October 2014Volume 21 Number 8

Residents, Associates, Families & Friends www.asburymethodistvillage.org

A NEWSPAPER FOR ASBURY METHODIST VILLAGE

Asbury Brings Home the Gold and Silver By Marilyn Gaut, Trott

On a beautiful Wednesday in September, 13 Bocce play-ers and some cheerleaders

took an Asbury bus to Little Italy in Baltimore to take part in the Mary-land Senior Olympics. While our Bocce competition was challenging, the ride there was the toughest. We left at 7:45 a.m. and with the traf-fic that time of day we were very happy to have a GREAT bus driver to handle that.

Asbury’s Dave Crum and Jim Kline were silver medalists in the Doubles competition. In Singles, Jerry Han-son won gold in the Men’s 70 to 79 age group. In the 80 to 84 group, Hal Gaut took gold and Larry deLor-imier, silver. Dave Crum won gold in the 85 to 89 group and John Fenton, the silver. Carmine Castellano took gold in the 90 to 94 category.

Marilyn Gaut won a gold medal in the Women’s category.

The crew from Baltimore did the refereeing, measuring, and record keeping, so “there were no argu-

ments”. They also brought in lots of pizza and water to sustain us. All in all it was a great day with much laughter when the Bocce balls seemed to do their own thing.

RESIDENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE:

AMV and Holy Cross Hospital Medical Services at AMV

By Judy Bankson, Villa

Along with the new medi-cal services coming to our Asbury campus

comes a new Asbury committee which hopes to serve as advi-sor, partner, communicator and oversight between AMV and Holy Cross Hospital Medical Ser-vices at AMV. The idea of estab-lishing the committee emerged from the resident group which developed the Request for Pro-posal, evaluations and interview process which resulted in select-ing Holy Cross Hospital as our new Medical Services partner.

Unlike our former situation which was one of simply a pri-vate practice leasing space on our Campus with little to no input from AMV, HCH and AMV will work hard to be partners and to fine tune as we go. Both entities are excited about this new model of bringing health care to AMV residents. There will be coordination with the well- developed AMV Wellness program, and other Asbury pro-grams as appropriate.

The group was held small to help assure that results will be speedy and clear. Members from AMV are Henry Moehring, Brad Andrus, Lee Bachrach PhD, Caro-lyn Bondy MD, Jack Hutchings MD, Bob Hartman MD, and Judy Bankson MSW. The AMV group has met once. The joint AMV-HCH group will meet for the first time October 6 for an infor-mal lunch and get acquainted time. The plan then is to meet monthly.

Any questions, concerns, ideas, reminders about Campus Health Services can be directed to any-one in this group for attention. More information will be avail-able as services develop.

Spontaneous Combustion!By Phyllis W. Zeno,

Wallace

Be advised! With-out any particu-lar notice or

warning, a spontane-ous group of Diamond residents will suddenly burst into song in the living room of their building on the Asbury campus every after-noon around mail time.

Led by ukulele- play-ing Jane Coughlin and guitar-strumming Jan Forbes, the unscheduled gathering of music-lov-ers vocalize their way through old favorites such as “Down in the Valley,” or “Goodnight, Irene.” Nim-ble-footed John Fenton often per-forms a hula or an Irish jig to the lively music.

Highlight of the gathering is the

personal mail delivery by Paul Bow-man, everybody’s favorite mailman from Mt. Airy, who elects to spend his 20-minute break singing along

with his postal fans.“The beauty of the

spontaneous sing-along,” says Jane Coughlin, whose uke playing stems from her mother, who started her on her path to Dia-mond stardom, “is that it gets people out of their apartments who don’t normally attend campus functions. Their aides know that we’ll be waiting for them every weekday from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.”

This is one blaze we don’t want to put out. Get “fired up” and join the group!

Editor’s Note: This article is reprinted with permission from the October 2014 issue of The Breeze.

The Winning Team

Photo: Phyllis Zeno

Jane Coughlin strums the ukulele and Jan Forbes plays guitar while everybody’s favorite mailman Paul Bowman

joins in the singing fun.

2 October 2014 Village life

VILLAGELIFE

Asbury Methodist Village201 Russell Avenue

Gaithersburg, MD 20877laber@asbury.org

General information: 301-330-3000Website: www.asburymethodistvillage.org

Village Life brought to you in part by

EditorLinda Williams Aber

Director of Communications301-216-4106

laber@asbury.org

Resident EditorsAnne Porter, MundMarilyn Gaut, Trott

Mac McCullough, DiamondMercer Cross, Wallace

Joan Dunlop, Edwards-FisherAl Tholen, Park View

Maria E. Roberts, Courtyard Homes Bill Brown, Villas

Theresa Porter, Kindley

Resident StaffCourtyard Homes: Peter Cascio

Diamond: Mac McCullough, Jan Garman and Hal Garman

Edwards-Fisher: Dorothy Harris, Luella LeVee, Trudy Meissner and

October hugs to Betty Goen!

Mund: Gil Snyder, Jack Brinley, Anne Porter and Bob Tedesco

Park View: Duane McKenna, Anita Taylor and John Eberhard

Trott: Bettie Donley, Copy Editor; Jeanne North, Hal Gaut,

Joan Brubaker, Becky Ratliff, Jack Hutchings, Lois Lord

and Dr. Bob Hartman

Villas: Carol Dennis, Dan Muller, Jean Hubbell, Marolyn Hatch,

Jay Hatch, and Bill Brown.

Wallace: Keith Steele, Mercer Cross, and Phyllis W. Zeno

Design/Layout:Mina Rempe @ Electronic Ink

Printing: Chesapeake Publishing Corp..

Village Life is published by Asbury Methodist Village

Communications Department

“The mission of Village Life is to provide timely, interesting and entertaining news about the lives, concerns and activities of the peo-ple who reside, work and volunteer at Asbury Methodist Village.”

Letter to the EditorYour reporter’s article on exercise was very stimulat-

ing. While reading it, sitting in my goose-necked rocker, I even considered inquiring about a class. At present my only exercise is running off at the mouth and jumping to conclusions. That girl has a future in journalism!

Sincerely, Mary Lou LuffEditor’s Note: “That girl” is Phyllis W. Zeno who wrote

Z-Notes “The Initial Benefits of Exercise Classes” in the September 2014 issue of Village Life.

Beware of Larceny by Trick!By Phyllis W. Zeno, Wallace

“Ididn’t bring my wallet with me...could you lend me ten dollars?” asked my

guest at the church lecture at the new Gaithersburg Public Library.

Never questioning, I dug for $10 in my purse and handed it to my friend at the end of the lecture as church members lingered to exchange greetings.

As the group disbursed, my friend explained to me, “One of the guests asked for a loan because her truck had run out of gas.”

He gave it to her and out she ran! Uh-oh...the “larceny by trick” had struck again! Where is there an easi-er touch than a gathering of church members in a public facility where everyone is welcome...even petty crooks.

My friend had the perfect excuse ...he had left his wallet at home. But being motivated by kindness, he was quick to answer the plea for help.

Warning: Don’t be fooled by small time thieves in public gatherings! Just say, “Sorry! I don’t have any money with me,” and report the per-son to security if you are in a public gathering place.

Diamond Welcomes New ResidentsBy Mac McCullough, Diamond

An Ice Cream Social was held in the Hefner Audi-torium on August 3 to

welcome Diamond’s 34 new residents and to honor its 17 “originals.” A crowd of 143 gathered in Hefner to eat ice cream, listen to new residents introduce themselves and say where they were from, and to give a round of applause to those who have lived in Diamond since it opened

23 years ago.This year’s Ice Cream Social

was the most successful ever. Approximately 64% of all of the building’s residents attended. Credit goes to Co-Chairs Fred and Peggy Heckinger and Beryl and Abe Miller and all their will-ing helpers.

Pictured are the “scoopers” dishing out ice cream wearing their chef hats (loaned to Dia-mond by Edwards-Fisher). No one went away without at least one dish of ice cream.

Open Arms and a Big HeartBy Trudy Meissner,

Edwards-Fisher

We congratulate and applaud Rev-erend Anne Elles-

tad and Reverend Dr. Gerard “Gerry” Green, who have assumed their new roles in the Asbury Pastoral Care department. Anne, formerly the Staff Pastor for Kind-ley Assisted Living, is now Asbury Methodist Village Director of Pastoral Care and Counseling. Gerry, who currently serves as the staff pastor for Residential Living, will also direct the intern-ship program with Loyola University.

After an interesting and pleasant hour spent with the two of them, it appears that we in Residential Liv-

ing are doubly blessed. Not only are the two of them most ably quali-fied as to their educational back-grounds, but they also share a com-

mon vision—to create and maintain an atmo-sphere of trust in which residents can feel safe to “be themselves,” to share more freely their joys and concerns.

When Anne was asked what short phrase she would use to describe her ministry skills, she replied, “Wide, long, open arms,” suggesting accep-tance, inclusiveness, embracing openness, and comforting empathy. Ger-ry’s response to the same question was, “Big ears,” which translates to empa-

thetic listening skills connected to a big heart. With a team like this, we can look forward to a long tenure of nurturing service.

