Cavanaugh & Blanchard-Fields, 2011; Morgan & Kunkel, 2011) wrote many families utilize their informal networks for daily living assistance
based on reciprocity and accepted norms of helping each other when there is a desired need.
Gabennesch (2006) suggested many families have sought supportive services from their local church as opposed to community agencies since services are free, family centered,
and often provided in the friendly confines of the church or within the family homes
In terms of reaching communities, the Adventist Church has out-reach programs of dietary reformation programs, healthy cooking classes, disease prevention, and educational
wellness programs promoting health in human physical, psychological, social, and dimensions (Adventisitinfo, 2013). The Church Members engage in door to door services distributing
healthy cooking pamphlets, disease prevention literature, and flyers inviting families to their in-house programs about vegetarian cooking, methods of improving health, and
increasing longevity.
Morgan and Kunkel (2011) indicated preventive health programs are an excellent method of engaging families in meaningful transformational dialogue as most individuals
are suffering from the five major diseases, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and strokes, or have a family member suffering from one or more of these diseases.
Researchers (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Thompson, 2006) declared system approaches allows organization to maximize their efforts of comprehending individual, family, and community
needs, thus enhancing efforts of providing services to suit their needs.
Individuals, families, and communities are influenced by cultural norms, ethnic values, faith based practices, and customs passed along from previous generations. As a result of
cultural and ethnic influences individuals, families, and communities experience grief and bereavement in similar and contrasting ways (Berzoff, 2011; Cavanaugh & Blanchard-Fields, (2011).
Cavanaugh and Blanchard-Fields (2011) add credence with this position by revealing how we experience life and death is influenced by biological, psychological, socio-economical, and
life-cycle forces. These factors along with spirituality helps individuals, families, and communities cope with grief and bereavement as well as providing the means of recovery and making
sense of death.
Saul’s video (2011) provides important themes to consider when providing services to individuals and families experiencing death in terms of recognizing the right of the dying person to make decision of how to die, dying individuals should have control of their dying experiences, as well as choosing a person to oversee their dying experience. Guidance should be provided to the dying individual to create peace and harmony, to minimize stress as the circumstances of the persons’ death will be in the surviving family minds for quite some time. Encouragement should be provided to have the family remember the good time and enjoyable family outings to ease the pain of the death of the family member. Cultural and ethnical influences shapes values, norms, beliefs, and customs of how individuals, families, and communities cope with death
The normative behaviors of death from an African American perspective is to celebrate the persons’ life by having a gathering with family and friends, sharing stories while enjoying
a festive meal. Spiritual applications may be discussed relative of the spirit returning to the Lord, and the body returning to the ground (Gen. 2:7, 3:19, KJV) suggesting the need to
evaluate one’s purpose in life and life’s path in terms of feeling whole, complete, and satisfied with one’s achievements. Morgan and Kunkel (2011) discussed Erickson’s theory of ego
integrity verses despair as death can be a pivotal factor influencing individuals with demonstrating purpose driven behaviors in efforts of achieving their desires and maximizing their full human potentials. In this sense, the grieving experience can be a positive factor shaping healthy thoughts and behaviors.
These beliefs may not be popular with other ethnicities as their grieving and bereavement practices may be entirely different (Berzoff, 2011; Corr & Corr, 2013). For example it is a custom
for Jews to rent their clothing during their grieving of a dead family member. Even though this practice is different it is important to demonstrate cultural competence by respecting others’
grieving and bereavement practices, since life is about learning, adapting, and valuing individual, family, and community choices
Bowlby (1991) discussed the phase-based theory of mourning in terms of reorganization resulting from negative and positive experiences of loss. If a person is willing to seek
spiritual guidance to cope with death reconstruction of meaning can occur as the loss of the significant other can enhance opportunities for growth and development.
Corr and Corr (2013) argued humans are prone to demonstrate meaning reconstruction based on natural tendencies to seek information to make sense out of events occurring
in their lives.
