Commun ty Matters Clay Center Presbyterian Manor
Share your “PATH ” to success COMING UP IN COMMUNITY MATTERS:
We will be featuring people who have received therapy through our Post Acute to Home® (PATH®) program in an upcoming issue of Community Matters. If you have a story to tell about your experience in our PATH program or know someone who does, or if you just want to tell the world what you love about living in your senior living community, we want to share the story.
Contact Heather Germann, marketing director, and your story could be featured in an upcoming edition of Community Matters.
July 2017
Finding Joy on the Unexpected Journey
Floyd & Lillian Bosch Life has a way of taking us down roads we never expected, on journeys we didn’t plan. While residents Floyd and Lillian Bosch are enjoying their new life here at Clay Center Presbyterian Manor, it wasn’t on their radar until an unfortunate incident occurred.
“Last April, Lillian fell and broke her hip. She had to go to the hospital of course, and I’m in a wheelchair and mostly dependent on her. So I came to live here temporarily, until we could get back home,” said Floyd. “We were home for about four months, but unfortunately Lillian fell again and became ill. That’s when we knew we had to make some decisions.”
Knowing if and when to leave one’s own home and reside in a senior living community is often a grueling decision to make. Even the best imaginable place may never truly feel like “home.” But after taking everything into consideration, Floyd and Lillian made the move to Clay Center Presbyterian Manor for good.
“It’s a transition going from home to here. It’s going well, but there’s a lot to adjust to. It is nice to have services here like food prepared, clothes washed, and assistance you might need,” said Floyd. “Lillian’s able to get the therapy she needs right here, which is great. And we do enjoy all the social activities. The staff is wonderful, too.” SIGN UP to receive our newsletter by email.
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Floyd and Lillian are well known in the Clay Center community, and they enjoy the proximity to their children, grandchildren and greatgrandchildren.
“The food’s good here, but I got a craving for corn on the cob, which they hadn’t served. So my daughter came up here and cooked it for me. And my UNEXPECTED JOURNEY continued on page 3
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son came and got me on my birthday, and made me a big, juicy steak at his house. It’s the freedom and ability to do these things that makes a big difference,” said Floyd. “One thing I like here is that there are religious services on Sundays and Thursdays, and various pastors in the community take turns having the services. They have a Bible class also, and these things are very important.”
As a former Lutheran minister, Floyd certainly understands the importance of a strong spiritual life. “I spent 12 years as a Lutheran
Community Matters is published monthly for residents and friends of Clay Center Presbyterian Manor by Presbyterian Manors of 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org.
Christian Gilbert, executive director Heather Germann, marketing director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact Heather Germann, hgermann@pmma.org.
Telephone: 785-632-5646 Fax: 785-632-5874 Address: 924 Eighth St., Clay Center, KS 67432-2620
Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values. ClayCenterPresbyterianManor.org
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minister in England. We had four children there. We enjoyed the English people and countryside. I was then a pastor here in Clay Center at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and later did some carpentry work after my health forced me to leave the ministry.”
Lillian’s background is in teaching, and she worked at Big Lakes Developmental Center, taking care of physically and mentally disabled people. Floyd and Lillian have six children, 14 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren, and between them all, a whole array of careers and interests.
“Our oldest daughter is a doctor, and taught in China at one point. Our oldest son was a lawyer and is now a judge. Another daughter was a social worker, and our next son was a photographer with the Miami Herald. He’s been everywhere: Afghanistan and Pakistan to name a few. He even got shot at many times! Our youngest son
Spread the word, Enjoy sweet treat Clay Center Presbyterian Manor will host their annual ice cream social and resident referral event at 7 p.m. on Thursday, July 27. This is a great way to spread the word about how “sweet” it is to live at Clay Center Presbyterian Manor!
is a jeweler and our youngest daughter is a CPA. Even our grandchildren have interesting careers! One works in Australia for a wedding dress company, and another is a professional harpist.”
We’re glad Floyd and Lillian are enjoying their new home here, even though it wasn’t in their plans. We never know what life may bring our way, but we’re glad to offer a safe, warm, accommodating place for those in need of extra care.
“It’s great if you can can stay in your own home, or maybe get some extra services at home. But sometimes you need to make the decision to move elsewhere. There are a lot of things to consider, like the reputation of the home, the people, the staff, also the residents, too. Look at all of those things, and look at the food, cleanliness, medical help, assistance, everything. Those were all factors in our decision to come to Clay Center Presbyterian Manor, and we’re glad we did.”
Chapel
July 4: NO CHAPEL July 11: Pastor Schoneweis July 18: Pastor Coleman July 25: Pastor Lingle
Vespers
Sundays at 4 p.m. in the Health Care Dining Activities Room
The 9 keys to a happy retirement
It turns out that happiness and retirement DO go together.
By Richard Eisenberg for Next Avenue
Happiness and retirement can go together if you play your cards right. And it’s not just about having saved enough money or having a great pension. I’ve come to the conclusion that there are nine keys to a happy retirement.
