A Publication of the Mayflower Residents Association. S P R I N G V o l u m e N o. 1 FAMILIAR FACES. Welcome New Residents

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1 S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 A Publication of the Mayflower Residents Association Dorothy Christinson S he is surely the only resident at the Mayflower who has lived in five different apartments, in her 20 years here--- every one of them in Buckley and every one facing east! She is Dorothy Christinson who, one way or another, has seen it all. The assorted moves in Buckley were not S P R I N G V o l u m e N o. 1 FAMILIAR FACES Jeanette Tisdale L iving at The Mayflower has not really changed her much, Jeanette Tisdale says, except in widening her outlook. She has been here -- and liking it -- since And she appreciates the variety of personal contacts that one inevitably makes here. "Now you sit down to eat lunch with people you would (Continued DOROTHY on page 5) (Continued JEANETTE on page 6) Elaine Noe E laine Noe moved to the Mayflower while she was still working as coordinator of volunteer services at the Grinnell Regional Medical Center. And she has never regretted moving here. "Sooner rather than later," she says. "I enjoy the variety of people. I think that's what has made the Mayflower what it is. Here, we can learn from other people in other (Continued ELAINE on page 6) Welcome New Residents JOY WEEKS (Story on page 9) PHYLLIS WOOD (Story on page 8) JOAN BRAND-LANDKAMER and LEO LANDKAMER (Story on page 8) ED and KAREN PHILLIPS (Story on page 6)

2 2 - S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 Modern improvements are but improved means to an unimproved end....we are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing important to communicate. Henry David Thoreau, Walden, Economy. R ecently I ve had the pleasure and profit of participating in two of the many regular collaborations between the Mayflower and Grinnell College: a panel discussion of Professor Karla Erickson s How We Die Now at Burling Library on campus; and a two part exploration here at the Mayflower of place-based education involving small groups of students and Mayflower residents-- arranged by Professor Cora Jakubiak--followed by a reading and a Q&A with local writer Harley Mcllrath whose collection of short stories served as a catalyst for the group sessions. Residents listened to reading by author Harley Mcllrath in Kiesel Theater FROM THE EDITOR While all this was going on, I kept thinking about Thoreau s oft-quoted skepticism about modern improvements. Did a group of folks from the Post World War II Generation (Americans born between 1929 and 1945) and a group of Millenials (Americans born after 1989) have anything important to communicate to each other? They seem as far apart in time as, in 1860, Maine and Texas were in space. The distance between most Mayflower residents and the Grinnell students is a generation gap occupied by three large additional generations: Baby-Boomers I and II and the so-called Generation Xers. Moreover, some of that difference has to do with the technological progeny spawned by Thoreau s telegraph which we now call social media. I wonder what Thoreau or my grandfathers would have to say about texting, tweeting, and friending, let alone telephones that are cameras, photo albums, computers and music sources. What happened to rolodexes, carbon paper, typewriters, picture postcards and Fred Allen and Jack Benny on the radio? While discussing one of his stories, Harley Mcllrath observed that cell (Continued on page 3)

3 S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 3 (Continued from page 2) phones have no sense of place about them. When you call a land line you are calling a place as well as a person. Moreover, he added, if you are familiar with South Central Iowa/Poweshiek County/Grinnell, you have a sense of place that makes you aware, when reading Possum Trot, of what lies outside the margins of the stories. On the same occasion Cora Jakubiak reminded us of Karla Erickson s strong convictions about inter-generational connections. There s no doubt we have lots to learn from today s students. What do they have to learn from us? As one Mayflower resident observed, You don t have an education if it doesn t include what you can learn from older people. I am delighted to report that, from Three of a total of six discussion groups my experience in one of the small groups, and from what I have heard about some of the others, Mayflower residents and Grinnell College students have a great deal to say to each other and enjoy doing so. Let s hope that there will be more opportunities for such conversations to take place. In the meantime, thanks to Cora Jakubiak, Harley Mcllrath and Anne Sunday for making it happen. Harley Henry Postscript on the Post World War II Generation : Consider that Bill Clinton (a baby-boomer) was the first American president since Calvin Coolidge who was not an adult during World War II. The generation, born between the Stockmarket Crash and the end of WWII, did not produce a president and, as a relatively small group, has had much of its life influenced by the Baby Boomers. During the 1950s, this generation was sometimes referred to as the No- Nonsense or Serious generation, and occasionally as the Silent Generation. We remember the Bomb, Ike and Sputnik and made our first big political impact in the election of 1960.