Haynes (2009) supports this claim by suggesting spirituality allows for a deeper meaning of phenomenon not afforded by the social sciences. Nevertheless how a person experiences
loss is determined by the interactions of multiple systems influencing their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
Spirituality provides helping professionals opportunities of examining life holistically in order to provide services to help individuals cope with death. Corr and Corr (2013) contended spirituality can achieve task work in four areas as daily living skills provided in terms of food, drink satisfying physical needs, maximizing security and richness in living satisfies psychological needs, social needs are satisfied by enhancing interpersonal attachments, and spiritual needs are satisfied by addressing meaningfulness and connectedness to foster hope. Spirituality also allows service providers to develop individualized service programs specifically for the individual and their family. The benefits of individualized service programs is increased rates of self-efficacy fostering beliefs of having control over the environment increasing the probability of achieving recovery from tragic events.
Helping professionals must consider one’s lifestyle, one’s beliefs, values, and quality of care when deciding to use spiritual resources to help individuals, families, and communities cope with grief (Corr and Corr, 2013; Thompson, 2006). Other ethical issues of trust, validity and reliable research, duration of services, keeping the patient and concerned others involved in the service delivery are also important factors useful with considering spiritual resources as coping mechanisms (Cavanaugh and Blanchard-Fields; Morgan & Kunkel, 2011; Thompson, 2006). Most important with using spiritual resources to help individuals and families cope with tragic events is to ensure patients and their families are given a choice with using spiritual resources for guidance, support, and nurturance to foster efficacy and resiliency as opposed to being forced to participate in this type of service plan.
Gabennesch (2006) added helping professionals, family members, and volunteers must have the spirit of liberty demonstrated by seeking to understand the minds of those in need of
services. From this perspective those involved can seek to include the patient in the diagnosis and prognosis, treat the patient as a human being, and understand how the patient may
experience a wide range of behaviors ranging from denial, anger, bargaining for extra time, depression, reactivity, and acceptance of death (Kubler-Ross, 1969).
The idea of collaborate efforts is to minimize patient abuse (Pennant, 2000) and to ensure individuals and families have an active voice in their coping experiences. It is further important
for all helping professionals have others best interest in mind exhibited by active listening skills.
An interview with Ms King, the Director of the Family Life Wellness Program revealed a budget of 20, 000 to provide psycho-educational programs to the community. Ms. King
acknowledged all resources are used efficiently and additional funds have been allocated to this program by external institutions when health reform programs have occurred in local
school and community centers. Based on Ms. Kings’ assessment of the service delivery methods employed by the health and temperance program, it appears the biological, sociological, and psychological challenges of individuals, families, and the community are acknowledged and addressed to achieve maximum efforts of yielding program success.
According to Ms. King the success of this program is predicated with the members acknowledging healthy eating practices can significantly present health and development and
graceful aging practices. Ms. King acknowledged the health message is the heart of the Three Angels’ Message (Rev 14:6-7, KJV) and has been given by Jesus (Mat 28:18-20, KJV) as biblical
principles of reaching all individuals, families, and communities by means of an evangelistic tool of achieving ultimate growth and development in all aging experiences.
the advances of health care, a concentration with continuous growth and development, and an emphasis of healthy living, the older population has been able to exhibit positive
psychology (Morgan & Kunkel, 2011; Thompson, 2006) enabling them to cope with the demands of their aging processes.
Helping professionals will face ethical challenges when servicing the aging populations if decisions are made without considerations of one’s lifestyle, family interest, and
quality of care. Gabennesch (2006) argued helping professionals must demonstrate the spirit of liberty when servicing others as there should be a genuine interest with understanding
one’s concerns in order to ensure there is a positive experience with supportive services. This approach is supported by Markus and Hamedani (2007) as they concluded helping professionals
should possess socio-cultural lenses consisting of examining biological and environmental factors when interpreting behaviors.
On the other hand, if ethical care giving does not consider the medical model perspective of examining the aging experience in terms of one’s emotional, physical,
spiritual, and social aspects of life, there is a probability an individual experiencing negative aging experience. There is a great deal of research revealing helping professionals
utilizing holistic approaches to fully capture the aging experience to ensure individuals have positive end of life occurrences (Gabennesch, 2006; Morgan & Kunkel, 2011; Saul, 2011;
Thompson, 2006). This perspective allows for the examination of demographic factors, socioeconomic concerns, individual health behaviors, lifestyles, biological risks and protective
factors, along with social support to help maximize efforts shaping positive aging experiences.
