Beaumont News November 2018

V o lu me T h i rt y T wo , N umber 9

November 2018

Hardworking task force tackles a ‘future vision for health care at Beaumont’

By Mary Graff

An ambitious initiative in the approach to health care, involving an unprecedented commitment of time and effort by both residents and staff, is now under way at Beaumont.

A Health Services Task Force has been at work over the late summer and early fall, served by seven teams, each addressing a separate aspect of health care.

Why health care? Why now?

Resident Susan Ravenscroft is chairman of the Beaumont Retirement Services Inc. (BRSI) board, which governs the arm of Beaumont that provides care and services to residents; BRSI’s Management Team will guide the new effort once the Task Force’s work is completed.

Mrs. Ravenscroft supplied the “why now?” answer in two parts:

“The unstated reason most of us come to Beaumont is the assurance of continuing medical care...

“The emphasis is on looking forward. The goal is to be the best.”

And a convergent factor: the Health Center is scheduled for renovations in 2020.

“Each Team will hold weekly meetings. Each Team member will agree to complete research assignments.”

Other members of the Task Force are resident Ted Robb, vice chairman of the Beaumont Retirement Community Inc. (BRCI) board, which oversees policy; Joseph Peduzzi, Beaumont president, CEO and BRSI board member; Lynn Plasha, vice president of Health Services, resident Caroline Kemmerer, chairman of the Health Services Committee, and residents Alan Tripp and Marvin Weisbord.

Photo by Lynn Ayres

THE MANSION COURT YARD has had a major facelift. The hill and plateaus were replanted with trees, shrubs and perennials. The upper two retaining walls were replaced and an iron fence erected on top.

The tripods are part of a watering system that ensured a healthy summer of growth for the vulnerable young vegetation. For more information, see page 3.

The Task Force concept accords with Beaumont’s system of self-governance, which we believe to be unique among Life Plan communities. We elect our leaders, while continuing to advise them of our wishes through our committees. Decision-making is delegated upward to the Senior Management Staff and the BRCI and BRSI boards.

The BRCI board is composed of seven residents; the BRSI board is composed of five residents, an at-large community member, and President Peduzzi. (For a complete list of board and committee members, see the October issue, page 6.)

The deadline for the Task Force report, to be called “A Future Vision for Health Care at Beaumont,” is December 31 of this year. The Management Team and the Finance Committee will complete an analysis of the cost once the report is finalized.

The Task Force will be dissolved once its work is completed at the end of December.

The commitment of time and effort on the TASK FORCE continued on page 6

Intangibles

Some things we cannot hold: Moonlight on snow, Mist on a tidal pool, Sun’s afterglow.

Some things we cannot hold In a cupped hand; Sea foam and water slip Back to the sand.

Some things we cannot hold; Words can’t be caught— Till they are woven Into a thought.

Some things we cannot hold, Yet they will stay Always a part of us, Day after day.

Photos by Linda Madara

HALLOWEEN AT BEAUMONT: All kinds of witches, wicked and whimsical, plain and fancy, dominated the party in the Beaumont Room. Clockwise from upper left, other costumes included Unicorn Sally Randolph; Wicked Witch Norma Fabian; Housekeeper Bunny Solomon (voted best in show); Cat Betsy Stull and Dog Peter Abel (voted best duo). The Fitness team offered Green Ghost Katelyn Brown, Mad Hatter Diana DiMeglio and dapper gentleman Karen McFee.

Corrections

We offer our sincere apologies to two residents who were omitted from the Boards and Committees list in the October issue of The Beaumont News: Jean Churchman, co-chair of the Resident Services Committee, and Nelly Lincoln of the Library Committee.

Parchment

If on the manuscript of life There are mistakes that mar the whole, Never resort to pen or knife To alter the imperfect scroll.

But with the heart’s brave gold and red Illuminate the faulty line, So that it will become, instead, A vital part of the design.

