Wichita Community Matters - July 2022

Wichita Presbyterian Manor

JULY 2022

Wichita Presbyterian Manor executive director says farewell

By Courtney Wolfe

New independent living resident practiced law, enjoyed investing on the side

I’ve always found that there is great value in moments of reflection, looking back on the path we’ve been on and the path that will guide us to our future.

Courtney Wolfe

My career began nearly 20 years ago at Wichita Presbyterian Manor. I feel a tremendous sense of gratitude for the opportunity to have worked with the talented team of employees who fulfill our mission and serve the residents who call Presbyterian Manor home.

My time here has been marked by both challenges and triumphs, and each of those experiences has touched me personally and professionally. For that reason, it is bittersweet to formally announce that I have accepted the role of regional operations director with PMMA (Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America®).

Charlie Hoke pictured with his late wife Carroll Anne, his favorite picture of the two of them

He still has a few boxes to unpack, but Charlie Hoke is settling into his new home in Independent Living at the Westerly.

“Everybody is friendly as heck,” said Charlie, who moved into his new apartment in April.

Charlie was born in Garden City, but his family moved to Prairie Village, Kan., when he was 3. He grew up in the Kansas City area and earned a law degree at the University of Kansas before moving to Wichita.

Hoke – continued on page 3

While this new opportunity means that I will no longer serve as the executive director at Wichita Presbyterian Manor, I am excited for the opportunity to continue to support this campus along with other Presbyterian Manor communities. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to know each of you and your families, and I will look forward to seeing you when I visit the community in my new role.

We are actively engaged in the selection of a new executive director, and I will continue to fulfill the role until a candidate is selected. u

Get the latest on visitation and COVID-19 at our campus at WichitaPresbyterianManor.org/covid-19.

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Presbyterian Manor residents keep their hands busy with needlework National Thread the Needle Day is July 25, and we’re celebrating the obscure holiday by highlighting some of the talented needleworkers in the Wichita Presbyterian Manor Community.

mother taught her to crochet when she was a child, but she didn’t really get interested in it until after she was married.

Independent living residents Ida L. Coombs, Barbara Dravis and Liz Hicks all enjoy the satisfaction of completing projects, either with a needle and thread or a crochet hook.

“It keeps my hands busy,” Barbara said.

She often crochets afghans while listening to music.

Ida Coombs became interested in

quilting in her mid-20s, when her mother made a quilt as a wedding gift for Ida’s brother.

That inspired Ida to order a quilt pattern from a newspaper ad. But she didn’t begin quilting in earnest until she was in her 40s.

“I basically became addicted to that kind of sewing,” she said.

Barbara has been a needleworker for “a good 50 years,” she said. Her

Ida Coombs says she’s “addicted” to quilting. One of her projects is this Biblically themed 12-block quilt.

Most of the handwork Liz Hicks does these days is crochet, but she has explored all kinds of needlework, including latch hooking, which is how she made this tropical fish textile.

Barbara Dravis with one of her crocheted afghans, which is displayed in her Independent Living apartment at The Westerly. “I like that one about the best of any I’ve done,” she said.

Busy hands – continued on page 3

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Community Matters 316-942-7456 ◆ Fax: 316-941-3806 4700 W. 13th St. Wichita, KS 67212-5575 WichitaPresbyterianManor.org

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is published monthly for residents and friends of Wichita Presbyterian Manor

by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America, Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization.

To submit or suggest articles: awatson@PMMA.org Amy Watson, life enrichment dir.

Courtney Wolfe, executive director Lisa Fetter, marketing director Cherree Hudspeth, health care sales and marketing

OUR MISSION: To provide quality senior services guided by Christian values.

COMMUNITY MATTERS | July 2022

Busy hands – continued from page 2

Ida was so passionate that she worked at Hen Feathers, a quilt shop in east Wichita. She spent 30 years making a hand-stitched quilt that she only worked on while on vacation.

“It was something that went into the suitcase so I would have something to keep my hands busy,” she said.

Ida is still “addicted” to her hobby, and she enjoys attending one of the weekly quilting groups that meets at First United Methodist Church.

