By David Lawrenz
The Fellowship of Brethren Homes met for an annual forum at Bridgewater (Va.) Retirement Community on Aug. 14-16. The forum offers the opportunity for like-minded friends and colleagues from Church of the Brethren-affiliated senior living communities to gather for fellowship, education, and peer-to-peer sharing.
Attending were representatives of Hillcrest in California; the Cedars in Kansas; Spurgeon Manor in Iowa; Timbercrest in Indiana; Good Shepherd Home, Brethren Retirement Community, and West View Healthy Living in Ohio; Londonderry Village and the Peter Becker Community in Pennsylvania; Fahrney Keedy in Maryland; and Bridgewater Retirement Community in Virginia.
The keynote presentation was a panel discussion covering current issues and challenges as well as insights and perspectives about the future. The expert panel comprised nationally recognized leaders in senior living and longterm care, all from nearby Washington, D.C. Included were Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO of LeadingAge, the national community of not-for-profit aging services providers; Anne Tumlinson, founder and CEO of ATI Advisory, a national research and consulting firm; and Cynthia Morton, executive vice-president of ADVION, a non-profit advocacy group representing providers of ancillary services and products to the longterm care and senior care markets. The discussion was moderated by Kimberly Marselas, senior editor of McKnights Long-Term Care News, a nationally circulated digital and print magazine focused on senior living, longterm care, and aging issues.
The group also heard from Michelle Kilbourne, vice president of Internal Capabilities and Vitality at Eder Financial; and from Maureen Cahill, CEO and administrator at Spurgeon Manor, in Dallas Center, Iowa, who shared insights and experiences related to EOS, the Entrepreneurial Operating System. A “Brethren Connections” presentation was provided by Nathan Hosler and Cornelius Raff from the Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy, and Jennifer Hosler, manager of the denomination’s Global Food Initiative.
The group appreciated the welcoming hospitality of the staff and residents of the Bridgewater Retirement Community. Eder Financial, Resource Partners, and Ascension Capital Enterprises provided financial assistance to help underwrite the cost of the event.
–– David Lawrenz is executive director of the Fellowship of Brethren Homes. Find out more at www.brethren.org/dlf/homes.
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