4 4 - S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 I t takes only a few minutes with the new Director of Nursing, Missi Salmon, to sense that she is a good fit for the Mayflower. Hired in February, Missi says she s already very much at home in her Health Center office and pleased to have the opportunity to be a part of such a well-regarded organization. Missi is responsible for supervising the nursing staff in all four areas of Mayflower s healthcare facilities and services. She regards the Mayflower as a good example of continuous care because it has depth and is multi-layered. As she explained, Mayflower has sufficient trained staff to handle a variety of tasks. With a deep and diverse staff, things don't fall through the cracks and staff and residents all know what to expect. Depth and multi-layering are essential for the staffing of three shifts in the Health Center, Beebe, South Village and home services. Missi came to Grinnell with her family in 1996 when her late husband, a physician who died in 2001, worked at Grinnell Regional Medical Center. Subsequently, he joined a local practice and was in charge of a satellite clinic in Tama. The couple had five children who settled quickly into local schools. Today Missi has only one child still at home, a son who is a junior at Grinnell High School. Missi began college as a pre-med student; but after earning a BA in chemistry, she married a medical school A GOOD FIT FOR MAYFLOWER student and began her family. With her husband's death, Missi realized she needed more training to qualify for work that would allow her to support herself and her children. Given her interest in healthcare, particularly in geriatrics, Missi enrolled in nursing school and earned a Licensed Practical Nursing degree in 2006 and a Registered Nursing degree in While she completed these programs, she worked at Grinnell College as a biology laboratory preparation technician, and at several nursing care facilities in Poweshiek County. These experiences fostered her interest in nursing education. She then returned to the college environment and earned Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Nursing and began teaching nursing courses at Iowa Valley Community College. An Iowa Valley colleague told Missi about the open position at Mayflower. Because of the Mayflower's reputation for excellence and its focus on aging in place, she decided to apply. When Bob Mann and Ed Poush offered Missi the position of Director of Nursing, she requested that, in addition, she be able to continue teaching at Iowa Valley. Missi says that teaching allows her to keep her own skills honed as well as her eyes peeled for the most promising students who could be recruited for the Mayflower staff when positions become available. Bob and Ed both saw the advantage of this arrangement, so Missi's current schedule allows her to teach (Continued MISSI on page 5)