Photo Credit: Hal Gaut

Anne Ellestad & Reverend Dr. Gerard Green

Photo: Mac McCullough

Village life October 2014 3

The Beloved Community Goes to the National Book FestivalBy Jan Garman, Diamond

“Today a reader, tomorrow a leader”This quotation by nine-

teenth century journalist Margaret Fuller graced the bright green tee shirts of the 47 people who journeyed to the National Book Festival with the Beloved Commu-nity Initiative (BCI) on August 30th. That quotation captures the philosophy of Principal Stephanie Brant and the faculty of Gaithersburg Elementary School, who are passionate about reading, which is why when Stephanie was approached by Hal Garman of the BCI, she signed on enthusiastically. Also enthusiastic were Eric Anderson of Asbury Communities (AComm) and Carolyn Comacho of Iden-tity. Together, the four of them got to work.

Stephanie signed up 19 fourth and fifth grad-ers, whose parents dropped them off at 8:15 on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend, as well as the services of the school’s librarian, Jennifer Nicholson, who accompanied her and the stu-dents. Eric procured lunches, snacks, the green

tee shirts, and age-appropriate copies of a book by Congressman John Lewis, who was present-ing at the festival. He also procured the services of two fellow AComm associates, Cathy Canning and Tara McDaniel, who is a former staffer of Congressman Lewis and who arranged for the students to meet the Congressman and have their picture taken with him. Eric’s two daugh-ters, Elizabeth and Molly, also joined the group.

Carolyn agreed to accompany the group and found eight high schoolers and Juan Toscano, another staffer from Identity, to help out with the younger students. She also procured Iden-tity’s new big blue bus and its driver, Roman, who transported part of the group to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in downtown DC, the site of this year’s festival. Hal in turn was able to recruit the following Asbury residents, along with himself, to accompany the students on the big day: Jean and Mercer Cross, Mary Jean Davidge, Jan Garman, Marilyn Gaut, Janis Rex,

Anneke Sengers, John Travis and Peg Vert and the BCI’s Wesley Seminary intern, Ashley Lawter. The rest of the group traveled in an Asbury bus where lunches were kept safe in coolers for a picnic in the park at Mount Vernon Square.

Congressmen have hectic schedules and the first planned photo op did not materialize, but the students took it in stride, sitting on the floor and reading their new books, March, Book One, a graphic account of Lewis’ lifetime devot-ed to the struggle for equal rights for all peoples, regardless of race, gender, class “and every other distinction that tends to separate us as human beings rather bring us together,” as he wrote in the introduction to his adult book Walking with the Wind. He went on later to

identify that concept which has guided his life “as a beacon” as “the Beloved Community.” Does that have a familiar sound to it? After lunch the group was able to sit on the floor of a packed house to hear the Congressman and his co-author of March, Book One, Andrew Aydin, give their book talk. Immediately following their presentation, the photo op with both authors finally took place. After that most of the group stood in long, long, long lines for their books to be signed. “Keep the faith,” wrote the Congress-man who took the time to shake hands and greet each person who came through the lines.

Each of the small groups of adults, students and high school helpers were free to participate in different activities and book talks. The next day, the Washington Post characterized the youth section of the festival as being “mobbed” and that it was! The day required a lot of patience but it was a day that the participants will never forget.

Photo: Hal Garman

Have Wheels, Will TravelBy Jeanne North, Trott

Who says you can’t travel if you can’t walk well? It’s true, walking well makes

life infinitely easier. In fact, walking well is one of my supreme ambi-tions. But until I get there, wheels help.

Anticipating a trip in September with family kayak enthusiasts to the 2014 World Championship Kayak/Canoe Slalom race near Deep Creek, MD, and wanting to step up from my trusty walker to a wheelchair for that venture, I checked in with Al Benson of the Bargain Mart to see if any wheelchairs were available for sale. A few weeks later I got the call: we have one, said Al. After a test drive, my son Randy pronounced the vehicle sound and a good buy, and that same day it was mine.

Then came the real test: a drive

over the 3-inch rocks of the parking lot of the man-made Deep Creek race course. How to describe that? A teeth-chat-tering, bone-crunching, body-shaking experience to the point that I finally just got up and pushed the dratted thing. After all, everyone has to get to a Porta Potty at some time, even if there are rocks on the road. But Winnie the Wheel-chair got me there, and back to the course in time to see Olympic Medalist Jessica Fox of Australia paddle skillfully towards the finish line in pur-suit of another championship.

Wheels also came in handy this past weekend on a trip to Florida to see my other son, Steve: Wheelchair waiting at the USAirways podium in

Washington as well as in the arriv-al city, West Palm Beach; a rented wheelchair carried me like royal-ty down the Lake Worth pier (lots of fishermen hard at work), to the rock-&-roll concert in the joyful CityPlace where in the shadow of the Casino building (no gambling) that doubles as a church now and then, performers entertained Sat-urday night (dads dancing while cradling their 2-year-olds, moms cavorting with their toddlers, teens kicking and shaking in a conga line, all to a rollicking rock-&-roll beat), and to the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, further south, in Delray Beach.

Moral of the story: don’t be shy. If you want to travel and can’t walk too well, you can still go. Just find a wheelchair and do it.

Jeanne North rolls and rocks at a CityPlace concert!

Photo: Hal Garman

4 October 2014 Village life

By Luella Nash LeVee, Edwards-Fisher

Grandchildren and great grandchildren are a bless-ing and I wish all of mine

were nearby – close enough to hug often. They were a sudden blessing nine years ago when my son mar-ried a beautiful woman with five adult children and five (now seven) grandchildren. I hadn’t any practice in my new role, but I relished trying.

Good advice came from TV preacher Robert Schuller, who rec-ommended keeping children and grandchildren entertained by telling them stories – stories from one’s childhood or Bible stories. (Hint: tell stories and try to look wise.)

Another idea has panned out well for Dan Muller, Villas, who enjoys taking the children in his fam-ily swimming in the Asbury pool at Rosborough. “I used to do the same thing when we had a pool at our home in Comus,” Dan said. “A pool is a wonderful family entertainment thing. I remember years ago when I was a boy and we visited Grandma; I was woefully bored. We don’t want that.”

Bobbie Carr, Diamond, was quite busy when her grandchildren were younger. She supported them enthusiastically by attending their games when they played on their school teams. Now she babysits their children.

Bobbie advises people without their own grandchildren to join the volunteers in the Beloved Commu-nity. “That gives Asbury residents a chance to mentor children from the

community,” she explained. “I have a darling little girl I see twice a month for games, dining at Crawford, and reading and discussing books.” (For details, phone the Rev. Hal Gar-man, Diamond, x6436.)

Kathleen Daniels, Mund hair-stylist , commented that she doesn’t have grandchildren yet “but, if I did, I would teach them to cook. It was a lot of fun for my son and me when we would cook or bake together. There are many good cookbooks for children out there.” (A great Christ-mas gift idea, isn’t it!)

I was surprised to learn that Ralph and Ruth Spoor, Edwards-Fisher, were back from summer travels with their Airstream trailer, just landing in Asbury long enough to rest and revive old friendships before taking off for points South in December.

Running into Ralph in our lobby, I asked him “How do you entertain your grandchildren? The ever-smil-ing Ralph didn’t hesitate a moment, but shot back with “E-mail, texts, Facebook, and I’m about to start with Skype. I’m learning a lot, spurred on

by the knowledge that it’s important --communicating with them on their own ground.” (A savvy grandpa!)

One person already using Skype is Lee Harvey, Edwards-Fisher. “ I recommend it highly,” she said. “My grandchildren are grown up now but Skype enables me to keep in touch ‘up close and personal’ on my own computer screen. My grand-son, who has just moved to New York, took me on a tour of his new apartment with the aid of Skype.”

Betty and Ralph Wilbur, Edwards-Fisher, delight in play-ing games with their grandchildren. “They especially like Scattergo-ries and have a lot of fun batting a stuffed angry bird around the apart-ment,” Betty said. She emphasized that Ralph doesn’t let his blindness interfere with enjoying visits from the grandchildren. They have a nine-year-old in Costa Rica, a Marine in California and two more local –a senior at Salisbury and a freshman at Montgomery College.

We couldn’t pass up the opportu-nity to ask for tips from renowned children’s author Phyllis Naylor,

Trott, and she didn’t disappoint us:“When my grandchildren visit

me,” she confided, “They can count on a treasure hunt and a spooky ver-sion of hide-and-seek.

“To start the treasure hunt, I give them a card that tells them the first place to look, like ‘Look in the bath-tub.’ There, they find a card direct-ing them perhaps to the refrigera-tor. And they keep going and going, perhaps out in the hall, or to the apartment center, or to a neighbor’s apartment where they might receive a cookie. At the end is a book or a game for them to enjoy. This always is a hit.

“The hide-and-seek is conducted in the dimly lit resident storage area in the basement and the spooky atmosphere makes it a hit, too.

“I started all this when the boys were four and eight. I’ll have to think of some things more age-appropriate as they get older.”