—Bette Keck Peterson

BEAUMONT NEWS The Beaumont News is published by the residents and staff of the Beaumont Retirement Community, 601 N. Ithan Avenue, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010

In Memoriam William E. Graff October 10, 2018

—Bette Keck Peterson

Executive Editor Mary Graff Managing Editor Lynn Ayres Deputy Executive Editor and Production Manager John Hall Graphic Designer TJ Walsh Photo Editor Louise Hughes Contributing Editor Linda Madara Quality Control Jennifer Frankel Index Manager Nancy Harris Consulting Assistant Editors Mary Schnabel, Jean Homeier, Peggy Wolcott, Sis Ziesing, Wistie Miller and Irene Borgogno

Barbara “Bobbi” Rosen October 26, 2018

Members of the Beaumont Community extend deepest sympathy to their families and friends.

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Beaumont’s ‘secret garden’ gets a smart new look

By Lynn Ayres RETAINING WALLS: Gravel is laid for drainage, and then the walls go up.

Few people know the Mansion Courtyard, a hidden garden dominated by the south end of the Mansion. On the other three sides are Baldwin apartments. The only path into the courtyard is not easily noticed. At the east end, a moderate incline leads down to the first-floor apartments. In the center, an imposing hill reigns supreme. On the west, there is a cliff that requires three tiers of retaining walls.

Photo by Linda Madara

Photo by Linda Madara

BEAUMONT’S MT. EVEREST: The hilltop is leveled and trenches for the retaining walls are dug.

A year ago, the courtyard underwent a change.

Three very tall, very old white pines were taken down because their size and age endangered the buildings. Piece by piece, branches were removed, trunks felled, and roots unearthed. All that was left was a bare, brown hillside.

No time to mourn. Too much to do. The retaining walls below the mansion had been made of railroad ties.

Wood weathers slowly but inevitably; the ties were replaced with sturdy building blocks.

When the retaining walls were finished, residents dining in the Porch Room wondered when the yellow police tape along the highest wall would be replaced by something more substantial. Before the construction, a veritable thicket of shrubs and trees had been present to break a fall. Now it was a potential three-storey “plopplop-splat” to the bottom until Beaumont erected an attractive iron fence that complemented the mansion and provided safety.

Winter was bleak, but spring brought the gardeners. Planting a hillside is complicated. Louise Carter, a professional landscape gardener and member of the Grounds Committee, devoted her summer to the project.

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She chose trees, shrubs and groundcover for year-round color and interest.

Forty “Peach Drift” roses form an arc of colorful flowers on the hill, blooming continuously from spring until frost. Spring bloomers include native azalea and amsonia; summer bloomers include “Annabel” hydrangea, geranium “Rozanne” and crepe myrtle. In autumn, there is bright foliage. Even winter shows color with witch hazel and winter jasmine. Evergreens vary in texture and tint: “China girl” holly, juniper “blue Pacific” and stone pine.

Credit goes to Scott McCloud at Classic Gardens for transplanting the large redbud and gingko trees from the Greenhouse Courtyard Photo by Lynn Ayres on Middle Road— FIRST SUMMER: Walls are up, planting is done,

a huge and a crepe myrtle is in full bloom. challenge.

Mark Hritz and his grounds crew deserve our gratitude for maintaining the plantings under tough summer conditions. Despite the traumas of moving, planting and heat waves, only two plants were lost.

Good job, everyone.

Security Chief Charlie Koch, with stories to tell, tells just a few

By Wistie Miller

Charlie Koch, head of Security here at Beaumont since 2002, was born in Brooklyn. After he married, he and his wife Tami moved to Staten Island. Charlie studied at the Police Academy and took courses at John Jay College, but most of his police experience was acquired “on the job”—10 years as a policeman and 10 more as a detective.

He has some hair-raising tales to tell, but they are too grisly to relate in The Beaumont News.

As he was getting HEAD OF SECURIT Y Charlie

ready to retire, he heard Koch reflects on what he has seen and

from his friend, Jim Caheard on the job.

leo, who used to be the

All photos by Louise Hughes Director of Dining Ser vices here at Beaumont, that the position of head of Security was available. Charlie got the job, bought a house in Downingtown only 26 miles away door-to-door, and moved there with his wife and their two sons, then 13 and 9. Today, one son is the regional manager of the Lehigh Valley Pharmaceutical Company and the other is an interventional radiology tech at Lankenau.

