Blog - Ardenwoods Independent Living Community

Ardenwoods Celebrates Nonagenarians

The decade of the 1930s brought historic change and incredible inventions to the world. Scotch tape and the ballpoint pen were invented along with the electric razor, photocopier, and nylon. The Wizard of Oz and Superman premiered to American audiences, while WWII began in Europe. The 1930s also saw the birth of nineteen of Ardenwoods’ residents.

Ardenwoods residents enjoy the annual nonagenarian luncheon.

On November 9, Ardenwoods celebrated nonagenarians — residents in their 90s — with a special annual luncheon. Attendees included two married couples, three “first timers” to the group, and one centenarian as an honorary guest.

This annual luncheon is a much anticipated and beloved event for Ardenwoods residents. “This is my favorite event of the year!”, announced one resident on her way to the dining room. The Ardenwoods’ Leadership Team served the elegant luncheon in honor of this special segment of the Ardenwoods community.

Ardenwoods honored 19 nonagenarian residents.

This year’s theme was Life is a journey. You hold the key. Guests were given a small skeleton key keepsake with the luncheon’s theme included. Tables were set with fresh flowers, special service ware was employed, and well-known songs were performed by a duet featuring Bill Ross on trumpet and Kevin Bryant on Piano.

The luncheon also included a reunion of sorts, where Lil Sherril and Grady Broadwell reminisced about being classmates in nursing school. “Lil and I spent those four years together at Rex Hospital School of Nursing in Raleigh — graduating together with about 22 other classmates in 1950”, said Broadwell. After nursing school their lives and careers took different paths: Broadwell loved teaching at Sampson Community College in Clinton, NC, and Sherril worked in the operating room at the Veterans Administration.

Ardenwoods Staff Spotlight: Christy Hull

Christy Hull fell in love with Ardenwoods the moment she arrived on campus. Arriving to work each day surrounded by 48 acres of lush woodlands, overlooking sweeping mountain views, the new human resources director calls her job “a dream.”

Christy Hull, Human Resources Director

“I’m serious!” Hull reiterated, laughing. “I’m a sap when it comes to this. I had no idea I was going to like working here so much, but I fell in love with everything from the start — with the residents, the other employees, my boss, the beautiful mountain location. It’s the honest truth.”

Though Hull is new to her role as the head of HR, she’s not new to Ardenwoods entirely. After moving to the area from Atlanta, she worked as a staffing coordinator for the community’s home healthcare vendor, working on campus to help facilitate any care that residents may need.

More than four years later, when the HR position at Ardenwoods opened up, Hull jumped at the chance to officially join the team.

“It’s exciting for me, because I get to do orientations for all the new employees — and I also get to see them on the job and check in on a regular basis,” she explained. “I like having those connections with people and to see them helping others, and to be able to help myself too.”

Since starting her new role on Aug. 15, Hull said she’s learned so much, both about the job and about the community, and she’s excited to continue learning more each day.

“I’m settling in now, and I have a great team around me who are so helpful,” she said. “There’s a really good support system at Ardenwoods, and I’m incredibly happy to be here.”

In addition to working alongside the rest of the staff, “what I love about this job is seeing the residents in a different capacity than before,” Hull continued. “I even get to help out with events — like [in October], we [had] a murder mystery party, and we all [helped] out in some capacity. Everyone gets to have fun with the activities, even if it’s not part of our official job descriptions. I love being around the residents as much as I can.”

When asked if she hopes to live at Ardenwoods one day in the future, Hull gave an enthusiastic “absolutely!”

“Honestly, it’s kind of a joke we have around here,” she continued. “We’re always asking [Executive Director] Pam Pate: ‘When can we put our names on the list?’”

In her spare time, Hull enjoys theater, film and music — her favorite movie is 1967’s “The Graduate.” She has a psychology degree from Wofford College and a 21-year-old son in Georgia, who is now in college himself.

If you see Christy on your next walk around Ardenwoods, don’t hesitate to say hello!

Active Aging Week: Showcasing the positive process of aging

Ardenwoods celebrated Active Aging Week, October 3-9 by showcasing the positive process of aging. Residents participated in activities like water volleyball, finger looping, storytelling, and a Baker’s Showcase among other fun and engaging events.

Active Aging Week started in 2003 by the International Council on Active Aging® to celebrate the contributions of older adults in society, and promote the benefits of a more active lifestyle as people age. This year’s celebration focuses on wellness and promoting activities that help generate a sense of well-being for whole-person health.