All of these ideas are a big help to me in planning for visits from my great grandchildren, and I hope you’ve found some kernels of wis-dom that will stimulate your think-ing. These times will go by all too quickly. They are moments to cher-ish. Be sure to take pictures. And remember to teach these precious children the importance of smil-ing! (Don’t be surprised if they understand that better than you do! They’ll appreciate your bringing up the subject but they may not see the need for discussing it. They may just smile and snuggle up a little closer.)

Mac and Zil

Resident Residence(s) Date of Death

Grant Hahm WHCC/Community 08-22-2014

Charles H. M. Volz WHCC/Trott 08-23-2014

Foss O. Foote WHCC/Kindley/Trott 08-28-2014

Edward J. Caffery Diamond 08-30-2014

Patricia Detig WHCC 09-01-2014

Robert W. Johnson Villas 09-03-2014

Ellen Gillis Diamond 09-05-2014

Richard G. Cole WHCC/Kindley 09-13-2014

Marguerite Wilson Kindley/E-F 09-15-2014

Nancy Crawford Wallace 09-15-2014

E. Scott Dillon Wallace 09-17-2014

In Memoriam

Village life October 2014 5

IT’S ONLY OCTOBER, but…By Maria Roberts,

Christmas Fund Coordinator

The Christmas holidays are coming soon, and it’s time to renew an Asbury

tradition of 42 years, the Christ-mas Gift Fund.

Asbury Methodist Village has nearly 800 employees (“Associ-ates”), all of whom work hard to make this a great place for us residents to call home. All of them appreciate a friendly verbal “thank you” from us from time to time. But, in addition, you may have thought it would be nice to give a more tangible expression of thanks.

At Asbury, it is a strict rule that no Associate may accept any gift of money, or anything of monetary value, from a resi-dent. BUT, fortunately there is one exception to that rule. Back in 1972, the residents initiated a new practice which has become a tradition: the collection by residents of contributions to a Christmas Gift Fund for employ-ees. The collected funds are distributed to AMV employees below the managerial level in proportion to each employee’s hours worked on campus.

Here are the answers to some questions you may have about the Fund:

1. Who receives a gift from the Fund? Every employee whose pay is below a certain level receives a gift, reflecting the wish expressed by residents when the Fund was started. Upper level bosses and those at managerial pay levels are not

included.2. How many employees

receive gifts from the Fund? Last year each of 642 employees received a gift.

3. What kind of jobs do the recipients hold at AMV? The largest number are in the nursing department, mostly at Wilson Health Care Center. Another large group is in din-ing services, including cooks, dishwashers and wait staff. Oth-ers are in housekeeping, main-tenance, transportation, security personnel, concierge-reception-ists, laundry workers, and many others, seen and unseen.

4. How much does each Associate receive? Every eli-gible employee, full or part time, receives the same gift amount per hour worked in the preced-ing twelve month period. In 2013 that was about 22 cents per hour. A ful-time employee received about $425.

5. How much should I give? This one you have to answer for yourself. Consider whatever amount will give you a warm feeling of having done your part in thanking our help-ers, but which will also fit your budget. In your thinking, you might consider that a contribu-tion of $1 per day amounts to $365. Or, if for example you may want to contribute $1 for the year to each 2014 gift recipi-ent, that would amount to about $725. Again, your budget and your inner warmth will be your best guides.

6. How do I give? Anytime

between now and November 26, make out a check to “CCAV” (Coordinating Council Asbury Village) and give it to the Fund representative in your building, or neighborhood, to the collec-tor at Kindley or Wilson, or mail as appropriate. (Please see box.)

While a variety of faiths are represented among Asbury resi-dents and associates, all faith tra-ditions share the ethic of grati-tude. Thus, we participate in the Christmas Fund as an act of gratitude, together as one com-munity.

Please remember that checks should be made out to CCAV.

ELVES! It’s That Time

AgainMark December 10 on your calen-

dar. That’s the date of this year’s Elves Day. This is the day we fill

hundreds of bags with gifts for those in Wilson Health Care Center and Kindley Assisted Living. These will be the only gifts some of these will have.

But there is a lot to do before that day. The first of November there will be a box in each building with a list of gift ideas. As we all fill these boxes the gifts will go to Santa’s workshop so that the boxes can be filled again. We also ask that you have a gift collection box at your church.

We like the gift to be wrapped with a sticker on the outside telling what the gift is and if it is for a man or a woman so that it can be sorted into the right box. However, there will still be unwrapped gifts that vol-unteers can come into the workshop and wrap. Elf in charge is Rose Melton x3123.

For more information please call Blanche Messerly x3127 or contact your building representative: Trott-Britta Cham-bers x6659, Mund-Jeanne McCoy x4626, Edwards Fisher-Sandy Matthews x5575, Park View-Blanche Messerly x3127, Dia-mond-Jeane Finley x6749, Wallace-Ila (Deen) Olson x6654, Villas-Jo Yount x5011, Courtyards-Terry Herndon x6963.

You can be an elf. Catch the Christmas spirit. Join the fun.

Photo; Hal Gaut

Hal and Marilyn Gaut, chief elves

This Month in the Gallery

The Rosborough Cultural Arts and Wellness Center is home to an ever-changing

gallery of arts and handiwork created by our residents. Stop by and see

what’s new. With 12 display cases to look at, there’s something for everyone

to enjoy. Here’s this month’s sampling of art.

John Paul Eberhard, Park View Drawing

Betty Loud, Edwards-Fisher Pottery, Carving, Oil Painting

and Watercolor Painting

Courtyard Homes: Peter Cascio,

CH-420

Diamond: Art Rabenhorst, D-1009

Edwards-Fisher: Merritt Techter,

EF-205

Kindley: Collection box at

reception desk. Mail: Molly

McFarland, 333 Russell Ave.

Gaithersburg, MD 20877.

Mund: Hank Beisner, M-603

Park View: Bob Bowles, PV-78

Trott: Doreen Sexton, T-403

Villas: Bill Brown, V-442

Wallace: Carmine Castellano,

Wallace-301

Wilson: Alicia Robrecht, Admin-

istration Office. Mail: 301 Russell

Ave. Gaithersburg, MD 20877.

General information: Maria Roberts, CY-437, 301-987-

6986. meroberts27700@cs.com

6 October 2014 Village life

Is there a doctor in the house…or a physician…or an osteopathic

doctor…or…What? By Marolyn Hatch, Villas

Ever wondered what the dif-ference is between a medi-cal doctor, a physician, an

osteopathic doctor, nurse practi-tioner and a physician’s assistant? When you have a simple illness, who among these practitioners you see may not matter. But within the medical realm there are distinctions and sometimes a bit of confusion.

A friend on campus corrected me when I introduced him as a “doctor.” I am a “physician,” he said. While I understood that there were many doctors who were not physicians (vets, dentists, engineers and more), I was not as clear on why a medi-cal practitioner wasn’t one and the same: doctor and physician. Who knew?

Physicians and doctors can be used interchangeably because a physician is a doctor. Not all doc-tors, however, are physicians.

Physicians have successfully com-pleted degrees for pre-med or other study [4 years] and medical school [4 years]. Physicians use drugs and medication to treat patients.

Doctors have completed two to five more years of residency after becoming physicians. [Thus] phy-sicians have completed 8 years of school, but doctors with specializa-tion have completed 11-13 years of study. Doctors may use surgery and more comprehensive medical pro-cedures to treat patients. Doctors also have more requirements than physicians in terms of internships and certificates.” [Source: Differ-ence Between.net]

As holistic medicine is becoming popular, the Doctorate in Osteo-pathic Medicine or DO is becoming more common. Such practitioners have studied “the same academ-ic subjects as traditional medical schools and the same two years of clinical rotations.” Their training also includes “manipulating the spine, muscles and bones in diagnosis and treatment.” There is currently some public and professional dis-missal of the DO as currently, candi-dates don’t have to take the MCAT

exam or have as high academic achievement as do MD candidates. To remove this distinction, by 2020, “DO residency standards will be aligned with those” used to accredit MD programs. [source Education Life, NYTimes, 8/2/2014]

The urgent need for professional medical providers also helped to develop the Physicians Assistant and Nurse Practitioner degrees.

“Physician assistants practice medicine directly under a supervis-ing physician. They typically exam-ine, diagnose and treat patients, in addition to ordering x-rays and lab tests and interpreting their results. PAs also might prescribe medica-tions, conduct therapy and stitch, splint or cast minor injuries. On the orders of a physician, PAs sometimes check on homebound patients, as well as those in hospitals and nurs-ing homes. They can work in a num-ber of specialties, including internal medicine, family medicine, pediat-rics or surgery. The exact duties of physician assistants are dictated by supervising physicians, as well as state law….

For acceptance to most PA pro-grams, applicants must have an undergraduate degree and some sort of health care experience. Course-work for these programs, which typically last two years, might cover gynecology, geriatrics, emergency medicine, family medicine and med-ical ethics, among other topics.