Here are a few of the more amusing incidents that have occurred on Charlie’s watch here at Beaumont.

Many residents will remember the time that a deer and her yearling fawn jumped through a window in the bright corridor between the lobby and the Wellness Center. The doe panicked and continued across the hall, jumping through the opposite window into the Liseter Garden. Instead of following its mother, the youngster turned left, in the direction of Chef John’s kitchen and the Health Center.

Tripp’s mystery lamp revealed

By Alan R. Tripp

Many Beaumont residents, strolling the hallway from the bridge to Baldwin, have stopped short at the sight of a three-foot high pillar of light flanking the doorway to Apartment 306. The light glows through waves of fabric while the sides of the object are slabs of shiny

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At about the same time, Paul Conboy, Maintenance Supervisor, was sauntering down the hall minding his own business. Being a “John Wayne type of guy,” he swung into action, rounded up the “varmints,” and herded them both out a door leading to the loading dock where they ran off.

The next morning, our whimsical wordsmith, Mary Schnabel, arranged for a sign to be printed in bold letters to announce the new deer crossing. [Full story in May 2011 issue]

The second tale involved a past villa resident FRIGHTENED FAWN looks who had just had quite a for an escape “Mister and Missus” with his wife. In a fury, he stormed out of the kitchen into their garage. Jumping into his car, he threw it into gear and drove it right smack through the kitchen wall where they had both been sitting moments before!

The third story took place one evening when a resident activated the emergency pull cord.

When Security arrived expecting the worst, the person said: “Thank God you’re here.

I can’t reach the remote. Could you hand it to me? And by the way, since you’re here, would you X MARKS THE SPOT mind opening this bottle of where the incident began

vodka for me?”

And last but far from least, on the watch of Security’s Joe Gunn, a resident from Baldwin had dropped her keys along with her trash into the trash chute by mistake.

Being quite a small person, she asked Joe if he would hold her by her feet while she attempted to lower herself into the chute to retrieve them.

Request denied! chromium-plated steel.

Actually, it’s an electrified sculpture, a floor lamp, one of four such lamps belonging to me. It was designed

by Spanish-born architect Paul Mayén, an associate and friend of Frank Lloyd Wright. Mayén designed the guest pavilion and gift shop at Fallingwater before founding Habitat, Inc., to design lamps. Some of Mayén’s lamps are in the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Way back in 1960, during a trip to LAMP continued on page 5

A new garden blooms in Austin

By Ann Butcher

An unexpected bonus of Beaumont is the pleasure of reconnecting with friends from previous chapters in your life. The Butchers had a happy surprise last spring when my old friend Jennifer Morrison moved into the Austin apartment across the hall from us.

Our paths had crossed in the ‘70s when we had young children in the same class at the Haverford School. At the same time, Jennifer and I also worked together on projects for The Garden Workers Garden Club. (Many Garden Workers reside in Beaumont, including Callie Photo by Linda Madara Wheeler, wife of A SCAVENGER-HUNT PRIZE was

Beaumont’s founder, awarded to Jennifer Morrison at the Active

Art Wheeler.)

Aging Week events.

Jennifer Salvo Morrison is a product of both U.S. coasts. She was born in Los Angeles when her father was serving in the Air Force in the Pacific theater. Jen’s family, however, lived in Villanova, and they returned there after California. She was raised on the Main Line, one of three children, and was influenced by her forward-thinking, capable mother who attended business school and was instrumental in LAMP continued from page 4

Copenhagen, my late wife, Maggie, and I had acquired a boatload of Danish finds for our contemporary home in Rydal. Upon arranging the furGHOSTLY PRESENCE: Alan Tripp’s hand-carved

niture, we loon casts a wary eye on the mysterious Ghost hovering

realized in the corner.

Photo by Lynn Ayres

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helping Jen’s father in his family business.

Jen met her husband Barclay Morrison on a blind date in college when she was at Immaculata and Clay was at Villanova. They were married and lived in Texas, California and South Carolina while Clay was in the Marines, and eventually they returned East and settled in Villanova. They had four children: Barclay, Lea, Justin and Meade.