Melanie and Jimmy Hensley with their dog Sasha

Melanie and Jimmy Hensley joined in a pet blessing ceremony with their dog, Sasha. Pet blessing coincides with the traditional Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi and promotes the blessing of pets and animals.

Anna Echter tried her hand at finger looping. Similar to knitting or crochet, finger looping uses a special type of yarn that allows crafters to create knitted-type items without using traditional knitting needles or hooks. “I love finger looping,” said Echter. “It’s an easy and fun activity, and lets me talk with my friends while we knit”.

Anna Echter shows off her finger looping handiwork.

Water volleyball was also a big hit with the residents. “Not only is water volleyball a great way to get some exercise, but offers lessons in teambuilding and problem solving”, said instructor Liz Ridley. Water volleyball is a great low-impact exercise, and a way to foster some pleasant competition among friends.

Water Volleyball. From left to right: Debbie Lee, Kathie Neiley, Janet Mitchell, Joy Clark, and instructor, Liz Ridley

While Ardenwoods promotes the concept of active aging all year long, Active Aging Week is a great time for residents to try new opportunities, exercises, and pastimes. Kari Schrader, Ardenwoods’ Community Life Services Director, encourages residents to learn more about the opportunities available to stay active and engaged with the community.

Know Your Numbers: National Health Literacy Month

We all know the important role that eating right, exercising, and controlling stress can play in elevating our overall health. But did you know that understanding one’s own health information can play just as big a role as diet and exercise?

Swimming is a great way to stay healthy.

October is National Health Literacy Month. Started in 1999 as a way to increase an individual’s understanding of personal healthcare information associated with diagnosis and treatment of illness. Studies consistently show that a significant number of people have problems reading, understanding, and acting on health information about their physical ailments, and health literacy month is aimed at changing that fact.

Health Literacy Month seeks to improve a person’s overall understanding of their diagnosis and the associated services needed to make care decisions. There are two categories of healthcare literacy of which individuals and organizations should be aware.

Personal health literacy: The degree to which individuals have the ability to find, understand, and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions for themselves and others.
Organizational health literacy: The degree to which organizations equitably enable individuals to find, understand, and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions for themselves and others.

Low health literacy tends to be more prevalent among older adults and children, but also affects minority populations, individuals who have lower socioeconomic status, and medically underserved populations.

At Ardenwoods we recognize the importance of making informed decisions about health and specifically about chronic diseases. We urge residents to speak with their medical professional if there are questions regarding a diagnosis, test results, or treatment plans. People who do not understand their disease or chronic illness sometimes resist treatments or skip medications. As a result, their condition exacerbates, treatments may be less effective, and outcomes worsen.

We urge individuals to “know their numbers”, particularly those numbers dealing with one’s blood pressure, BMI (body mass index), cholesterol, and blood glucose. These numbers can have a significant impact on overall health of individuals and can help with the early detection of other chronic diseases.

Ardenwoods strives to help our residents stay healthy and active. We have a staff Wellness Director and offer a monthly Health Talk program aimed at providing our residents with information on leading more healthy lives through fitness classes, providing nutritional information, and seminars to discuss what makes life meaningful.

Fun Fall Faves

September 22 marks the Autumnal Equinox and the first official day of fall. Temperatures in western North Carolina begin to drop, and the trees begin their brilliant transformation covering the whole region in a blanket of yellow, orange, and red. It’s a magical time in the mountains and a great time to get out and explore the area. We’ve put together a short list of favorite activities in and around WNC. Plus, most of these activities can be enjoyed whether you are an avid outdoor enthusiast and hiker, or are dealing with personal mobility challenges.

Here are some of our fall faves:

Enjoy a colorful drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway. With plenty of beautiful vistas and overlooks, the parkway is a great way to enjoy the splendor of fall, even if you don’t want to get out of the car to do it.

Take an afternoon stroll around the 42-acre WNC Nature Center, and see some really adorable animals along the way.

Get your waterfall fix without long arduous hikes. Area photographer Kevin Adams has put together some great suggestions 100 Disabled Access NC Waterfalls.

Scratch your artistic or historical itch with a visit to some of the great museums WNC has to offer, like the Antique Car Museum, the Asheville Pinball Museum, and the Museum of Science.

Explore the NC countryside in a Defender

Go off the beaten path with Land Rover Experience or Asheville Jeep Tours. Experience fall in the mountains with an off-road driving experience.

Catch of the day: Land the big one at some of the area’s best handicap-accessible fishing piers.

Forage for your supper with No Taste Like Home. Learn to identify wild edible plants on these no-strenuous hiking tours.