Nurse practitioners are registered nurses who have gone on to earn a master’s or doctorate degree in a specialty area of nursing, such as adult practice, family practice, pediatrics or women’s health. The duties that nurse practitioners can perform vary by state, but gener-ally include diagnosing and treat-ing acute and chronic conditions, prescribing medication, ordering and interpreting x-rays and other diagnostic procedures, counseling patients and managing patients’ overall care. State regulations also determine whether an NP can work independently or if he or she must collaborate with a licensed physi-cian.” [Source: Education Portal]

A Guide to Aging, Falls, Drugs and Alcohol©

As we age, the need to take more and different medicines tends to increase. Our bodies respond differently to alcohol

than when we were younger.• Some medicines don’t mix well with other medications, including

over-the-counter medicines and herbal remedies.• Many medications do not mix well with alcohol.• Changes in body weight, circulation, digestion and kidney func-

tion affect how drugs are metabolized and eliminated.• Medicine may remain in the body longer and create a greater

chance of interaction.• The more different kinds of medications taken, the greater the

chance of a drug interaction.

Become knowledgeable about your medication and how it makes you feel.

• Read labels carefully, follow directions.• Look for pictures or statements on your prescription bottles that

tell you not to take alcohol when using a particular medication. It is unsafe to drink alcohol when using medications for sleeping, pain, anxiety or depression.

• One alcoholic drink a day is the recommended limit for anyone over age 65.

• Talk to your physician or pharmacist, who can identify drug inter-actions; request drug changes to avoid interactions.

• Decrease number of medications if possible, especially if taking more than four medications. Lower drug dosages, especially psy-chotropic drugs, diuretics, cardiovascular drugs.

• Decrease number of psychotropic medicines.• Avoid combinations of drugs, especially narcotics with psychotro-

pic drugs or more than one psychotropic.• Tell your physician about any food or medication allergies.• Keep track of side effects. Let your physician know promptly if

you should fall even though you are not injured, or about any unexpected changes in the way you feel.

• Go through your medicine cabinet at least once a year to get rid of old or expired medicines.

• Have all your medicine reviewed by your doctor or pharmacist at least once a year.

Signals that may indicate an alcohol or medication-related problem

• Memory trouble, loss of coordination and balance, change in sleeping habits, being unsure of yourself, unexplained bruises.

• Irritability, sadness, depression, unexplained chronic pain, changes in eating habits, wanting to stay alone much of the time, trouble finishing sentences, trouble concentrating, lack of interest in usual activities, difficulty in staying in touch with family or friends, fail-ing to bathe or keep clean.

Do you think you may be having trouble with alcohol or medications?

• Talk with your doctor or pharmacist.• Ask advice from Care Management or call the AVTV alcohol help line.• Share concerns with a friend, family member or spiritual advisor.

Share the right information• Make a list of all your medications.• Remind your doctor of previous conditions that affect your

ability to take certain medicines.• Don’t be afraid to ask questions.• If possible, get written instructions from your doctor or pharmacist.

Adapted from ©www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYouBob Hartman, M.D. retired family physician and geriatrics specialist, Asbury Methodist Village, Gaithersburg, MD

Ask Dr. Bob By Marolyn Hatch,Villas

The C.O.I.K. (Clear Only If Known) Factor

Village life October 2014 7

WILDLIFE AT ASBURYBy Anita Taylor, Park View

Not quite sure where this one should be filed, or indeed, what lessons might

be involved, but I am quite certain that as a group of AMV folks inter-ested in wildlife habitat, we need more than run-of-the-mill awareness on this one.

Most of you probably know by now that the old oak snag, which stood since 2009 as one of the most visible signs of Asbury’s commit-ment to sharing our habitat with all creatures, is down--apparently vic-tim of a wind burst in one of the recent storms. And, apparently, it took a bat box with it, one that we perhaps should have moved earlier as we never sighted any signs of its use.

I write now to restate what most of us are well aware of: The ser-vice to wildlife of this more than 100-year-old tree has not ended. It still retains much of the carbon its massive trunk stored, releas-ing it only slowly in a decompo-sition process that provides both food and shelter for dozens of crea-tures. Notably, to those of us who

remember this project beginning with an effort to attract more birds to our grounds, this decaying wood will especially support a variety of woodpeckers and related bird spe-cies. In addition, the trunk’s loca-tion helps reduce speed of runoff

from heavy rains, protecting both our ponds and drainage channels.

And for anyone who may not have originally seen, or forgotten it (or who may find it useful to share with skeptics), I include the link to the wonderful article in the W.Post’s

Urban Jungle series, “The Upside of Downed Trees.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/metro/urban-jungle/pages/120710.html

OUR NATIVE PLANTS (#3 of a series) BLACK LOCUST By Peter Cascio

There is an increasingly thick grove of Robinia pseudoacacia, our black locust, just off the path in the northwest corner

above the lower pond. (North is toward Goshen and Frederick; west is between Kindley and the gatehouse.) The genus name Robinia comes from a subfamily of the pea family. If you look at the leaves you will see its pea family heritage. The species name translates as false acacia. To wan-der off the subject a bit, a truer acacia is a few yards further south (toward Park View) behind the milkweed. It is an Albizia julibrissin or Silktree from the same pea family but from the Asian and African branch of the forbearers. Right now, September 17th, it is covered with 1000 pea pods. It is considered invasive is some parts of the US where it competes with the natives; but then so is our black locust because of its exuber-ant tendency to take over the woodlot.

Our particular grove appears to have sprung from the disturbance of the roots of the larger trees nearer the pond by digging drain lines to the lower pond during construction of the Courtyard Homes. The black locust spreads by lateral roots particularly after being disturbed and is not put off by poor soil because of its nitrogen-fixing bacteria.

The black locust is the fence post that went

west with the settlers. The wood weighs about 47 lbs. per cubic foot. Wandering west, its fence posts have lasted over 100 years. It is prized for furniture, flooring, paneling and small boats. These are the rails that Abraham Lincoln spent his youth splitting. What has kept the tree from becoming an extremely valuable timber tree is the mature tree’s infestation of the locust borer. In parts of Europe efforts are underway to start plantations and overcome the borer problem. Also, non-farm quality soil can be used because of the locust’s advantage as a nitrogen-fixing spe-

cies providing its own fertilizer in a rising fertil-izer market. The aim of these plantations would be to use this easily grown very hard wood to spare the over-harvesting of the tropical hard-wood favorites: teak and mahogany.

So, you ask, why is the pollinator garden guy talking about lumber and bacteria? It is all back-ground stuff that I didn’t know years ago and thought you might find interesting, too. Most importantly, our black locust flower is white and could tone to pink. It blooms in May or June, after the tree has leafed out, in loose five-inch racemes. It is a major honey plant in eastern US. It has been planted in France and is the source of France’s renowned acacia monofloral honey.

You also might like to know that in France and Italy the flowers are eaten as beignets after being coated in batter and fried in olive oil. We request that you please leave the flowers on the plants for our nectar gatherers …And don’t tell Chef Gus.

Finally, Jesuit missionaries are said to have given the name locust to this tree thinking it was the one that sustained St. John in the wilderness. Since the black locust is native to only North America credit has been shifted to the locust tree of Spain, Syria and the entire Mediterranean, the Carob Tree (Ceratonia siliqua). (That last bit could have been more than you wanted to know.)

Don’t let the fact that the Black Locust is white, bother you.

The Snag That Will Not Die

Photo: Anita Taylor

8 October 2014 Village life Village life October 2014 9

Z-Notes

By Phyllis W. Zeno, Wallace

Only 8.5 Years to Go

We had dinner with Barbara and Woody Schneider the other night, and do I envy them! They just com-pleted ten years as Asbury residents and qualified to

have their entire apartment renovated...carpets replaced, walls painted, appliances renewed.

Well, I think that’s just nifty! The only problem is, Harvey and I have just lived here 18 months, and we’re ready for the 10- year renewal plan now.

Let’s start with the white living room carpet. This gets a little complicated, but here goes: Harvey is wild for Hero’s red cur-rant jelly, and nobody in Gaithersburg carries it. But Harvey, never idle when he craves something, got on the internet and found that he could order a case of Hero jelly from Wal-Mart for $39.72 including shipping. Cheap enough for eight jars that you hunger for!

In a matter of days, the carton of jelly arrived at Asbury, and Harvey loaded it into a shopping cart and wheeled it up to our Wallace apartment.

Since it weighed an inordinate amount, Harvey left the carton in the cart for several days and in turn left the cart in our living room until he got the energy to remove it to the kitchen cabi-net. It took that long for us to notice that red currant jelly was dripping out of the bottom of the carton onto our white living room rug. On opening the carton, he found that two of the eight bottles were smashed. A quick call to Wal-Mart assured him that eight more bottles would be shipped immediately at no cost.

He is, naturally, a satisfied customer inasmuch as 14 jars of red currant jam should last at least until Christmas.

However, the new red current pattern on the white rug, although unique, is not compatible with the rest of our acces-sories. Nor is it located in a likely space for a lounge chair or a plant stand. Chalk up one for a reason to redecorate in less than 10 years.

Estee ForeverEstee Lauder has proved herself through the years as her

foundation make-up has drifted in price from $7.50 to $42.50 a bottle. Sad to say, it no longer lasts on my face as long as it does in the grout on my bathroom floor tiles where it remains since the day I dropped a new bottle last January. Who would ever imagine that such a miniscule bottle of make-up would cover such a large floor area ... not just the tiles, but the costly bath mat and the Wedgewood shower curtain as well. Of course, the mat and the curtain have been replaced but the grout will remain “bare beige” for at least ten years, maybe more.

