Looking Back on 10 Years of Progress
August marks my 10-year anniversary as the President/CEO of Cross Keys Village – The Brethren Home Community. As I reflect on this decade of work, I am immersed in a sense of personal fulfillment and gratitude. The drive in my career has been to use my God-given abilities together with my experience in the field of aging services to contribute in some way to making the world around me a better place. I found a workplace home for that passion at CKV. ... Read More
Seasoned Athlete Returns With the Gold
Longtime villager Gloria Krug has participated in the USATF Masters - often known as the Senior Olympic games - on and off for many years. When she received an invitation to this year’s summer international games, to be held in Finland, the 91-year old Gloria regretfully discarded it, knowing that her finances wouldn’t permit her the extravagance of an overseas trip. ... Read More
Encouragingly Gray – a stakeholder report
Although nonprofit retirement communities like Cross Keys Village do not have stockholders, villagers who join the program in a Residential Living cottage, apartment or home are stakeholders. Since they need to pay an Entrance Fee at the time of their move, we can rightfully regard them as investors. It is reasonable that, in return, they should expect a degree of certainty from their investment. ... Read More
Calculated Moves
Shortly after I started working at Cross Keys Village in October 2019, villager Al Karasa shared with me his desire to find or grow more chess players on campus. At the time, Al played regularly with a few faithful opponents alongside the main Harmony Ridge hallway. Oftentimes, passersby would stop and comment: “I used to play chess” or “I’ve always wanted to learn chess.” Al felt certain there was a potential group of chess players on the premises, eager to be engaged. ... Read More
Never Too Late
Don and his wife Mary were on a family Zoom call, chatting about holidays plans and recent projects when their granddaughter, who lives in Oregon, proudly showed knitted hats that she had just finished. The sight of the sweet and colorful little hats got Don interested. ... Read More
Sending Supplies Overseas
Two years ago, alarming news about a new virus with a high infection rate grew quickly from a faraway menace to a frightening certainty. Fortunately, Cross Keys Village was ahead of the curve. As part of our comprehensive plan to protect vulnerable residents, the purchasing department had ordered an abundance of medical supplies to prepare for an ongoing pandemic crisis within our walls. ... Read More
The Art of Pysanka Easter Eggs
Edna Stinefelt has lovingly indulged in this medium for more than 20 years and has made over 200 eggs to date. “You put your heart and soul into it,” says Edna. “They become a part of you.” Although she has sold many at folk festivals over the years, her apartment’s multipurpose room is still filled with boxes of Pysanka eggs (but not stored in cartons, as you might expect). Always generous with her art, Edna is planning to display some of her eggs in the Harmony Ridge showcase during the month of April. ... Read More
Surprising Data on Aging Services Perception
Unlike other services such as landscaping or asset management – to pick two at random – the subject of Aging Services often elicits emotional responses on the part of consumers. In my responsibilities at Cross Keys Village, I am reminded of this frequently as I monitor social media for trends in our field. Factual stories about Aging Services on pages as neutral as those of NPR or AARP attract the passionate comments you would expect under more controversial material. ... Read More
There’s Safety in the CKV Air!
As you’re reading this, you have most likely taken a breath or two. Go ahead, take another! Often, we take our precious breath and our fresh air for granted, but Cross Keys Village cares deeply about indoor air quality. In fact, the Mission Point Health Care Center was built with a 100% fresh air system, not recirculated. “We have always had a good system here at Cross Keys Village,” explains Senior Administrator of Facilities Jay Rohrbach. “We consistently move more fresh air into the buildings than what code requires.” Since the 80s, Mission Point has had rooftop units that pull fresh air in and conditions it before it is pushed through the building. Jay shares that we are currently in the process of replacing one unit a year. “With a price tag of $250,000 apiece, it quickly becomes very expensive.” ... Read More
Another Reason to Give Thanks
From classical soloists to ukulele virtuosos, from Celtic harpists to Elvis impersonators, live entertainers have always been an integral part of Community Life on our Health Care neighborhoods. However, since March of 2020, we haven't been permitted to bring live entertainment from "the outside" to our Health Care environment. Fortunately, our residents have been blessed with several team members willing to share their musical gifts on a frequent basis. We recently sat down with three such talents and asked them how they feel about performing for residents as part of their regular duties. ... Read More