Continued on page 2

For Eva Ban, 83, the tender tones of a classical guitar medley brought back memories of her late father.

“He touches my soul whenever I hear a guitar,” says Ban, an American-born pianist and ballet dancer raised in Hungary whose father played the guitar. “I was brought near tears.”

A resident of The Grove at Piedmont Gardens in Oakland, Calif., Ban was one of nearly two dozen people who attended a guitar-making class there on July 26. John Mello, a longtime local guitar maker, led the session.

The hourlong program was part of a quarterly series provided to Grove residents through the Margaret Ferguson Fund for Extraordinary

The Sound and Scent of Music

VOLUME 14 • ISSUE 9 • SEPTEMBER 2012

Page 4 The Munsons enjoy innovation at The Terraces.

Page 5 A couple finds love at Los Altos.

Page 6 ABHOW is awarded for stories.

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories

Grove resident Floria Browning listens to Rogelio Herrera.

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories SEPTEMBER 2012 2

Experiences. The Grove is home for residents affected by dementia and memory loss, and the programs sup-ported by the fund emphasize creative activities that stimulate as many senses as possible. The fund was established in honor of the late Margaret Ferguson, a former Piedmont Gardens resident. Her son, David, is president and CEO of ABHOW.

Practitioners of professions that lend themselves to sensory enrichment are chosen to lead the classes, says Jeremy Townsend, program manager at The Grove. Earlier this year, representatives of The Body Shop taught Grove residents about essential organic oils. Later this year a chocolatier will show residents how chocolate truffles are made by hand.

Mello explained how he builds instruments and showed members of the audience various pieces of wood, mostly spruce, that he uses to make guitars. Mello encouraged residents to touch and sniff the

The Sound and Scent of Music Continued from cover

wood samples, as well as tap the individual guitar parts to hear and feel how they vibrate.

In addition to displaying hand tools, such as a chisel and a palm-sized plane for thinning wood in hard-to-reach spots, Mello showed off his homemade wood-bending machine, which he uses to form thin pieces of wood into smoothly curved guitar sides.

As the program closed, two instruments built by Mello provided more sound stimulation. Fred Boette played a pair of tunes on a nylon-stringed classical guitar, and Rogelio Herrera followed with two more on a steel-string model. The music enveloped Ban and her fellow Grove residents, including Mary Berg.

“It’s wonderful to see something that’s real,” says Berg. “You see wood and how it’s put together — and it becomes a guitar. And to see it used as an instrument and hear the glorious music, you can’t help but be en-tranced by it. I felt chills.”

From left: Instructor John Mello with a classical guitar; Eva Ban, framed by two guitar bodies, relates a story about her father; Grove Program Manager Jeremy Townsend helps resident Sachi Kajiwara.

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories SEPTEMBER 2012 3

Neighbors Helping Neighbors by David B. Ferguson

What does it mean to be a good neighbor? It means watching out for each other.

It means offering a helping hand when someone struggles. It means coming together to meet the needs of the community.

The people of ABHOW have a long legacy of being good neighbors, and nowhere is this more evident than through their support of the ABHOW Foundation. Because of the generous contributions of residents, friends, families and team members, the Foundation helps ABHOW’s continuing care retirement communi-ties (CCRCs) support residents who exhaust their as-sets and provides grants that improve the quality of life in our CCRCs and affordable housing communities.

Although ABHOW assists prospective CCRC resi-dents in determining how their assets will support them over many years, a resident may still outlive those sav-ings or experience an unexpected financial loss. That’s where the Foundation makes a significant impact. Since 1968, the Foundation has supported residents who need financial assistance, providing them with the reas-surance that they will not have to move. This support benefits not only those directly receiving assistance; it helps maintain the stability of the entire community, therefore enhancing the lives of all residents.

Benevolent care gives residents the security and peace of mind of knowing they can remain in the com-munity and continue to enjoy a vibrant life. In 2011, gifts to the Foundation helped it provide $1.2 million in benevolent care. In fact, in the past 15 years, the Foundation has supported our CCRCs with more than $16 million in distributions for benevolent care.

Beyond benevolent care, the Foundation supports a variety of programs that benefit all within our communities, including our affordable housing communi-ties, where grants fund services to residents such as nutritious meals, free health screenings and transportation to doctor visits. The upcoming ABHOW Foundation Golf Classic, on Monday, Sept. 24, is a major fundraising event that has significantly improved the quality of life for all affordable housing residents since the first golf tournament in 1997.