And then there’s the Nice’n Easy hair color that barely lasts a month on my tresses, but its little polka dot splashes are in their 14th month on the bathroom wall by the sink and show no signs of diminution. I know...I know...I could paint the one wall black without redoing the whole bathroom.

These are only minor details during our first year here. What concerns me is that eight and a half years to wait seems like a terribly long time for a redecorating job. Any chance of a reduc-tion in time? I don’t know if I’ll live that long.

By Carol Dennis, Villas

The doorbell rang promptly at 8 o’clock that summer Mon-day morning. The Asbury

team had arrived to begin the ten-year renovation of our villa. A work cart was loaded with our necessi-ties and delivered to our tempo-rary quarters in a three-room apart-ment on campus. It had been more than 50 years since Jerry and I had started out in another three-room apartment on an army base. Hmmm! How would things go?

Well, things went amaz-ingly well. The apartment was quiet, nicely appointed and fully equipped. With all the excitement of being up and ready bright and early, going to our usual water aerobics class and settling into the apartment, we thought we would eat in that evening. We drove over to our villa to pick up something from our freezer in the garage. Lo and behold, things were already moved out to the garage, and we could not even get near the freezer. Sigh! Instead, we sim-ply enjoyed ourselves and dined out each evening. Living in the apart-ment gave Jerry and me an oppor-tunity to explore parts of Asbury that we usually drive right past. It reminded us of what a beautiful location this is with the many path-ways, ponds and gardens. It was also a great opportunity to catch up on some reading.

One word of caution, there was no WiFi in the apartment. With Jerry’s consulting work, that could have been a problem. However Jerry was able to use a dongle, and here is his explanation of it: “Surely, don-gle is not the correct nomenclature which is unknown to me. One of the consulting groups with which I do a lot of work had sent it so that

I would not be out of email touch during the week. The dongle is a little black box, a bit bigger than a book of matches, that when placed near my computer, connected me to the Internet. Although slower than my WiFi in the villa, it was certainly adequate for the occasion.”

Suddenly it was Friday and time for our homecoming. Again, our necessities were loaded on a work

cart and delivered for us. The villa looked lovely; everything was shiny and fresh looking. We are very pleased with the way everything looks, most especially the kitchen. I even feel like cooking! I must tell you about the paint. You’ve heard of Oyster White paint? Well, I call this Shrimp White. It’s a lovely warm white with a hint of pink that makes everything look warm and cozy when it’s cool and cool and crisp when it’s warm. And yes, the work-men took photos of everything, took all the paintings down and put everything back the way it was with nary a scratch or dent. They were very impressive.

So… look forward to your reno-vation and enjoy the mini-vacation that comes with it. You home will be in good hands. It’s more than a Renovation, it’s a beautiful Make-over!

THE MAKEOVERBy Canadaphile Anita Taylor

“The mountains are calling, and I must go,” read the t-shirt

that passed by. And I thought of the lines “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help . . .” So read the words in Psalm 121 of The King James Version of the English Christian Bible. Interesting, I always replaced the word hills with mountains. And I remem-bered the line as “from whence cometh my strength,” but the point may be the same.

Not one of the men who drafted the English prose of the KJV could have seen these Rockies. The Alps perhaps, but the broad uplifts then glacier carved do not present them-selves in Europe. The glacier carved landscape found in the Canadian portion of North America’s magnificent Rocky Mountain range is not replicated elsewhere. Here, the magic of the world’s first National Park after the U.S. Yel-lowstone (Banff) is pro-tected still free of roads. The world’s first National Park Service manages this Rocky Mountain UNESCO World Heritage Site that started with Banff and now includes Kootenay, Glacier, Yoho, Jasper, plus Mts. Assiniboine, Robson, and Hamber Provincial Parks. It protects 2,212,216 hectares in a strip 400 k i l o m e -ters long strad-dling the con-tinental divide. And, yep, that’s right: We had the first nation-al park, but Canada the first National Park Service.

What a gem! Though almost loved to death as one clearly sees on an August three- day weekend, this World Heri-tage site shows why it deserves to be an international destina-tion winter and summer. Skiing and railroads built this place . . . Tourism now keeps it going. And I have joined the crowds. We come in summer for the alpine flowers: the easily visible

g l a -ciers, some accessible by foot; the broad U-shaped valleys; the crystal clear, turquoise, sky blue and milky rivers; uncountable waterfalls; and unique North-ern mountain trees. Our visit is marred only by how many of us crowd onto purposefully few roads and trails.

Shortly, I escape the crowds through the magic of money, technology and incredible ser-vice . . . along with some good luck, adventuresome spirit, and privilege. . . . A Bell 212 lifts12 of us 4,000 feet in minutes, set-ting us down gently where no road or even a footpath can be seen. Experienced guides show us ways into and across high mountain meadows to tiny, crys-tal clear cold water lakes, or to glacial silt filled murky waters beneath a waterfall at base of a hanging glacier.

We are surrounded by wind-flowers and almost as tiny trees that seem to huddle together against the fierce winds and many meters deep snow of win-ter. No hint of bad weather today. Puffy white clouds drift by, not even suggesting the com-mon August afternoon moun-tain shower. The profusion of blooms: paintbrush of cream,

salmon. brilliant red; the W e s t e r n a n e m o n e in its shag-gy headed “ hippie on a stick” stage; asters of sev-eral kinds; the hard to find purple gentian in a very red stage . . . and many other tiny, exquisite blos-soms. I marvel at this display . . .

having always lived with sub-stantial growing seasons . . . these colors spread before me where the whole of days of a year’s growth do not exceed 65. Where trees half my height can be as old as I.

I am palpably “high” at this top of the world display and at my good fortune to have been whisked up here

with only the effort of donning boots, carrying ski poles to steady uneven terrain. To have spent several hours walking and marveling and, of course, taking photos! What drug can match this?

The mountains call, theT-shirt read. I stand, rooted.How can I depart? “O Canada. . . . The True

North strong and free.” May it remain as strong as its magnifi-cent mountains.

Photos: Carol Dennis

Before and after the renovation.

Notes from Canada’s Rocky Mountain National Park

10 October 2014 Village life

By Jean Hubbell, Villas

Albuquerque has always been a favorite city for me, perhaps because

I am very interested in the Native American cultures that thrive in that area. Some of the Navajos are even distantly relat-ed to the Hubbell family due to the marriage of one Hubbell to a Navajo lady.

The occasion for this recent visit, though, was to attend the wedding of a great-niece to an Air Force officer, so the wed-ding took place in the chapel on Kirkland Air Force Base. Like so many of the buildings in that area, the chapel was adobe as was the home of my niece, mother of the bride. It is a joy to see the adobe old style homes although not all the res-idential areas of Albuquerque feature those.

The wedding was delightful as all weddings should be but this one was special for our family as a very large number of the Hubbell clan were present, the eldest being the 91-year-old grandmother of the

bride who was escorted in a wheel-chair down the aisle of the chapel by her two sons. All the remaining members of the senior generation of the Hubbells were there, five of us from Connecticut, Wisconsin, Califor-

nia and Maryland. Because having so much fam-

ily together was special, the bride planned a major social event on the day before the wedding and then her mother hosted a relaxing day before

so many left for their various homes. Since my daughter from Ohio and I did not plan to leave until the next day, we had the opportunity for lunch and a bit of shopping in Old Town - a must-see if you ever get to Albuquerque. Historic Old Town is 307 years old with a Spanish background. The bride’s mother arranged to have us meet at Casa de Ruiz Church Street Café, which was originally the home of Ruiz family and built in the Span-ish tradition. One of that family became the mother of John Lorenzo Hubbell, founder of what is now the Hubbell Trad-ing Post in Ganado, Arizona. It is now a National Historic Site, but all that is another story.

Just being there in Old Town once again was a treat and just before leaving for the airport, a bit of shopping produced a

beautiful Hopi Kachina purchased from the artist himself. All in all, Albu-querque provided a wedding, a fam-ily reunion, and an historical visit - not too bad for just five days.

Computer Corner

By Jeanne North, Trott

At the September 8 Apple Corps event in the Rosbor-ough Community Rooms,

Speaker Jim Clark held the audience in thrall with his energetic, exuberant, enthusiastic arm-waving walk-around-the-room presentation about his favorite subject: the gadgets, devic-es, products and systems created by Apple, Inc., the company co-founded by the legendary Steve Jobs.

Speculating with more than a little degree of certainty, as someone clued in to the inside chatter and musings of techie experts might be, Jim attempt-ed to anticipate the announcements that would be coming the very next day from the lips of Tim Cook, Steve Jobs’s successor as Apple CEO, at the annual unveiling in Cupertino, Cali-fornia of Apple’s latest products.

Sure enough, coming soon: two new iPhones, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, each larger than the previous iPhone; the new operating system iOS 8, for iPad and iPhone; with the Mac Mavericks operating system now standard, on the horizon the more nuanced and demanding Yosemite; and as appeals to the futuristically

inclined consumer, the Apple Watch, which can monitor all kinds of health data - and even, as one observer has dryly pointed out, tell time; and Apple Pay, a new system of payment that allows you, instead of rifling through the fistful of credit cards in your wal-let, simply to wave (okay, swipe) your iPhone at a card reader to make your purchase.