Like Barbara, Liz mostly sticks to crocheting, but she experimented with a lot of different forms of needlework.

“When I was a young adult, I did a lot of various kinds,” she said. She particularly liked crewel embroidery, but she didn’t much care for crossstitch.

Several years ago, she found a pattern for crocheted reusable grocery bags, and she has made some for her neighbors.

window pattern for a quilt she’s working on in advance of a nephew’s upcoming wedding.

A few years ago, Ida heard that Wesley Hospital was looking for volunteers to make dolls for children in the pediatric unit. She made more than 600 and delivered them to the hospital, 12 at a time.

All three women have enjoyed making special blankets and other items for family and friends. Barbara gives away most of the afghans she makes. She chooses the colors she uses based on the preference of the recipient.

Liz has crocheted caps and lap-sized afghans, AKA “lapghans,” for Victory in the Valley, a nonprofit organization that supports cancer patients.

Ida has made a quilt as a wedding gift for each of her nieces and nephews. She chose a cathedral

“If I can keep my fingers busy, I feel as though I’ve accomplished something,” Liz said. u

Carroll Anne had a teenage daughter, Etienne, whom Charlie adopted.

join an investing group at Presbyterian Manor if there were one available.

Charlie was a lawyer, and Carroll Anne worked as a legal secretary for her father, who was also a lawyer. After she and Charlie wed, she went back to school at the age of 40. She went on to practice law for a nonprofit legal aid organization that served lowincome Kansans.

After they retired, the Hokes enjoyed reading and watching British mystery shows such as “Midsomer Murders.” They also spent time traveling, which included visiting Etienne and her husband and their three children, Andrew, Graham and Emma.

All three women enjoy the feeling of accomplishment their hobbies bring.

Hoke – continued from page 1 In the 1970s, Charlie was active in politics. He was involved with the campaigns of Representative Dan Glickman and Governor John Carlin. In 1980, he served as a delegate to the Democratic Convention in New York.

It was the same year Charlie married his late wife, Carroll Anne, after a whirlwind four-month romance. The couple met at Bulls and Bears, a onetime downtown bar. They were married for 27 years.

“My first reaction to Carroll Anne is that this woman was full of life,” Charlie recalled.

In his free time, Charlie got involved in an investing club.

Investments are still something he’s interested in, and he said he would

Etienne and other family members helped Charlie make the transition to Presbyterian Manor.

“They all worked their tails off,” he said. u

Wichita Presbyterian Manor | A PMMA COMMUNITY

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A few things you probably didn’t know about Independence Day It’s almost July 4th and before you gobble down a hotdog and take in some fireworks, we thought we would share some little-known Independence Day facts that you can use to amaze your family and friends.

First, the Declaration of Independence was not signed on July 4, 1776.

Shocking, right?

Actually, July 4 was the day that Congress approved the first draft of the Declaration of Independence, which was written by Thomas Jefferson and edited by John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. It wasn’t until August 2, 1776 that the document was actually signed.

Next, we all know about John Hancock’s famous, well …

John Hancock. But did you know he was actually the first of the 56 delegates to sign the document?

And how was the first anniversary of Independence Day celebrated? The Virginia Gazette described the celebration in Philadelphia this way:

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COMMUNITY MATTERS | July 2022

“The evening was closed with the ringing of bells, and at night there was a grand exhibition of fireworks, which began and concluded with thirteen rockets on the commons, and the city was beautifully illuminated. Everything was conducted with the greatest order and decorum, and the face of joy and gladness was universal.”

Here are a few more little-known facts thanks to Almanac.com.

• Congress officially declared July 4th a federal holiday in 1870, but it wasn’t until 1938 until federal employees could take the day off.

• On the back of the Declaration of Independence, the words “Original Declaration of Independence dated 4th July 1776” is written upside down.

• Both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson—signers of the Declaration of Independence who later went on to become president—died on its 50th anniversary.

• According to the weather diary of Thomas Jefferson, the weather on July 4, 1776 was cloudy and 76 degrees. u