Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Ecumen’s Kathryn Roberts Named to AAHSA Board

Ecumen CEO Kathryn RobertsEcumen CEO Kathryn Roberts has been named to the board of directors of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA). AAHSA is a national trade association that represents nearly 6,000 non-profit senior housing and services organizations.Kathryn will serve a three-year term on the board of directors. AAHSA’s board of directors is responsible for the governance of the association, providing strategic direction, fiduciary oversight and policy development.'I am extremely honored to be joining the AAHSA board of directors and I look forward to joining others from across the United States in the work of transformation and helping shape our country’s and profession’s future,' said Kathryn.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

AgeWell - Great Name, Cool Approach

Several of us went to a great event last evening at the Minnesota History Center sponsored by AgeWell. They are doing a number of interesting things with their focus being on 'the best retirement home is your own.' They provide home care, but they really look at it as 'life care management.' When they meet with a client they develop a 'lifecare plan' in conjunction with the customer. The plan gathers the customers' insights and feedback in a number of areas, including:Fun/passionSocialHealthCognitiveSpiritualFinancialEnvironmental (home/surroundings)What this does is look at aging and serving a customer in a much more holistic way, not simply medically. It is all about the person. This type of holistic approach is a great opportunity for senior housing and long-term care professionals looking to make their expertise mobile. Like Detroit Lakes' Emmanuel Community is doing.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Changing Aging

Yvonne Severson, director of nursing at Clarkfield Care Center, sent this video clip. She said in her email, 'Maybe if you start skating now, you’ll be this good when you get to be 81.' RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT. Not a Chance. Check out the video . This person shows that age is simply a number.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Senior Housing Development Story

The Minneapolis Star Tribune highlighted Ecumen’s new senior housing development partnership yesterday. Below is the text from the Inside Track' column:Senior BoomA trio of Minnesota construction heavyweights are joining forces to create a senior housing development team that will take advantage of increasing demand for senior housing facilities built in conjunction with churches and faith-based communities.The Twin Cities-based partnership includes Ecumen, Minnesota’s largest nonprofit senior housing company; Adolfson & Peterson Construction, and Pope Associates.Ecumen will provide management services, Adolfson will be the general contractor and Pope will provide architectural services to the team, which will be known as Team Ecumen as it pursues projects nationwide.This partnership began as an interal partnership for our own projects, but we see how it can be beneficial to others who want to develop senior housing, e.g combined expertise, efficiencies, etc. There have to be a lot of other ways that senior housing, aging services and other organizations can partner to better serve customers.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Aging Series by USA Today and ABC News

Interesting series by ABC News and USA Today begins today. It’s called 'Role Reversal.' Looks at children taking care of their older parents. This 'sandwich generation' presents a great opportunity for senior housing and aging services organizations to serve a much younger clientele and more broadly share its expertise.The first story today looks at how senior care is moving away from nursing homes. Looking at our Age Wave Study, it’s clear that baby boomers want to continue this direction. Another interesting story is about technology, which we are users of here.Also note in this article that people want more options to care for their parents at home. Minnesota has worked hard to get such an option. It’s called Consumer Directed Community Options. Too bad no one knows about it. This needs to change. There are about 11,000 seniors in Minnesota eligible for this program; only about 100 are in the program. You would think that with the power of the internet, we could completely change that and create a culture where we help people meet their desire to live at home and save the state money.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

One of the Good Guys

Media often get a bad name. Dennis Douda (pictured at left) at WCCO-TV is one of the good guys. (For our readers outside of the Midwest, WCCO-TV is the Twin Cities CBS affiliate).

He recently did a story on technology being used at Ecumen. He enjoyed the people he met at Lakeview Commons in Maplewood as part of the story. He is producing a short film called Willie 1.17 that is going to be entered at Sundance and other film festivals. Last week 15 people who live at Lakeview Commons got to participate in the filming of the movie’s closing scene. That was pretty cool, but then according to Wendy Traffie, the leader at Lakeview Commons, there were a couple of other surprises.