What does this mean for Apple users? Better pictures with your iPhone camera. Easier typing on the larger screen. More efficient use of your iPad. Easy access to your health data and ways (eventually) of trans-mitting it to your doctor. A slimmer wallet with fewer credit cards stored there.

Two days later, on September 10,

Jim gave another version of his Mon-day talk to a Computer Club meet-ing in the Rosborough Theatre. Given that many PC users are now also iPad and iPhone users — the per-centage steadily climbing, according to a graphic found by Charlie Ful-lerton and replicated on the poster announcing the Wed. Sept. 10 talk, the information on new developments in the Apple world was timely and rel-evant to the audience.

The implications for Apple users are significant. More new things to learn. More choices: which device to buy? how do I learn to use it (them)? (That’s easy. Take a class offered by the Apple Corps!)

In any case, be prepared that as Apple Pay offers an easier way to pay for your purchases, it will also slim down your wallet. Yes, it’s true. That slimmer wallet will hold fewer dollars after the purchase of any or all of the above devices. But just think of how tech savvy you’ll be, keeping up with all these latest developments in tech-nology. You can put on your Techie Nerd hat and wear it proudly.

News from the Techie Front and What It Means to You

Jim Clark, speaking at the Apple Corps event.

ALBUQUERQUE REVISITED

Jean Hubbell revisits a favorite city, Albuquerque

Village life October 2014 11

“Our lucky accident”By Tom and Val McIlrath, Park View

We certainly had a seren-dipitous event when we first moved to

Asbury. As is common when peo-ple retire and move out of their homes, we had some cash that we needed to invest. We had stock and a conservative bond account and we wanted to do something good for others as well as our-selves with the money we had from the sale of the house.

After giving it considerable thought, and talking with the Asbury Foundation staff as well as our investment broker, we came upon a wonderful idea of a Chari-table Gift Annuity to support the Benevolent Care Fund at Asbury Methodist Village (we also made a similar gift to our church). The arrangement is that we gave the Foundation the funds which they then pool with other gifts and invest for long-term returns while

giving us a guaranteed income of 5.8% for both of our lives (it would be higher now, since it is based on age). The financial assumption is that the recipient has deeper pockets than an indi-vidual, and they can invest more widely and more wisely in order to earn enough over the long run to pay the individual the annual income and still come out ahead.

With Benevolent Care receiv-ing the principal in the end we know we can do some good even when we are gone, and we can take comfort in knowing that we have a modest but reliable income that will last through our lives while still having enough to be generous to our children. We accepted the fact that inflation will erode the purchasing power of our income from the annuity, but as part of a balanced financial plan it played an important role in terms of stability. In the end

we were making a charitable gift, not an investment, so the thought of doing good with our resources compensated nicely for any small reduction in income which might have come from the gift. At the time, I thought a 5.8% income for both our lifetimes was fair but modest. Since then our other investments have tanked and the long-term future is for low infla-tion. In fact, some worry about deflation. Since making our gift in 2007, we have received about half of the original gift back in accumulated annuity payments. It has been a reassuring, and steady, source of income during a turbu-lent time. So while we made a gift in the spirit of giving to others, we now have an income which would make any holder of a CD or recent tax-free bond envious.

And of course there were the tax breaks which were very valu-able when we were shuffling

money around from the sale of the house. These tax breaks were a significant cushion to the blow from the loss of capital. Our finan-cial advisor advised us in check-ing the financial stability of the Asbury Foundation and agreed it was solid.

In the end I have to say that the “happy accident” of serendipity would not have happened with-out the advice and guidance of the Foundation staff. Given that the current rate is quite capable, we are now looking as to wheth-er we could reinvest the income from our current annuity into another. Who knows – maybe ser-endipity will strike twice!

To receive more information on Charitable Gift Annuities and a no-obligation person-alized rate quote, contact the Asbury Foundation office at 301-216-4050.

Facelift for Williamsburg Clothes ClosetBy Jean Hubbell, Villas

Last month Village Life’s front page featured an article on the Clothes Closet which was getting ready for

its grand reopening after renovation. Now that renovation has taken place, the new look is of a much lighter and spotless facil-ity. The Clothes Closet now occupies several of the rooms on Williamsburg Lane, which was a gift from the Guild about the late l950s when what is now the Administration Building was the Home. The basement of that building was converted to the Williams-burg Lane, which became a thriving hub of activity for the Home family. It featured a bank, post office, ice cream parlor, private dining room for residents to enjoy a spe-cial meal with visiting family members, the Guild office, and the Fair Exchange, which was originally started by Ethel Hedrick of one of the Guild’s Baltimore Districts. Later Ethel became a resident of Asbury herself. The Fair Exchange idea was converted into the Williamsburg Lane Clothes Closet due to the efforts of Mildred Seymour and has been thriving ever since with a dedicated group of volunteer workers.

Some of the current group of volunteers were pictured in the article last month. The Guild no longer claims the Clothes Closet but it is under the oversight of the Founda-tion’s Debi Peeks and the profits still all go

for the Benevolent Care Fund.

Jewelry is a Prime SellerHelen Hansen is one of the workers pic-

tured. Her job is very special — care of the jewelry donations. She cleans, repairs when necessary, polishes and price tags all the jewelry selections One happy purchaser recently was my caregiver, Felicite, who was delighted to be introduced to the Clothes Closet and bought numerous pieces of beautiful gold jewelry which Helen had pol-ished to a brilliant shine. At the time of the grand reopening Felicite had a chance to tell Helen in person how much she appreciated the jewelry, which was intended as gifts for her family. Helen does such a good job that one donor didn’t recognize what she had donated and bought it back! Helen took over the job several years ago and says she loves the purpose of the Clothes Closet -- not just recycling but with the monies all going to help others through the Benevolent Care.

Come visit the newly carpeted and paint-ed Williamsburg Clothes Closet and see how beautiful it looks, so much lighter and fresh. The fall clothes are now featured as well so plan to do some shopping - either at the main room or the men’s special room or the children-and- teen’s room. The entire Williamsburg Lane has been carpeted and painted, making it a pleasure to visit.Helen Hansen

12 October 2014 Village life

By Katharine Rogers,

Courtyard Homes

The advances in medicine that have enor-mously improved and prolonged our lives can also produce painful dilemmas as

to whether there should be a limit to the mea-sures taken to prolong life. Physician aid in dying is now legal in five states, and a law based on the Oregon Death with Dignity Act is now being debated in the British Parliament. Lord George Carey, the former Archbishop of Canter-bury, who originally opposed an aid-in-dying bill, explained that he changed his mind on this issue because, “The old philosophical certainties have collapsed in the face of the reality of needless suffering.” Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa declared in The Guardian: “I have been fortunate to spend my life working for dignity for the living. Now I wish to apply my mind to the issue of dignity for the dying. I revere the sanc-tity of life – but not at any cost.”

About a year ago, Rosemary Ross (Diamond) and Jody Schwarz (Villas) decided it would be a good idea to promote consideration of these issues at Asbury Methodist Village. They arranged a meeting in the Wallace Community Room for October 16, 2013. The room was filled with residents who explained why they came, told their stories, and raised questions. After a warm, candid discussion, they decided they wanted to meet again.

For the next meeting, on January 15, 2014,

Margaret Mahon, Director of Palliative Care at Shady Grove Hospital, discussed the possibilities of palliative care and pain management. Through case histories, she described in detail the way she dealt with patients. She emphasized the importance of people’s expressing their wishes beforehand, so she would not have to work indi-rectly through relatives. The group’s next meet-ing, on March 12, featured a lively talk by Captain Ty Stophlemyer from the Gaithersburg Volunteer Fire and Rescue Station on “What Happens in the Ambulance.” At the following End of Life Choices meeting, on June 17, Paul J. Ballard, the Maryland Assistant Attorney General for Health Decisions Policy, answered the question: “How Many Health Care Documents Do I Need?” He explained the functioning and importance of the Advance Directive (Power of Attorney for Health Care) and MOLST forms. It is essential for us to make clear beforehand whether we wish for treatments such as artificial ventilation or artifi-cial nutrition, in case we should become coma-tose or otherwise incapable of making decisions for ourselves.

The group‘s latest meeting, on September 22,

focused on “The Value and Limits of Hospice Care.” Dr. Geoffrey Coleman, the Medical Direc-tor of Montgomery Hospice, explained how hos-pice makes life easier for patients nearing the end of life and also for their families. Hospice provides comfort, pain and symptom manage-ment, spiritual care, and social services. Its ser-vices may include visits from a nurse, a social worker, a chaplain, and aides to help with bathing and housekeeping; and it organizes volunteers to visit and help patients. Hospice is definitely not a place where people go to die. It gener-ally cares for people in their own homes, home being defined as wherever they are living; and it provides the opportunity to die there rather than in the hospital setting that most Americans dread. Hospice accepts people with terminal disease, with six months to live if the disease takes its normal course, although it continues to provide them with comfort and support until the end. Moreover, terminal disease is defined in terms of functionality, so that people unable to perform the activities of daily living, such as dressing and feeding themselves, may be considered as being in end-stage disease. Hospice care is covered entirely by Medicare. Dr. Coleman was assisted by Monica Escalante, Vice President and financial director of Montgomery Hospice.