Psychological theories provide a comprehension of the underlying conditions and contributing factors leading individuals to seek or not to seek services. There may be
pride issues, personal and cultural issues, a lack of community resources and personal biases hindering service seeking activities. Cavanaugh and Blanchard-Fields (2011)
emphasized our thoughts and behaviors are guided by psychological, biological, socio-economical and life-cycle forces ultimately influencing the whole human experience.
These factors helps helping professionals comprehend the influences guiding individuals with seeking services compared to individuals refusal with seeking services.
Berk (2011) discussed Erikson’s Ego Integrity verses Despair in terms of aging individuals coming in terms of their life, having peace, feeling complete, and satisfied with
their lives as well as successful abilities of adapting to life issues. From this perspective the participants’ biological, sociological and psychological systems are examined
individually and collectively to develop dietary service plans to promote health and wellness. Researchers (Haynes, 2009).
Magnusson (2001) added the holistic-interactionistic paradigm seeks to comprehend behaviors from the combination of four unique interactive
perspectives presenting an all-encompassing presentation of human life experience.
Holistic approaches (Haynes, 2009), self-efficacy theory (Bandura, 1977), and twelve steps preventive programs (Schneider, 2006) have positively
helped faith based institutions with developing educational programs shaping growth and development in all aspects of human life.
Haynes (2009) suggested holistic approaches shapes altruistic demeanors and cultural competence as the participants’ biological, sociological and psychological systems
are examined individually and collectively to develop dietary service plans to promote health and wellness. .
Wacker and Roberto (2011) pointed out individuals’ value their freedom of choice and their own decision making thoughts and behaviors. From this perspective, when
freedom of choice is granted autonomy is maintained resulting in the inception of positive psychology and enlightening frame of references (Gabennesch, 2006).
According to Ms. King the success of this program is predicated with the members acknowledging healthy eating practices can significantly present health and development and graceful aging practices. Ms. King acknowledged the health message is the heart of the Three Angels’ Message (Rev 14:6-7, KJV) and has been given by Jesus (Mat 28:18-20, KJV)
as biblical principles of reaching all individuals, families, and communities by means of an evangelistic tool of achieving ultimate growth and development in all aging
experiences. Bandura (1977) suggested individuals are prone to change their ways by hearing testimonies of individuals whom overcome similar experiences
Morgan and Kunkel (2011) indicated the diet is influenced by physical, psychological and social factors. To maximize the members’ efforts of achieving wellness in their souls,
Ms. King suggested all members develop an exercise regimen, have communal meals, participate in nature walks, and have suitable amounts of rest to promote optimum
physical and psychological functioning.
Ms. King stated her staff has utilized plays, reflective discussions, and participatory action skits in local community centers and fairs attended by neighboring families as
members share their personal testimonies of dietary reforms after experiencing physical and psychological disturbances. Ms. King stated these experiences have been
extremely successful with reaching local families in the community especially when cultural vegetarian cooking classes were established to promote healthy eating practices
Magnusson (2011) acknowledged an understanding of an individuals’ internal and external forces could provide concrete data with comprehending latent themes
governing their behaviors leading to the development of successful service plans. Thus a holistic approach is effectively utilized to comprehend all factors impacting
service plans protective factors have helped shaped effective preventive service plans.
Seven Day Adventist have an average life span of 83 significantly higher than the average life span primary due to dietary formation and faith based practices (adventisitinfo, 2013)
Diehl and Ludington (2009) suggested dietary reformation leads to changes in one’s lifestyle with the goal of promoting optimal health
Diehl and Ludington (2009) suggested dietary reformation leads to changes in one’s lifestyle with the goal of promoting optimal health
Diehl and Ludington (2009) suggested dietary reformation leads to changes in one’s lifestyle with the goal of promoting optimal health
As the Adventist Church continues its outreach evangelistic goals of reaching all families within their communities of its local churches, there is hope all families will demonstrate
positive aging experiences . (adventisitinfo, 2013)