Still, the need for donations continues to rise. As eco-nomic challenges mount, residents require more assistance to make up for losses in savings. Our affordable hous-ing communities, which are built with modest budgets, require additional funding to provide the kind of services and programming that make life better for residents.

Yet even in tough times, there are those whose cir-cumstances allow them to make charitable gifts that benefit others. So we ask everyone in ABHOW to help, and we encourage friends, families and partners to do the same. The Foundation offers a variety of ways to give, in-cluding direct contributions, charitable gift annuities and bequests, auto donations, and Golf Classic sponsorships.

If you have not contributed to the ABHOW Foundation in the past, we ask you to join us. If you are already participating, we thank you and encourage your continued support. Together, we are extending ABHOW’s tradition of neighbors helping neighbors.

David B. Ferguson is president and CEO of ABHOW. Learn more about the ABHOW Foundation and giving options at www.abhow.com/foundation.

Ferguson

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories SEPTEMBER 2012 4

Enjoying the Present With an Eye on the FutureTechnology has

always intrigued John Munson. Originally trained as a chemical engineer, he was employed by Control Data in San Diego for more than 20 years.

Munson also worked for DuPont and attended guided-missile school while serving in the Army.

So imagine his excitement when he found a retire-ment community that was willing to install a charging station for his electric car. That’s just one of the ameni-ties that drew Munson and his wife, Dorothy, both 86, to The Terraces of Los Gatos in Los Gatos, Calif.

“They seemed pretty forward-thinking here and were willing to install a charging station, not just for my use, but for others who might need it,” says John, who bought his long-desired electric car after moving back to San Jose. “That impressed me right away.”

The Munsons moved to The Terraces in March and are pleased with their new home. Dorothy, a retired medical assistant, requires a special diet because of health issues. It can be a challenge to find low-protein vegetarian meals, but they are available at The Terraces.

“The new chef here has been very accommodating,” she says. “They’re making new dishes already and have promised to have at least one vegetarian option on the menu in the coming months.”

John is an avid tennis player and teaches the sport at West Valley College, so an active lifestyle is important to them.

The Munsons have found an accommodating lifestyle at The Terraces of Los Gatos.

“Other communities were alright, if you wanted to go bird-watching,” laughs John. “But here, we’re not only close to our family, we’re close to shopping, and other things are in walking distance. We’re not totally dependent on the activities at the community, al-though those are numerous.”

Dorothy and John have found friendly people at The Terraces, and they have enough space in their apart-ment to enjoy visits from their middle school-aged granddaughter and other guests. The continuing care retirement community includes all areas of service,

including assisted living, should the Munsons need it. “Being able to stay in one place as we age was very at-tractive,” says John.

“It’s a nice community and has everything we need,” says Dorothy. “Obviously, everyone needs to make up their own minds, but I’d say, for us, this is the perfect place.”

WISE MOVE

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories SEPTEMBER 2012 5

Gloria Umayam was not looking for love.

After ending a 25-year marriage a few years ago, the certified nurse assistant wanted to focus on herself and her passion for caring for the residents at The Terraces at Los Altos. Umayam was content with her life.

But Umayam didn’t count on the persistence and kindness of Jeff Krahulec, the lead maintenance technician at the Los Altos, Calif., community.

Krahulec noticed Umayam soon after he began working at The Terraces. He was struck by her beauty as well as her gentle nature as she assisted the resi-dents. Unfortunately for Krahulec, that attraction wasn’t immediately reciprocated.

“She wouldn’t have anything to do with me,” he says, laughing.

Umayam confirms Krahulec’s recollection.

“I had always prayed to God that he would send the right person to me,” she says. “I just didn’t realize that when Jeff approached me for the first time over a year ago, that was who God sent.”

Team Members Find Love at Los AltosUmayam says she eventually realized Krahulec was

a nice, loving man and agreed to meet for a date. He took her to the San Francisco piers, where they spent the next 13 hours getting to know each other.

“It was so great; it just felt right from the begin-ning,” says Krahulec.

Four months later, Krahulec advised Umayam’s family that he would like to ask her for her hand in marriage. Krahulec proposed at the site of their memo-rable first date, and Umayam accepted.

As the couple began making wedding plans, the residents of The Terraces were excited to learn about the de-tails. Initially, Umayam and Krahulec wanted to

marry in Las Vegas, but they soon realized that they wanted to share the special day with the residents.

“First, we wanted to make it simple,” says Umayam. “But I thought about the residents I had been caring for. They are like family to me, like second parents, and I wanted them to be a part of it.”

Krahulec felt the same way.

So on a beautiful day last May, Umayam and Krahulec were married on the campus. The Rev.