End of Life Choices meets regularly every other month (except during the summer). Future top-ics include the details of handling a person’s affairs after death, and the status of aid in dying in other states and other countries.

The 2014 spring and sum-mer in DuBois, a small city in western Pennsylvania,

had been relatively wet and cool but the weather forecast for Sat-urday, August 16 called for a most delightful day with gentle breez-es and a temperature in the mid to upper 70s. This day was there-fore to be great for the DUBOIS AREA HIGH SCHOOL FABULOUS “50’S” PICNIC where the gradu-ates, spouses and friends would be gathering for a day of greet-ing old friends and making new friends.

The idea for this picnic origi-nated with a few classmates, in particular Patty Dalton Stewart, a 1956 alumnas, who lived in Car-son City, Nevada. She and oth-ers thought that getting together on the traditional class reunions of every five to ten years was just not often enough; she there-fore invited 1956 classmates to meet in Carson City on an off year. She and her husband Glenn graciously opened their home to be the gathering center. Several attendees stayed at their home while others stayed in the near-by Ormsby House Hotel/Casino.

These reunions then expanded to other cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City. A class member living in the area was the host and made all the necessary arrangements.

Upon retiring and returning to their hometown of DuBois, Patty along with others had an idea for the classes of 1954 thru 1958 to hold a picnic; this would include all the classes that the class of

1956 attended high school with. The first picnic was held in 2003 and became so popular that it was expanded to include all the classes of the 1950’s. The picnic is now scheduled to coincide with classes holding their traditional five-year reunions and fills the void left by the discontinuance of the annual DuBois Area Alumni Association Dinner/Dance.

Returning to 2014, the picnic

was the 12th annual celebra-tion with the venue being the Lion’s Sky Lodge, a large picnic area set in the foothills of the Alleghenies. The picnic started at 1:00pm with food, prepared by a great local caterer, being served at 4:00 pm. Taking into consideration the number of graduates of Polish descent, the menu included two fantas-tic Polish dishes, golabi (stuffed cabbage) and kalushki (noodles with cabbage).

Prior to sitting down for the delicious meal, a short busi-ness meeting was held. One of the items on the agenda was an affirmative vote in response to a 1960 alumnus’s request to include 1960 alumni in the picnic. This yes vote was based upon the class being willing to

do the necessary work required to include them in the planning and setting up for the picnic.

Each year the group contrib-utes $500.00 to the DuBois Area Alumni Association Endowment Fund, who in turn awards numer-ous scholarships to deserving stu-dents of the DuBois Area High School.

END OF LIFE CHOICES

Photo: Don Corp

Gil Snyder reunites with the class of ’56.

A Tradition Continues

Village life October 2014 13

Welcome New Residents

Ron Pytel Diamond 519, x5182

Ron found just the apartment he wanted in Diamond, but he had to decide fast or he wouldn’t have got-ten it. So on February 28 he took possession. The only problem was he had a home to sell in German-town. That is the reason residents of the 5th floor thought for the past 6 months they had a “mystery man” who only showed up one or two days a week. Now all that is settled and Ron moved in on September 4.

He was born in Chicago and went to the University of Illinois where he graduated as a Pharmacist. Later he was awarded an Honorary Doc-torate of Pharmacy from the Uni-versity of Southern California. He spent most of his career in the Pub-lic Health Service, 15 years with the Indian Health Service and 15 with the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Devices and Radiologi-cal Health. During one of his tours on various Indian reservations, Ron was adopted by the Cheyenne-Eagle Butte Sioux Tribe in South Dakota and given the name “Wambli Pejuta” meaning Medicine Eagle. He retired

from the PHS in 1999 as a Captain.Ron’s interests include cooking,

travel, rhythm and blues music and singing (he is a member of the Gaithersburg Community Chorus). He is one of the founders of Byzan-tine Catholic Mission and the Epiph-any of our Lord Byzantine Catholic Church, one of the 21 Catholic Rites under the Pope

Now that he is settled, Ron wants to become more involved in the many activities offered here at Asbury.

—Mac McCullough, Diamond reporter

Alice Wong Diamond 816, x5135

How did a nice New York girl, born in Queens, raised in Brook-lyn (where she still owns the family home), find her way to Borneo after graduating from St. Lawrence Uni-versity in Canton, NY? Answer: The Peace Corps.

Alice was assigned to the Tampa-ruli Secondary School in Borneo, the third largest island in the world. There she met Sylvester Wong, a fel-low teacher, and they were married. After her tour, they moved to Hawaii, where daughter Ellen was born and where Sylvester began work on his BA and MA in library science and Alice on her MA in education. Alice got a job with the Customs Service, starting a 37-year career. Sylvester needed to go to Columbia Universi-ty for some special courses to com-plete his MA.

Conditions in Borneo changed and it was impossible for the Wongs to return there, so they moved back to the Brooklyn family home. Alice continued her career with Customs and Sylvester became the head of the Map Section at the United Nations Library. He died of cancer

in 1981.Daughter Ellen had moved to

Ijamsville, MD where Alice visited on numerous occasions. Each time she did she would visit a CCRC and after looking over a dozen or so, she chose Asbury, primarily because of its many activities. She has already joined an aerobic water exercise class and the Asbury Ethnic Food Group, which goes to different res-taurants to try their offerings. Her passions, she said, are cooking, eat-ing and opera.

—Mac McCullough Diamond reporter

Rita Wysong Trott 101 Ext. 5829

Rita has lived all over the world, but she finally settled in Montgomery County. She was born and grew up in South Dakota. After high school she joined the Navy and was stationed in D.C. She married in 1944, and her hus-band joined the Foreign Service after the war. They commenced a series of postings in a variety of countries, five of which were in Latin America. Her greatest adventure came when war broke out in Lebanon, and she had to evacuate with her four children while a fifth one was on the way. These years well prepared her to write a book pub-lished as Life in the Foreign Service.

After her husband retired they both took employment with Montgomery County government, living in Wheaton and for the last twelve years in Mont-gomery Village. Rita also wrote over 400 columns for the Gaithersburg Gazette, including many interviews with older citizens. She even visited AMV, writing about Heritage Square residents thirty years ago.

Despite her busy life Rita found the time to enjoy music, books, old movies, playing bridge, painting in watercolor, and cooking [“I’m a good cook. Even now my son likes me to

cook him dinner”].Besides her children Rita has 14

grandchildren and one great grand-child. Her five children were born “all over the place”, but three of them now live nearby. Her husband’s chronic ill-nesses needed full-time nursing care so he moved into Wilson four months ago, and she moved to Trott to facili-tate visits with him. Now Rita is look-ing forward to watercolor lessons here which, happily, will be taught by her daughter. Her son will be a fellow stu-dent, making it truly a family affair. We are pleased to have a neighbor who has led such a busy and fascinating life.

—Jack Hutchings, Trott reporter

Photo: Hal Gaut

Brenda Rosa Diamond 616, x6437

On the shelf outside of Diamond 616 there is a holder with flags of four countries – England, Canada, Switzerland and the United States. These help tell the story of Brenda Rosa.

Born and raised in Wolverhamp-ton, England, she got her degree in business from the university there. She worked for an auctioneer for a while before emigrating to Canada. In Toronto she worked with a law-yer who became the Chief Judge of the Supreme Court of Ontario. Next she travelled by train to Van-couver, where she stayed for about a year. Then she bought a one-way Greyhound bus ticket, went down the coast, across the country and back to Montreal in time for the Expo.

Then it was off to Geneva with the World Health Organization, and there she met her future husband, Franz, a public health doctor. They moved to Rockville, where Franz was an epidemiologist at FDA and Brenda joined the World Bank where she worked for the next 20 years. She has three step-children living around the country.

As a Maryland resident for the past 35 years, Brenda had heard about Asbury from neighbors and church friends. After the terrible winter of 2013 she decided to move here. Her interests are in for-eign travel, walking, and continuing her volunteer work.

But, also on the shelf outside Dia-mond 616 is a small statue of the “Jack,” the British Bulldog, because as she said, “You can take Brenda out of England, but you can’t take England out of Brenda.”

—Mac McCullough, Diamond reporter

14 October 2014 Village life

Welcome New Residents

Margaret Liffiton Edwards-Fisher 401, x5086

mjliffiton@gmail.comWhile we Edwards-Fisher residents thought of

Thanksgiving dinners and family plans, Margaret Liffiton was spending November 19, 2013, set-tling into apartment 401. Born in New Zealand, she was educated at Victoria University (Univer-sity of New Zealand) and is a graduate of Welling-ton Teacher’s College.

Margaret has taught preschool through high school and later worked in the field of infor-mation technology. She became a Presbyterian pastor’s wife experiencing the challenges and rewards this vocation presented, never forget-ting that her family always came first. Margaret has two sons who in turn have blessed her with four granddaughters and three grandsons, and as a widow she never ceases to be an active part of their lives.