I met Jen at this point in her life and was struck by her many artistic talents. She made haute couture clothes without a pattern, prepared delicious, gourmet delicacies, and created a gorgeous garden and stunning flower arrangements … all while being a dedicated mom.

Jen and Clay belonged to a Valley Forge gun club and enjoyed trap shooting as a hobby. Jen is a family legend for taking down a rabid raccoon, right between the eyes, as it was attacking Chessy, her yellow lab. The game warden congratulated Jen on her marksmanship!

Clay owned a construction company. Sadly, Jen was widowed at a young age when Clay suffered a tragic fatal accident on one of his sites in 1995. Jen went on to raise her children, all of whom distinguished themselves with graduate degrees and professions.

During her child-rearing years, Jen pursued her love of nature through her floral artistry, becoming a Garden Club of America judge, running workshops and distinguishing herself with her own arrangements in the Philadelphia Flower Show and winning the “Best of the Blues” in her class.

Now Jennifer has brought her artistry to her new home here in Austin. Her apartment is filled with gorgeous blooms, and the patio is an enchanted garden. that we had bought none of the important accessories.

A peek into Van Sciver’s and other Philadelphia stores revealed lamps and shades with their aesthetics firmly rooted in the prior century.

Our salvation came unexpectedly from an art-and-furnishings dealer in—of all places— Atlantic City. While cruising the boardwalk, we spotted a window that included just the right modern lamps to complement our Danish furniture.

The owner introduced us to Habitat, Inc., and Paul Mayén’s designs became the major source of light in our home in Rydal. Four floor lamps survive to this day in my apartment at Beaumont.

Their ethereal quality is reflected in their name: Ghost.

WHAT’S THAT on the Beaumont chimney? A stork building a nest? No, that scenario occurs in Europe.

A GREAT BLUE HERON rests on one leg.

HUMAN TRIPOD: Paige Gowen uses Linda Madara to steady her smart phone.

Photos by Jane Ruffin

TASK FORCE continued from page 1 part of the 45 Task Force and Team participants was described in the handout distributed at the September Town Meeting:

“Each Team will hold weekly meetings.

“Each Team member will agree to complete research assignments.”

Mrs. Ravenscroft said she first discussed this project with BRCI Chairman Birch Clothier and Beaumont President Joe Peduzzi in August.

“We discussed how to combine the professional knowledge of the staff with the diverse wealth of residents’ experience in medicine, law, business and academia—to name just a few,” she said. Each team “is tasked with investigating what others are doing in the field and finding best practices.”

THE SEVEN TEAMS ARCHITECTURE:

Team leaders, resident Birch Clothier, chairman of the BRCI board, and Operations Vice President Brock Nichols; resident members Michael Erdman, Page Gowen, Donald Mykytiuk

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and Dr. Richard Stephens.

Goal: To provide the best facility to meet the needs defined by the other Teams and the Task Force.

Objectives: 1. Determining how much land may be used for expansion 2. Providing a program of requirements for the architects 3. Discussing modifications and additions to be required 4. Providing the best technology for the Health Center and Personal Care 5. Providing the best technology for patients in the Health Center and Personal Care rooms AGING IN PLACE:

Team leaders, resident Bette Peterson and Wellness Center Director Miriam Quinn; resident members Eta Glassman, Marsha (Tuppie) Solmssen and Vernon Stanton, Esq. Goal: To provide and manage caregivers assigned to residents in residential units.

Objectives: 1. Looking into on-the-job training 2. Investigating providing of services to non-resident clients 3. Identifying technology that can be used to enhance the lives of residents who live independently MEDICAL PROVIDERS:

Team leaders, resident Dr. Stanley Spitzer and Vice President of Health Services Lynn Plasha; resident members Carole Morgan, Dr. Don Trachtenberg and Bertram Wolfson, Esq. Goal: To provide the best medical services to Beaumont residents.

Objectives: 1. Exploring optimal medical staff coverage to meet resident needs 2. Specifying facilities and equipment needs MEMORY CARE:

Team leaders, resident Jane Ruffin and Recreational Therapy director Bernadette Bevilacqua; resident members Linda Madara, Mary Schnabel and Nancy Sharp.