5 S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 5 (Continued MISSI from page 4) as well as handle her duties as Director of Nursing. In addition to her education and experience, Missi seems to be personally well-suited to the Mayflower. She's warm, welcoming, calm and very committed to making sure that her staff continues to deserve its reputation for consistently demonstrating best practices and exhibiting high quality in all aspects of nursing at the Mayflower. Alice Breemer (Continued DOROTHY from page 1) planned, she says -- they just happened as changes came along: one apartment was being enlarged, another needed for a special purpose, or some other reason. Now, she has a third floor studio, which she likes enormously. No more moves on tap! Dorothy says, "I wouldn't want to start life over again." When talking about her experiences, however, she isn't dissatisfied. "My Mother always said it's ok to talk about the past but don't stay there." Dorothy, a single woman, has accomplished a great deal. After working for 30 years at Maytag, she continued living in Grinnell with her mother, in the house they had built. She put her name in at the Mayflower quite early, and added to her entry fee gradually. When her mother died, seven years later, she was ready to move here. But Dorothy was not one to sit still. She looked for something to occupy her after retirement, for she was still in her 50s, and she discovered that at the Mayflower there were residents who needed help. She pitched in, cleaning apartments, fetching and carrying, and made herself a second career. In those days, Dorothy says, people were more frugal, more conservative than today's residents. They were more saving, but also more untidy! They really needed the assistance she could provide. Now, there are so many improvements -- dishwashers, automatic doors, modern mechanical helpers, that her kind of help is less needed. She does very little sitting still, however. Her only "official" jobs now, she says, are distributing internal mail, serving as a hostess in the dining room, and assisting with grocery orders from Buckley. If needed, she also helps deliver the grocery orders, and sets up posters in all the buildings. "I just keep going," Dorothy says. And it's a rare day when you won't see her hustling from one building to another with some good deed on her mind. She has two brothers who live in Grinnell, and when you ask about other family members she has to stop and count up. "Nine or 10 nieces and nephews, two great-nieces and two great-nephews and they have children, two great-great nephews." At a family reunion during the Christmas season, 21 family members showed up. The local ones! The founder of the family, Dorothy's father, came to this country from Greece at the age of 14. Wouldn't one vote that a fortunate arrival, for Iowa? Sue Chasins

6 6 - S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 (Continued JEANETTE from page 1) not have visited with before. And I appreciate the opportunity to grow and share with many special people," Jeanette said. "It widens your horizons." A native of northern Iowa, she came to Grinnell after having taught for three years, became a music teacher in the local schools, and never looked back. She also served as accompanist for many local musical productions, directed the bell choir at her church -- Grinnell's first such choir - - and pitched in wherever her expertise was needed. Now, no surprise, she directs the bell choir here, and enjoys many opportunities to join with Mayflower friends in making music. "I enjoy doing things in the community too," she says. Jeanette long ago developed an interest in ethnic music and collected many instruments from Africa and Asia. Except for one attractive stringed instrument from Asia which adorns her living room wall, her collection is now a part of the Grinnell College collection. Clearly, one can say that her presence both at the Mayflower and in Grinnell itself, have widened the appreciation and outlook of a great many of us local folks. Sue Chasins (Continued ELAINE from page 1) walks of life. I find that constant pleasure, acvery stimulating," she said. "And it's what I like most about being here." The early years of her marriage were spent in Amana. The move to Grinnell came when her husband was hired by Maytag and her husband commuted to Newton with long-time resident Art Heimann. It worked splendidly. Elaine has been active in the community throughout her residence in town, and remains so. She appreciates the way "Mayflower has enhanced that sense of community in a very special way. I'm grateful to live in this safe, secure environment," she reports, adding that she believes settling in such an institution is the greatest gift one can give one's children. Another cording to Elaine, is the fact that there is "Always something to do! Socialization is very important as you grow older, and here," she said, "you don't have to sit alone in your apartment." She applauds the variety of activities available, both on campus and in the community, and praises the work of expanding that variety performed by Netia Worley, former coordinator of activities. Elaine has also been particularly impressed with the ease of access to the additional programs and services for independent residents developed over the last two years by Anne Sunday. Sue Chasins Discussion group with Grinnell College students