Bud Kraehling, (former WCCO-TV weatherman) who is one of Minnesota’s most beloved TV personalities played the main character in the movie. Don Shelby, current WCCO-TV anchor and drivetime radio host on WCCO-AM did the make up and and Dennis and Jeanette Trompeter acted in the film.

Dennis is going to hold a special screening of the movie at Lakeview Commons.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Congratulations to CaringBridge

Technology is such a tremendous opportunity for the senior housing and aging services professionals in helping people connect and learn from each other. The applications are endless -- and they don’t have to be expensive. It’s a great area for our profession to be entrepreneurial. Our Age Wave Study, shows that baby boomers (the next generation of seniors) are all about technology to stay connected. On that note, we want to send our congratulations to CaringBridge, which is celebrating its 10th Anniversary. Millions of people have stayed connected with loved ones experiencing injury and illness.CaringBridge began with one person. Today 250,000 people connect on it every day. It’s a product that is all about the power of human connections, people and personal stories. Elements that are in our profession every day and that we can build upon to make even better and stronger. It’s all apart of 'It' that others have been talking about in Debbie Manthey’s post below.


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

The It Factor

Debbie Manthey, Director of Operations, Housing Debbie Manthey, Director of Operations, Housing

What is it?
Who has it?Why do they have it? How do you get it?

THE “IT FACTOR”

We are on a mission to assure 'it' is present in each Ecumen Community.
“It” has been described in a variety of ways which all revolve around a feeling. Warmth, engagement, energy, emotion, impression. “It” is how you feel when you are at home or with friends and feel good. “It” has a story to tell. “It” revolves around values and choice. “It” is resident centered and resident driven. “It” is about how you feel about living in your home where you are in charge of your life.

At one of our leadership meetings, Mick Finn, chief of operations, talked about a recent visit to one of Ecumen’s communities, Mick walked in and found residents and staff having breakfast together €“ talking, laughing, totally enjoying each other.


Several other dining tables had not been cleared of dishes. There was no sense of hard schedules or time restraints. It was human beings enjoying each other and taking time with each other. One of the residents asked Mick, “Would you like to sit down and havesome toast and coffee”? Mick felt “it”. “It” is all about culture change. We must transform the way we deliver support and services to our seniors if we want to get “it”.


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Senior Housing Development in North Branch

Would you want to live in a place called Green Acres Country Care Center?That is what the county nursing home in North Branch, Minnesota was called. Thankfully, the building that looks like a cold war relic will soon be bulldozed. And North Branch seniors will have a brand new housing option.We have embarked on developing The Villages of North Branch, which will include several small neighborhoods. They will include assisted living, memory care, rehab and an area for nursing care that will be much smaller than yesterday’s institutional nursing home. The four key areas in the community are connected by a town center that will be a central gathering area. It will have a coffee shop, and gathering areas for Rotary, chapel services and exercise classes. The Villages of North Branch will open in July and will be a vibrant community within a community.The Old North Branch Nursing Home Entrance -- Total 1950s Not long ago there were … Ugh… four people to a room, Never again.Gloomy, cramped, loud hallwaysBelow are some photos from The Villages of North Branch, the senior housing development that will replace Green Acres and open in July: A Whole Different Ballgame!


Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Global Aging

This aging thing is a global thing. Several Ecumen leaders are joining senior housing and aging services professionals from around the world in Malta at the International Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (IAHSA) Annual Conference. A few tidbits on global aging from IAHSA:

  • For most of human history, until about a century ago, the elderly (people aged 65 and over) never amounted to more than 2 or 3 percent of the population. Today, in the developed world, they amount to 15 percent. By the year 2030, they will be around 25 percent. As recently as 1980, the median age of the oldest society on earth (Sweden) was 36.
  • By the year 2030, the median age of the entire developed world is projected to be 45. In much of southern and eastern Europe, it will be over 50. As a whole, the developing world will remain much younger for the foreseeable future. Yet it too is ageing-hence the term 'global ageing.' Several major countries in East Asia and Latin America, including China, South Korea, and Mexico are projected to reach developed-world levels of old-age dependency by the middle of the century.

Want to see some links on discussing aging from around the world? Check this out.We’ll be back next week, have a great weekend.