Commun ty Matters Parsons Presbyterian Manor
COMING UP IN COMMUNITY MATTERS:
What are your new beginnings traditions?
We will focus on new beginnings in an upcoming issue of Community Matters. As we approach the new year, what resolutions are you making? Have you ever made a resolution that changed your life? What are your hopes for 2017?
If you’ve got a story to share, contact Sharla Hopper, marketing director, and your story could be featured in an upcoming edition of Community Matters.
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Devoted to Voting
November 2016
Ted Stueber Takes Civic Duty to Heart
Parsons Presbyterian Manor resident Ted Stueber hasn’t missed voting in an election since 1954, when he cast his first ballot for Dwight D. Eisenhower’s second term. No weather event, no illness, no scheduling conflict has kept Ted from the polls in all these years, so one might assume he feels passionately about voting.
“I wouldn’t say I’m very passionate about it. As a citizen, we have that right. To vote or not vote. When I went to school, they taught citizenship in government class, and I guess it just stuck with me,” said Ted. “We can complain, all right. But if I’m going to complain, I’ve got to vote. We do have that privilege. They’re only once every four years. Everyone complains about the government, but it takes so little time to vote. It’s just part of being a citizen.” Ted’s matter-of-fact approach would perhaps be inspiring to those who feel “uninspired” to cast a ballot. It’s not something you have to feel, it’s just something that you do. And it’s not only presidential elections we should focus on.
Voting continued on page 4
Reflections on Thanksgiving Wayne Mason, Chaplain, Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice
Picture a 16-year-old kid getting his first car. He is a junior in high school, working part-time after school and on Saturdays. He is saving his money and driving his family’s second car to get to work. Then, an offer he can’t refuse comes his way. His grandfather, who is in poor health and can no longer safely drive, and his grandmother, who has never driven, need someone to do chores on their small farm and transport
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Community Matters is published monthly for residents and friends of Parsons Presbyterian Manor by Presbyterian Manors of
501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org. Maegen Pegues, executive director Sharla Hopper, marketing director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact shopper@pmma.org. Telephone: 620-421-1450 Fax: 620-421-1897 Address: 3501 Dirr Ave., Parsons, KS 67357-2220 Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values. ParsonsPresbyterianManor.org
2 COMMUNITY MATTERS NOVEMBER 2016
them into town for grocery shopping and other errands. The offer – help them with these things and they will give him their 1962 Chevy Impala. That kid was me, and I quickly said, “Yes!” Now, picture this – 45 years later, a 61-year-old grandfather crawls behind the steering wheel of that same car and drives it down the street. Memories of high school and college return, first relationships and proclamations of love are reviewed, and thoughts of emerging responsibility, integrity, and even maturity are viewed in a new way. My grandparents trusted me, and I didn’t want to let them down.
As we approach Thanksgiving, we have much to be thankful for. People who have trusted us and given us opportunities to fail and succeed, the
roof over our heads, the food which nourishes us, family who do not abandon us but stand beside us when changes come into our lives, and love which survives all the challenges, surprises, trials and blessings of our lives.
Psalm 106:1 proclaims: “Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” Let us give thanks for a lifetime of support, challenge, growth, and LOVE.
Prayer: “Lord, you were the first person to love us and trust us.Thank you for your love, support and trust.Thank you for the promises you have made to us for today and for eternity.We are blessed because of you being in our lives and allowing us to be a part of yours.Thank you for your forgiveness and your love. Amen.”
Free Memory Screening Nov. 3 President Ronald Reagan designated November as National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month in 1983. At the time, fewer than 2 million Americans had Alzheimer’s; today, the
Awarenсs
number of people with the disease has soared to nearly 5.4 million (according to alz.org). If you or someone you know
would like to schedule a free memory screening on Nov. 3,
Alzheimer’s
please contact Parsons Presbyterian Manor at 620-421-1450.
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Voting
continued from page 1
“Less than 20 percent of people vote, or somewhere around there. And so many young people don’t vote. I don’t understand why because it’s so convenient,” said Ted. “And people need to remember to vote in the primaries to keep that rascal out that you don’t want in there. The primaries are to weed out the ones you don’t want. It’s just as important as the general election.” Ted’s devotion to voting is a reflection of his life spent serving our country both through the military and public service. “I grew up here in Parsons, went to junior college here,
then worked a few years before I went into the Army. I served from 1952 to 1954 during the Korean war and ended up in Germany where they needed to rotate troops out. Then I finished up college at Pitt State with my bachelor’s in business administration, majoring in marketing and management,” said Ted. “After that, I went to work in 1965 for the Department of Labor in western Kansas.” We thank Ted for his service to his country and for his commitment to voting. We encourage you to exercise your right to vote in the Nov. 8 election and are happy to help accommodate your needs in doing so.
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Presbyterian Manor 3501 Dirr Ave. Parsons, KS 67357-2220
Call 620-421-1450 todaayy to schedule your per sonal appointment ment and tourr. Par sonns Presbyterian Manorr’s Post-Acute ost Acute T To o Homee (PATH®) program isn’t juust about getting you home – it’s about getting you baack to your life.
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