7 S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 7 WELCOME ED and KAREN PHILLIPS - HTSE 603 High St. E d and Karen Phillips met over 50 years ago at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. Ed had lived all his life before that in the Philadelphia suburbs, and Karen started her early childhood in the Harrisburg area, but moved around the country in her teen years with her family due to her father's job with Chevrolet. Coming back to college in Pennsylvania was like coming home for her. They still have a cabin in the mountains of north central Pennsylvania in Laporte, a town of about 300 (most of whom are residents of the local nursing home!) in a county with only one traffic light. The cabin was the home base every summer for Karen's family for many years through all the family moves. Karen's parents left the cabin to Karen and Ed and it continues to be their sentimental "home base" where they spend summers. Karen and Ed have lived in Grinnell for 39 years, but they continue to spend summers in Laporte. Ed did his advanced degree work at the University of Chicago Divinity School. His degree from Dickinson College was in Latin and English with a minor in Religion. His first job was as Chaplain at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, where he preached in a beautifully restored Christopher Wren chapel from London that was bombed during the second world war and reconstructed on the campus of Westminster as a memorial to Winston Churchill. Ed then applied for a position at Grinnell College and was hired because of his interdisciplinary background in English, Latin, and Religion. Bill and Betty McKibben, now both deceased, and Jerry and Dorrie Lalonde are longtime friends and colleagues in Ed's department. The product of Ed's professional research is one volume of a translation of the collected works of Erasmus. Karen was also an English major at Dickinson College, and she went on to earn advanced degrees in American Studies at the University of Minnesota as well as in Counseling Psychology from the Alfred Adler Institute in Chicago. Her first counseling job was at the Poweshiek County Mental Health Center; subsequently she became the counselor for all three Grinnell elementary schools, a position she held for 25 years. In that capacity she was known as the "I-Care Cat Lady" by many of the young children because of a cat puppet named, of course, I-Care Cat. This cat puppet was a big help in teaching children basic social skills as well as lessons in conflict resolution that were important parts of the Guidance curriculum. Ed's hobby is gardening; at their previous Grinnell home they had a 280 foot deep yard, full of trees, shrubs, and perennials. Karen likes to cook, sew, read, and go out to lunch with her friends. Another interest they share is vocal music; they have sung together in choirs and as a couple for their entire marriage. Janis Peak

8 8 - S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 WELCOME PHYLLIS WOOD - HTSE 526 State St. P hyllis is no stranger to the Mayflower, having lived here last summer. She and Dewayne Hentzel will return to Grinnell in two months or so. Phyllis was born and raised in southwest Iowa where several of her siblings still reside. In 1955, she and her husband, Paul, left the farm with their two young sons and moved to Dallas, Oregon where Paul started an excavating business and Phyllis continued both her education and her teaching carrer. After 32 years in education, Phyllis and her husband retired and became snow birds, finally settling in Yuma, Arizona. There they met Dewayne and Earlene Hentzel. The Hentzels were involved as volunteers at both the Yuma Community Food Bank and Habitat for Humanity and invited the Woods to join them in these activities. Over the years the couples visited each other in their homes in Iowa and Oregon. In the spring of 2012, Paul Woods passed away. Two months later, Dewayne lost his wife Earlene to cancer. Having been friends so many years, Phyllis writes, we supported each other in our losses. Dewayne and I continue to winter in Arizona, visiting family in Oregon and spending the remainder of the summer in Grinnell. The Mayflower Community made such an impression on me last summer that I am looking forward to making it my permanent home. Harley Henry WELCOME JOAN BRAND- LANDKAMER and LEO LANDKAMER L eo was born in Alexandria, Nebraska in Joan was born in Seattle in Leo s love of travel showed itself early. When he was seven, his family moved from Nebraska to Wisconsin. At fourteen, he quit school and hitch-hiked around the United States, missing only Maine and California. At 18, he joined the Army and was stationed for a time in Japan. He then joined the Air Force and worked in electronics at bases in England and Florida. Having obtained his GED, he later went to college and earned degrees in Business and Mathematics. While working with Boeing Aircraft in HTN 702 Broad St Seattle, Leo met and married Joan. In the 1970s, Leo, Joan and their four children served in the Peace Corps in Ethiopia for three years, where they were part of the successful effort to eradicate the disease of smallpox. They then returned to Seattle where Leo went back to work for Boeing. Later, Leo worked for the Bendix Corporation and helped install a new air traffic control system in Saudi Arabia. He also worked in Hawaii, Germany and again in Japan before retiring in Joan was a medical tech in Hematology and worked in hospitals in Seattle and Ethiopia. Joan also has a Masters in (Continued LANDKAMER on page 9)