Of course, the definition of retirement isn’t what it was even 10 years ago. For many people, is not about quitting your full-time job full-stop at 65 and then living a life of leisure.
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1. Figure out in advance what you want out of retirement. By that, I mean things like: how you’ll spend your days, where you’ll spend them and what would make you fulfilled.
One key decision is where you will retire and how much traveling you’ll What is retirement, anyway? want to do. Some people choose to 65 was the retirement date set in 1935 retire in another country. A recent when FDR signed Social Security into survey of 389 expats by the website law. It made more sense when people Best Places in the World to Retire didn’t live as long as they do today and at found that 81 percent were happier in a time when most employers provided their new country than where they guaranteed pensions once their lived before. employees retired. A March 2016 Why is that? For one thing, the cost of Ameriprise study said 71 percent of living was often less — sometimes current retirees rely on guaranteed much, much less. pensions from their former employers while 75 percent of pre-retirees plan to Many of the expats also said they were rely on anything-but- guaranteed less stressed than before because their 401(k)s when they retire. new country wasn’t as fast-paced as America. Many also said they loved Catherine Collinson, president of the their new “simple life,” especially Transamerica Center for Retirement because they now had more free time Studies, recently told me that many to volunteer. workers now envision retirement as a transition, something that happens over 2. The corollary to No. 1 — If you time. The current catchphrase is “flexible have a husband, wife or partner, retirement,” which means either going talk together about what you from full-time to part-time work or both want out of retirement. Neal working in a different capacity or Frankle, a noted financial planner, working as long as you’re able. recently wrote that he finds it helpful Here are the nine ways to increase your for couples to discuss their retirement dreams and write them down. Then, chances of being happy in retirement: he says, they should mark each item as
a “must have,” a “want” or a “wish” and be ready to compromise.
One thing you’ll want to figure out is how much time the two of you will want to spend together, since this may be the first time you’re both available all the time.
3. Come up with a retirement income plan. By that I mean: sit down and figure out how much your 401(k) and other accounts will translate to in monthly income; how much you’ll get from Social Security and any pension; how much you can afford to withdraw each year (the rule of thumb is around 4 percent) and which accounts you’ll tap first for withdrawals to keep taxes down.
Don’t be surprised if your retirement income or expenses don’t turn out the way you expected. When Ameriprise surveyed retirees, it found three types of expenses were higher than expected: health care, food and taxes.
4. Choose when to retire and then follow through.The authors of an excellent book called The Retirement Maze surveyed 1,477 retirees to see what made the happy ones happy. One thing they found was that workers who were able to retire by choice were happier than ones whose retirement was thrust on them:
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69 percent of the retirees who retired by choice were satisfied with their lifestyle but only 36 percent pushed into retirement said they were.
5. Stay engaged and healthy (if you can).The career coach Bill Ellermeyer says the happiest retirees he knows are either engaged in some kind of meaningful activity or are actively employed. Some have become entrepreneurs; some have started encore careers, doing either paid work or volunteering. He also says they “eat well, sleep
soundly, play often, exercise at least three times a week and maintain strong social connections.”
6. Get a part-time job in retirement. Some of the happiest retirees are people who phased into retirement by gradually reducing their full-time hours. Studies show that working in retirement helps keep your mind sharp and helps you avoid getting isolated and lonely. The trouble is, not enough employers are helping their older workers work out a flexible transition to keep a job there part-time in retirement. So, it’ll
probably be up to you to figure out how to work part-time in retirement. 7. Learn new things or pursue your passions. Those passions could be ones you had when you were much younger but somehow stopped doing over the years, like playing an instrument or painting. Retirement is a great time to discover new passions, too, by taking classes or finding one-on-one instruction.
Check out local colleges for adult education and continuing education
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classes, too. These courses could teach you new skills or just provide knowledge for the pure joy of it.
8. Keep a schedule, but not like the one you had before you retired. I came across one study from Taiwan that said the key to a happy retirement isn’t how much free time you have, it’s how you manage whatever free time you have.
Having some kind of schedule prevents you from getting bored, depressed or lonely. 4 COMMUNITY MATTERS JULY 2017
9. See your children and grandchildren if you have any. Hinden said his favorite tip from his retirement do’s and don’ts list was: Do find ways to be friends with your children and grandchildren, even though they are very busy.You need them, and, whether they realize it or not, they need you. Incidentally, just retiring itself is likely to make you happier. A study by Utah State and George Mason University professors found that retirement immediately tends to improve both happiness and health.
And here’s one last piece of good news: Most retirees say they are happy because of all the things retirement has given them the opportunity to do. In fact, a MassMutual Financial Group survey found that retirement just might pay you a happiness “bonus.” In its poll, 82 percent of retirees said retirement gave them an opportunity to enjoy themselves and about two-thirds said they now had a chance to have new experiences and feel fulfilled. LIKE US ON FACEBOOK