Wichita Community Matters March 2015

Commun ty Matters Wichita Presbyterian Manor

March 2015

Giving is a hallmark of PMMA’s history

Ready for your Lenten journey?

Generous donations and local relationships are the hallmarks of Presbyterian Manors of MidAmerica. We often recall the story of Alice Kalb, who at 90 traveled to a 1947 Presbyterian Synod of Kansas meeting to ask for a retirement community in Kansas.

The 40 days of Lent began on Ash Wednesday with the sign of the cross in ashes on the forehead and hearing the words, “Turn away from sin; be faithful to the gospel.” The church encourages us to have a time of self-examination, rethinking and reordering of our life: I can choose to be a grumpy grouch. I can choose to wilt and then wither away. I can choose to lament and languish. I can choose to grow older with all the kickin’ and screamin’ that’s left in me.

According to Edwin Shafer, senior vice president of development, what Mrs. Kalb basically told the Synod was: “If I give you all the money I have, will you build a home for the aging?”

Her heart-felt offer symbolized the plight of a growing number of seniors in need of the church’s help.

Kalb’s initiative led a farmer from Wakarusa, Kan., to bequeath his farm to the new project. The sale of that land upon his death provided the funds for the first building of Newton Presbyterian Manor.

Today, philanthropy at PMMA is evidenced through community partnerships, capital campaigns, Good Samaritan Program giving, special projects campaigns, and planned giving through wills, trusts and charitable gift annuities.

Many of PMMA’s 18 communities were opened with the help of local fundraising campaigns.

GIVING, continued on page 2

By the Rev. Dr. Larry Thornton, Aberdeen Village chaplain

Pain is inevitable but misery is a choice. Or I can choose to age with a gentle heart, alive in the Spirit of the living God, full of his grace in Jesus Christ, with the power of God still at work in me regardless of my advancing years. Psalm 92:12-14 says it so well. “ The righteous flourish like a palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the Lord. They flourish in the courts of our God. They will bring forth fruit in old age.” What do you want to be?

May our Lenten journey be a time for retrospection, for looking back across the hills and valleys of our existence and noting where God has intervened in our path, lifting a burden here and introducing a surprise there. We need to trace our journey — write our autobiography — and realize how wonderful the God of the covenant has been. In retirement, we have more time to be with the Lord. To practice the Presence. To experience the indwelling Spirit. To be in touch with God! The gift of time is nothing else than a gift of God, a precious package of life sent to us by our Lord, individually gift-wrapped and with our name on it … to give us the time that never seemed to be ours when we were younger. What a wonderful gift this is! Time for grandchildren and great- grandchildren. Time for prayer. Time to read the great books. Time to visit old friends. Time to think, to reflect, to love and laugh and listen to music. Time to exercise. Time to work on our own projects. Time to calibrate our spiritual compasses and get the priorities of life in proper order. I am no longer young, but I am not too old … to grow and change and flourish in the love and grace of God!

Coming Up in Community Matters Community Matters will focus on Older American’s Month in an upcoming issue. The 2015 theme is “Getting into the Act.” How were you involved in your community?

Did you serve in public office or otherwise participate in civic government?

What was your experience like?

If you have a story to tell, contact Activities Director Mary Angela Page to share your idea.Your story may be selected for the next issue of your community newsletter.

March 8, 2015 GIVING, from page 1

Community Matters

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. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org.

Dawn Veh, executive director Amy Watson, marketing director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact Mary Angela Page, activities director, mpage@pmma.org.

Telephone: 316-942-7456 Fax: 316-941-3806 Address: 4700 W. 13th St., Wichita, KS 67212-5575 Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values.

WichitaPresbyterianManor.org

There were donations of land for the Clay Center, Fort Scott, Olathe and Topeka locations. In addition, coalitions of citizens, churches and business leaders raised money for buildings in the Dodge City, Emporia, Parsons and Rolla. Through the years, capital campaigns have enabled PMMA communities to continue expanding services and remodeling campuses.

Over the past eight years, Shafer said, there have been four capital campaigns.

Ark City added a memory care assisted living neighborhood, and Clay Center added health care rooms and space for dining and activities. Newton created several neighborhoods at the health care level, and Rolla added assisted living rooms and a community meeting room.

Good Samaritan Program PMMA’s Good Samaritan Benevolent Care Program provides close to $4 million a year to touch the lives of nearly 400 residents, Shafer said. Mailings are sent throughout the year to enlist support from friends. The Good Samaritan Program allows residents to remain in their apartments even after they have exhausted their financial resources. A similar mail solicitation is conducted in late summer/early fall to benefit the Employee Scholarship Fund, which reimburses employees for tuition for approved classes.

Some campuses have special event fundraising programs.For example, a couple of months ago, Lawrence’s soft-serve ice cream machine, donated to the Manor 15 years ago, could no longer be repaired. To meet this need, residents kicked off a campaign to raise the money for a replacement. In a matter of two weeks, they reached the $15,000 goal.

For more information about planned giving, contact Ed Shafer at eshafer@ pmma.org or 800-336-8511.

2

Community Matters March 2015

Art is Ageless exhibit & reception features senior artists They are teachers, farmers, veterans, homemakers, entrepreneurs and nurses, among many others. Some have resumed art after putting it aside for a career, others have been creating beautiful pieces throughout their lives, and others never picked up a brush until after they retired, but all are now expressing themselves through art.

These diverse lives intersect at Wichita Presbyterian Manor this month with the Art is Ageless® program, which reaffirms the agelessness of human creativity.

Studies show seniors who are involved in the arts report better health, have more positive attitudes and are more active than those who are not.

“It’s inspiring to see the beautiful pieces these seniors have created,” said Marketing Director Amy Watson.

“The joy it brings to them and others is wonderful, and that’s something we want to celebrate and share with the broader Wichita community.”

The Art is Ageless exhibit will feature works from local

artists who are 65 and older, including a few Wichita Presbyterian Manor residents. The public is welcome to visit the community to view the exhibit of acrylics, oils, photography and various other mediums, including amateur and professional levels.

The exhibit is open March 9 to 19 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.

In addition to the exhibit, Wichita Presbyterian Manor will honor local senior artists during an Art is Ageless reception at 2 p.m. March 19.

The Art is Ageless program has been encouraging creativity in seniors for more than 30 years and is sponsored by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America, a nonprofit organization that owns and operates 18 senior living communities in Kansas and Missouri.

Each year the organization publishes an Art is Ageless calendar, featuring works by senior artists. Proceeds from the sale of calendars are reinvested into new art programs and opportunities for PMMA residents.

Wichita Presbyterian Manor

3

Wichita Presbyterian Manor 4700 W. 13th St. Wichita, KS 67212-5575 Return Service Requested

Your Opinion Matters

• complete the •

Quality of services

Resident survey March

4

2 - 27, 2015

Community Matters March 2015

Receive our newsletter by email. Look for the newsletter sign-up on our homepage.

It’s that easy!