9 S P R I N G V o lu m e No. 1 9 WELCOME JOY WEEKS - HTN 721 Park St J oy Weeks likes to read, watch TV and walk her two Scottish terriers, Rheyn and Heather, so she loves being within walking distance of downtown from her new Harwich Terrace home. Joy is a Grinnell/Newton native. She graduated from Grinnell High School in 1961 and then got a bachelor's degree in elementary education from William Penn College in Oskaloosa. She taught in Ida Grove for seven years. In 1974, she earned a master's degree from Morningside College. Joy then moved to Marshalltown to be near her parents as well as close to Iowa State University, where she planned to earn a Doctorate in Education. She taught for five years in an open-space classroom in Marshalltown as a unit leader. Many years ago, while in the process of searching for a car in Grinnell, Jim Pascal and Roger Zimmerman just happened to send Bill Weeks in to talk to Joy at Pascal Motors. Bill had been the principal when Joy was in junior high school. In time, Joy and Bill were married on Valentine's Day in Waterloo by friend and Methodist Pastor Dr. John Delong. They were married for 38 years. Bill had four sons and he and Joy had a daughter, Katie, who lives with her family in Ballwin, Missouri and has two sons. She and Bill traveled a lot, 13 times to Hawaii and many times to the Palm Springs, California area; Joy loved the water and Bill loved the golf in both places. Bill died in 2012 after four years of declining health. "He was a wonderful guy. He cared about his community and about education and he cared about his family," says Joy. Janis Peak (Continued LANDKAMER from page 8) Pastoral Ministry. While in Ethiopia Joan learned about "writing icons and had training from a Byzantine priest in Paris and several teachers in Germany and the U.S. Writing icons is Joan's favorite avocation, though reading is also an important part of her life. Writing icons is also an important tool in educating people about their relationship to God. The process involves intricate painting accompanied by prayer and meditation. They have enjoyed life and are feeling very much at home here in their Harwich Terrace home to which they are adding a deck on the northwest corner of the house, a north view for Joan and a west view for Leo. They have two lovely cats, Goldie and Jennie. Janis Peak

10 10 - S P R I N G V o lu m e No. PREVIEW OF COMING ATTRACTIONS; Watertower Square T he Mayflower never seems to rest rest of Mayflower's campus. Once the new on its laurels when it comes to building is completed, the city plans to rescape Broad, repaving it from Fourth to well---just about everything. For some time now, we've been aware that the First avenues---which will alleviate the Mayflower had plans for developing the half flooding of the east and west gullies of block of land that lies on the west side of Broad caused by winter thaws and rain Broad Street across from the Mayflower storms---and upgrading underground sewer campus, probably the only contiguous and other utility connections that serve the property currently available for Mayflower development. In 2005, Mayflower's Board of Directors ordered a marketing research study to determine the feasibility of developing this property. The study indicated a significant need for upscale apartments and Harwich Terrace-style housing for retirees in Grinnell and surrounding communities. In 2009, the Mayflower had an opportunity to acquire the vacant half block and the Mayflower's Board, along with six partners, purchased the land. The marketing research study was then expanded to what has become the now familiar Watertower Square project which would have 26 living units and an underground garage and storage area. Fortunately, Grinnell has a forwardthinking city government that recognizes and supports projects like Watertower Square. At Mayflower's request, city engineers studied the possibility of constructing a tunnel under Broad Street to connect the new apartment complex to the Because the Board requires firm resident commitments for 20 of the 26 planned living units before breaking ground for the new building, the Mayflower needs to show potential residents a finished model of the kind of apartments planned for Watertower Square. The opportunity to construct such a model came when Kathryn Louden moved to Beebe from her apartment on Pearson's second floor last spring. Jack Morrison and his talented crew began remodeling the Pearson space in October 2013, using styles that are now considered architecturally most desirable in living units. For example, there is dedicated office space set away from living and sleeping areas to optimize privacy and quiet, and an open space that includes living room, dining room and kitchen areas rather than having each of these areas separated by walls and doors. The visual effect is one of greater space and easier mobility. The living room area is centered around a built-in electric fireplace. But gas fireplaces will be a standard feature of the new living units. The dining room island, with handy storage areas in its base, visually divides the kitchen from the living room area. The kitchen's attractive woodfinish cupboards are hung in a staggered pattern giving the appearance of greater height to the room. A spacious walk-in closet and storage area eliminates the need (Continued WATERTOWER on page 11)