The Terraces at Los Altos commemorates the marriage of team members Gloria Umayam and Jeff Krahulec.

Continued on page 6

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories SEPTEMBER 2012 6

ABHOW recently took home three gold, two silver and one bronze at the 21st annual National Mature Media Awards.

The competition is the nation’s largest awards pro-gram that honors the best in marketing, communica-tions, educational materials and programs for adults age 50 and older. ABHOW was recognized for the third consecutive year.

This year, ABHOW won six awards for writing, design and advertising. The company’s gold-winning awards were produced with marketing and commu-nications partners Signal Hill and SB&A. The awards illuminate the impact of resident involvement in ABHOW’s communities.

“ABHOW is proud of its residents and the stories that we can share reflecting their extraordinary lives,” says Kay Kallander, senior vice president for strategic planning.

ABHOW’s gold-winning stories included “Closing the Generation Gap,” a testimony to the profound con-nection between seniors and school children.

ABHOW Recognized for Storytelling

Sloan Bentley, president of Seniority, Inc., ABHOW’s subsidiary sales, marketing and manage-ment consulting business, also won a merit prize for her book, “Believing in Senior Living.”

Allen A. Rasmussen, a resident of The Terraces at San Joaquin Gardens whose story of World War II ser-vice earned a gold award, says the honor is “awesome.”

“I love my country and am happy to have served. I am not a hero, I just did my job,” Rasmussen says.

ABHOW resident Allen A. Rasmussen is proud to share his award-win-ning story of service.

Kristen Will-Pratt, the community chaplain, presided with more than 300 residents in attendance.

“It was all everybody at The Terraces talked about,” Umayam says. “The residents will always be a part of that special day.”

“I’m grateful to be able to have the opportunity to have the wedding here,” Krahulec says. “It put a smile on their faces.”

Love at Los Altos Continued from page 5

The Terraces’ Executive Director Rae Holt says, “From the residents’ perspective, it’s been the highlight of the year. Jeff and Gloria really care about the resi-dents and wanted to share with everyone here.”

Krahulec and Umayam found romance at The Terraces at Los Altos. But they also found themselves surrounded by the love of the residents, who were eager to be a part of this special beginning.

ABHOW WordsSharing Our Stories SEPTEMBER 2012 7

ABHOW, National and State Websites: ABHOW: abhow.com LeadingAge: leadingage.org Leading Age Arizona: agingservicesofaz.orgAging Services of California: aging.orgAging Services of Washington: agingwa.org

“American Baptist Homes of the West, as an expression of Christian mission, seeks to enhance the independence, well-being

and security of older people through the provision of housing, health care and supportive services.”

Published by the Strategic Planning and Communications Department Kay Kallander, Senior Vice President e-mail kkallander@abhow.com

6120 Stoneridge Mall Rd., 3rd Floor, Pleasanton, CA 94588 phone: 1-925-924-7150 toll-free: 1-800-222-2469 fax: 1-925-924-7232

@ABHOW_NewsSign Up for ABHOW E-NEWS

at abhow.com

Friends and families, mark your calendars for the 16th annual ABHOW Foundation Golf Classic at Blackhawk Country Club in Danville, Calif., on Sept. 24!

But you don’t have to wait until then to get involved. The Foundation already offers spon-sorship and donation opportunities to those who want to join in now. Bid on items such as bottles of wine, golf carts, a trip to Hawaii, two autographed footballs and two tickets to the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

Word of the tournament has spread far and wide, and news outlets such as Pleasanton Weekly and San Ramon Express are taking note. Since its inception in 1997, the event has netted more than $1 million to support ABHOW’s current 31 affordable housing communities and future campuses. Proceeds from the tournament go to help pay for amenities that improve the quality of life for residents.

Golfing for the Benefit of Affordable Housing“Every year we think the golf tournament can’t get

bigger or better, and every year we’re pleasantly sur-prised when it does,” says Al Salottolo, event chair and ABHOW Foundation board member.

“We’re especially looking forward to a change of venue to Blackhawk Country Club. We expect our golfers to be excited about this new tournament challenge.”

Blackhawk, the area’s premier golf loca-tion, includes two 18-hole, par-72 courses that feature an elegant background of rolling hills and East Bay vistas.

If golf isn’t your game, spend time at Claremont Club & Spa during the day, then attend Blackhawk Country Club’s evening events that include a cocktail reception, silent and live auctions, dinner and an awards ceremony.

Online registration is now open. To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, contact ABHOW Foundation Secretary Lynette Giannotti at 800-222-2469 (ext. 7152) or email her at LGiannotti@abhow.com.