Although church centered, Margaret’s volun-teer activities are extensive and varied. She has worked with the Trenton Children’s Chorus and tutored at the local elementary schools. Margaret worked with eleven different congregations of Church Women United and was a commissioner to Presbytery and Synod. Her hobbies and inter-ests are as wide ranging as her volunteer work. Margaret enjoys travel, camping, book groups and music. Swimming and walking, especially in a beach setting, are high on her list of favorite things to do.

As Margaret began thinking about her retire-ment options, her primary consideration was proximity to family. After being impressed by the extensive campus, Asbury Methodist Village more than fitted her specifications. Every time Margaret’s elevator rises to her fourth floor home we Edwards-Fisher friends and neighbors rejoice that she is no longer “down under.”

—Joan Dunlop, Edwards-Fisher reporter

Claudette Scarpa Edwards-Fisher

310, x4630While we were heaving

a contented sigh of relief that the tax returns had been filed in a timely man-ner, Claudette Scarpa was heaving a contented sigh that her move to Edwards-Fisher apartment 310 on April 18, 2014 was a mis-sion accomplished. Born in Philadelphia, her education was Pennsylvania oriented.

Wed at an early age, Claudette had two daugh-ters before moving back home to raise them when the marriage ended. Sev-eral years later she met her husband of forty-six years, experiencing the joy of two more children, a boy and a girl. Widowed, she is busy keeping up with eleven grand-children and seven great grandchil-dren. Imagine the excitement of family gatherings. Claudette never hesitates to make herself available for child care despite scheduling challenges.

Travel is something Claudette enjoys and especially even more when combining it with a travelling companion who has been a best friend for fifty-eight years. The Baha-ma trips were recurring excursions which they happily shared twelve times. Music, movies and TV sports often fill Claudette’s spare time. Volunteer work can be rewarding and it is usually not stressful, but

Claudette’s standing offer to teach

friends and neighbors to drive is

unique. She is very proud of her

behind the wheel successes.

When it came time to consider

retirement living Claudette nar-

rowed her selection down to five

possibilities. Asbury Methodist Vil-

lage, located close to family, was

her choice and it was an eventual

dividend her new Edwards-Fisher

friends and neighbors continue to

enjoy.

—Joan Dunlop,

Edwards-Fisher reporter

Photo: Dorothy Harris

Robert Gray Trott 806, x5809

Bob was born in Norfolk, VA. His father, who worked in the commercial shipping industry, met his mother in business school. Bob was their only child. After com-pleting 3rd grade in Norfolk, he was enrolled in Fork Union Military Academy, a military school sponsored by the Baptist church. Bob grad-uated from Fork Union in 1949. When his father joined the U.S. Maritime Commis-sion as the U.S. entered pre-WWII preparations, the fam-ily moved to Brooklyn, NY.

Bob was nominated for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He graduated with a BS degree in general engineering in 1954, and married soon after his gradu-ation.

He applied for and received assignment in the U.S. Air Force, receiving training as a pilot, flying B47 jet bombers in the Strategic Air Command. He resigned from SAC after 5 ½ years. Their first daughter had allergic skin disease and asth-ma. Stress from frequent moves was greatly diminished after leaving SAC. They were able to have their daugh-ter cared for by civilian doctors, more expert in care of children’s allergies.

After discharge from SAC he was employed by Minneapolis Hon-eywell in mainframe computer technology. He then trained new employees. He transferred to Hon-

eywell’s federal marketing in DC.

The family moved to Maryland and

the couple had two more daughters.

Bob was very active sharing care-

giving roles with his wife. In DC

he transferred to Univac where he

worked for 29 years. His wife died

of cancer. He remarried and they

enjoyed extensive travel. His second

wife died recently from cancer and

Bob moved to Asbury from Ingle-

side at King Farm retirement com-

munity. His daughters live in the

Maryland area, where Asbury is an

ideal location to be near his family.

—Bob Hartman, Trott reporter

Photo: Hal Gaut

Village life October 2014 15

Welcome New ResidentsMary Patricia “Pat” Squire

Mund 611, x5705Pat likes to cook, so you won’t find her in the

dining room very often. She prefers to prepare her own meals for the time being. But try to get to know her as she acclimates to our campus life; you will find her interested and interesting.

She was born in Buffalo, New York, attend-ed Holy Angels Academy there and graduated from Rosary Hill College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics and English.

Three weeks after graduation, she married Bill McPherson, whom she had known since ele-mentary school. She settled down to teach high school mathematics and English for two years before having her first child.

Eventually she and Bill had six children—four girls and two boys. Her husband’s company kept sending him to different assignments, so they moved frequently during the marriage. They

divorced after 23 years but remarried each other and were together 35 years. Of her six chil-dren, three girls and one son live in this area, one daughter lives in London where her work includes traveling throughout Europe. The other son lives in Hilton Head. She also has 13 grand-children. She is expecting her first great-grand-son next month!

After her children were grown, Pat was the Vice-President of a local financial firm and as that officer traveled extensively around the world—Europe, Australia, Hong Kong, Tahiti, Chile, etc. to attend meetings concerning their business. She left only when the firm was dissolved over ten years ago.

Pat enjoys crossword puzzles, cooking and Bridge. She is still playing bridge with a group she has known for over thirty years and which meets at the Lakewood Country Club.

—Anne Porter, Mund reporter

Sally Lusk • Trott 612, x4846Family and love of the arts have been princi-

pal features in Sally Lusk’s life. She was born in Albany, New York, and grew up in nearby Glen Falls. After high school her further education was begun at Colby Junior College in New Hamp-shire, and completed with her BA degree from American University in DC, where her major was government. Instead of entering government service, she went to Boston and worked as a sec-retary at MIT. She met her husband-to-be while he was a graduate student there. He received his PhD in food technology.

After their marriage he began work at General Mills in Minneapolis. During their five years in Minneapolis they had two children, a boy and a girl. This was the first of what turned out to be a series of moves to various cities occasioned by his work in the food production industry. Next came five years in Rockport, Massachusetts [with Gortons, at that time a subsidiary of General Mills], followed by another five years back in

Minneapolis. When the children were teenagers they spent seven years in St. Louis, and finally they ended up in Omaha. This became “home” as they lived there for the next twenty- five years. The family grew to include four grandchildren.

In addition to caring for her family, Sally enjoyed being a docent in art museums, first at the Pea-body Museum when she lived in Rockport. She especially enjoyed the period when she was really full time as a volunteer at the Minneapo-lis Institute of Arts. As Sally’s parents lived on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, vacationing there was another pleasure for the family.

The Lusks had begun to think about retiring in this area as their one of their children lives in Potomac and the other in McLean. Unfortu-nately Sally lost her husband in January of this year. When Sally continued to explore retirement communities in this area, she found just the right place on the sixth floor of Trott. She is already settled with pictures on the wall, and flowers blooming on the balcony.

—Jack Hutchings, Trott reporter

Velma Killion • Trott 108, x4321Velma Killion was born in her grandmother’s

house in Whitesboro, TX, a common experience in those days if you lived in a small town. By high school graduation the family had lived in Plainview, TX, Clovis, NM and Marietta, OK. Velma loved school and aimed to be a teacher. She attended Hills Business University and graduated in 1941.

Then came the big move, accepting a secretari-al position in Washington, DC at the Reconstruc-tion Finance Corporation. Roosevelt was then in office. Velma felt it was one of the most exciting years of her life.

Then Velma went on to more schooling at Bay-lor U in TX, obtaining a BA followed by an MA majoring in English. Velma had a good job while at Baylor, graduating debt free. She also became friends with Larry Killion before he was drafted into WW11.

Velma taught English in Edinburg, TX for a

year before moving to Arlington, VA. Upon Larry’s return from war, they married in DC. Larry con-tinued in the Air Force before retiring 13 years later. Their first daughter arrived while they were in the DC area. Then Larry and the family moved to St. Louis, MO where he obtained his PhD in Nuclear Physics.

Velma relished being a full time mother of two daughters. She was a girl scout leader, superinten-dent at the Sunday School, a substitute teacher and sewed for her girls as well.

After the girls were away in college, Velma often traveled with her husband when he went on work assignments to Europe and Scandinavia.

They had a home in Potomac and attended the Presbyterian Church there. Larry passed away in February of 2014 after a six-year illness.

Two grandsons live nearby. Her daughter Jane, and husband live in Arizona. Daughter Mary’s family is in California with their five children. Welcome, Velma, to Trott!

—Lois Lord, Trott reporter

Photo: Bob Tedesco

Photo: Hal Gaut

Photo: Hal Gaut

16 October 2014 Village life

Asbury Methodist VillageCommunications Department201 Russell AvenueGaithersburg, MD 20877-2801

Non-ProfitOrganizationU. S. Postage

PAIDRockville, MD

Permit No. 4297A NEWSPAPER FOR ASBURY METHODIST VILLAGE

VILLAGE LIFE: A NEWSPAPER FOR ASBURY METHODIST VILLAGE

The AVTV Studio’s Annual HALLOWEEN Party!

Friday, October 31 at 12:30 p.m. in the AVTV Studio.

Costumes Encouraged!

Mr. Bones and Artha Jean Snyder look boo-tiful don’t they!