11 S P R I N G V o lu m e No ANNUAL MRA TOWN MEETING - Carman Center, January 29, 2014 W ith 62 residents and three staff actions included: present, outgoing President Sue Motion from the Mini Gift Shop Ahrens called the meeting to order and Committee to distribute the record installed the new officers and chairs of the proceeds for 2013 as follows: committees. President-elect Shane Estes then took the chair as Presiding Officer, having been presented with a commemorative gavel hand-made by Art Heimann. Treasurer Bob Anderson reported a balance of $10, as of December 31, 2013 which reflected expenditures for the year of $6, and income of $8,558 from the annual fund drive in May and $171 in special gifts. Later in the meeting the budget for 2014, totaling $8,645, was approved. In addition to the printed Annual Reports for 2013 distributed at the meeting, other Annette Marie Barton Donna Mae Grovenburg Barbara O Neill Sutton Reynolds Earnest Ernie Marriner Eleanor Lucille Wozny Dr. Ruth C. Webb David Henry Hamilton Robert L. Bob VanderShel James K. Sunday Dorothy R. Meussling WE REMEMBER IN 2013 Marie Elizabeth Fogel Lloyd Keith Grovenburg Margaret B. Marge Krohn Raymond J. Ray Obermiller Kay Shallau Walker Ruth Fortson Anderson Bernice Rita Shanklin Douglas D. Black Joan M. Chedester Margaret M. Plagmann $5,200 to the Human Needs Fund; $4,500 for the Nu-Step Fund; $600 for new shopping carts to be provided in the foyer of Pearson Hall, and $200 for the Green Fund program to provide recyclable containers for Food Service carryout meals. Motion made by Selva Lehman to approve half of the estimated cost of $1,060, for a new Residents Photo Directory. The remainder of the cost to be paid by Mayflower. The Memorial Committee reported that the names of thirty-one deceased residents were recorded in the Book of Remembrance. Earl Dean Blair Edgar Clark Anderson Esther Verona Steinert James E. Reynolds Mary Frances Dean Alice I. Renaud Mildred Leona Millie Schild Glenn Ray Stevenson Donald Milton Rempp Ruth B. Miller Gerald A. Arment (Continued from page 10) to store things outside the apartment, and a laundry room with stacked appliances and a half bath provides added convenience. Updated finishing materials for a variety of surfaces is another important component of modern living spaces. The model apartment features polished granite counters and ceramic tile floors in the bathroom and kitchen, stainless-steel kitchen appliances and window dressings that provide lots of light but minimize glare. Taken altogether, this contemporary layout and use of materials are the features that will attract new residents to Mayflower. (Continued on page 12)

12 12 - S P R I N G V o lu m e No. (Continued WATERTOWER from page 11) The tasteful furnishings for the model apartment in Pearson were selected by decorator Christine Pletcher, who will be meeting with each new homeowner in Watertower Square to assist with selection of flooring, cabinets, counter tops, wall and flooring types and colors. Christine has provided home and business expertise for area homeowners for 15 years. Alice Breemer Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Grinnell, IA Permit No. 130 Robert G. Mann, Executive Director 616 Broad St., Grinnell, Iowa (641)