Goal: To provide best care for patients with memory loss.

TASK FORCE continued on page 7

Active Aging Week combines fitness with fun actvities

Fitness Coordinator Diana DiMeglio has developed fun wellness incentive programs for residents.

She recently coordinated multiple fitness events for Active Aging Week, a yearly celebration through the International Council on Active Aging.

The events September 24 to 28 included line dancing with Don Nee; “Walk and Wheel” in search of scavenger hunt items; chair yoga; and a dog parade (good exercise for pets and owners). A new class was also introduced: Feldenkrais, or awareness through movement.

There is an article about it on page 3 in the September/ October issue of “The Pulse Report.”

ACTIVITIES: (Clockwise from upper left) After the parade, it’s dog treats all around; scavenger hunters claim prizes; Gadget seems reluctant to enter the dog tunnel; line dancing requires balance and coordination.

Photos by Louise Hughes

TASK FORCE continued from page 6 Team leaders, resident Dr. Vernon Kelly, Personal Care Administrator Tracy Vitabile and Resident Care Coordinator Sade Thompson; resident members Barbara Benson, Marlynne Clothier and Paula Spiegel.

Goal: To provide support for residents, spouses, families and staff.

Objectives: 1. Defining support objectives and methods 2. Defining space/s needed 3. Recommending training

Objectives: 1. Defining support objectives and methods 2. Defining space/s needed 3. Ensuring safety for patients 4. Identifying technology that can be used to enhance the lives of residents NURSING:

Team leaders, residents DeeDee Ballard and Betsy Rhodes, Nursing Director Marjorie Harding and Personal Care Administrator Tracy Vitabile; resident members Dr. David Balamuth and Norma Fabian.

Goal: To provide excellent care in both centers, Health Care and Personal Care.

Objectives: 1. Specifying equipment and training needs 2. Identifying technology that can be used to enhance the lives of patients in the Health Center and Personal Care

WELLNESS (URGENT CARE) CENTER:

Team leaders, resident Dr. Marvin Steinberg, Wellness Center Director Miriam Quinn and Nurse Practitioner Ryan Sholinsky; resident members Margaret Balamuth, Roland Morris Esq. and Minney Robb.

Goal: To provide Urgent Care services for all Beaumont residents.

Objectives: 1. Cataloguing all Wellness Center services 2. Investigating enhancing and expanding Urgent Care services to residents 3. Specifying staff and medical equipment

PATIENTS, SPOUSES AND NURSING STAFF SUPPORT:

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Ninth annual Friendship Games bring local CCRCs together

The Friendship Games provide an opportunity for friendly competition between Continuing Care Retirement Communities in Southeastern Pennsylvania. The first games were held in 2003 at The Quadrangle. The ninth games were held October 5, 2018, at Waverly Heights.

Fourteen communities fielded teams for nine events. Beaumont came in first in one event (Brain Games – Irene Borgogno) and fourth place in three events (Ping Pong – Dr. David Balamuth; Swimming – Margaret Balamuth; and Wimbledon Croquet – Barbara Pottish and Sally Morris.)

THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD: Team members show off their Friendship Games shirts—and a wee bit more.

TEAM: (L to R) Julie Williams, horseshoes; Sally Morris, croquet; Edward Curran, billiards; Frank Kampas, Wii bowling; Irene Borgogno, brain games; Diana DiMeglio and Karen McFee, Fitness Center; David Balamuth, ping pong; Margaret Balamuth, swimming; Nancy Sharp, chipping; Barbara Pottish, croquet; Ken Campbell and Nelly Lincoln, bocce.

All photos by Linda Madara

THE EARLE FAMILY gathers to honor George H. Earle III, Governor of Pennsylvania, 1935-1939, and father of Beaumont’s Lawrence Earle (seated). During his term of office during the Great Depression, Governor Earle created more than 200,000 new jobs and established the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. In addition, civil rights, labor, and unemployment compensation laws were enacted.

A decorated veteran of WWI and WWII, Governor Earle was born and raised near the blue historical marker recently erected near Earle Lake in Newtown Square.

Photo by Rich Smyth

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