the 419-wallace building’s crystal anniversary · the 419-wallace building’s crystal...

This Month in the Gallery

The Rosborough Cultural Arts and Wellness Center is

home to an ever-changing gal-lery 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.

Raymond Panczyk, Diamond Photography

Emma Michaels, Villas Watercolor

June 2014Volume 21 Number 5

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

A NEWSPAPER FOR ASBURY METHODIST VILLAGE

Volunteers—We Thank You!By Marilyn Gaut, Trott

Alot of applause and thank you’s emanat-ed from the Commu-

nity Rooms Friday, April 18, as a few of our many vol-unteers, both from on cam-pus and off, were honored for their service. 304,550.54 hours were tallied for 2013 by 2,375 volunteers. And since not everyone enters their volunteer hours those are not included in the total.

This time we had two volunteers of the year honored, Bob McDonough and Al Benson. As their many accom-plishments were read, it soon became apparent who the recipients were.

Several from off campus received thanks: Cory Albert, Cyrus Leland, Justine Raines-Drew, Alexa Gonzalez, Gis-selle Quintanilla, Afua Dou-massi, Pastor Storm. Add Nico Bernklau who is both off campus (Germany) and on campus this year in Trott.

The speakers who expressed their appreciation were: Sharon Bennett, Henry Moehring, Ann Giaquinto, Brad Andrus, Rob Monagle,

Elaine Kielman, Brent Bayes, Marlene Lesley, Aaron Tuck-er, and Kathy Everett Gaines.

A game with a prize at each table had us all laughing and then we adjourned to enjoy a beautiful table of treats and continued conversation.

The 419-Wallace Building’s Crystal AnniversaryBy Keith Steele, Wallace

On April 26, 2014, approximately 80 419-Wallace resi-

dents gathered in the Hefner Auditorium to celebrate the building’s 15th anniversary. The printed program listed names of 36 of the original residents who are still living and are still on campus. Five currently live in Kindley and two are in the Wilson Health Care Center.

The present building chair, Keith Steele, opened the meeting and introduced the guests who were present. First was Executive Director Henry Moehring, who gave us some warm congrat-ulatory words. Second was Sheila Griffith, who was assistant director for the apartments and villas when the building opened. The remain-ing guest was Wayne Cleaver from Security whom we all know and he knows us all including our names, apartment numbers and the kinds of cars we drive.

When Rev. Dr. Martha Brown arrived she gave a blessing for the residents and the building. Martha will be leaving Asbury on July 31 of

this year.Mary Waldron Ball started off the

formal portion of the program by describing the early history of the building. The building was full by the end of 1999. It consisted of persons from all different walks of life who worked together to form a social group just such as in a new hous-ing development. As time permit-ted Mary mentioned residents who through the years had made signifi-cant contributions to Asbury and to the Wallace building. She mentioned the beginning phases of things such as the library and our bulletin board. She talked a little about the parties

we have had. In days follow-ing the anniversary celebra-tion newer residents have come to me to let me know how much they learned from Mary’s remarks.

Following Mary’s presen-tation Irene Stuart, an origi-nal resident, provided two pieces on the piano. The second piece was a polka which had been written by her husband, Bob.

Next were remarks by Keith Steele. His talk was mostly concerned with the

rededication of the building as the Wallace Building. It began with a lit-tle bit about Bert Wallace but ended up being mostly about Bert’s moth-er, Maude. Money given to Asbury by Bert was in remembrance of his mother.

Maude Lula Wallace was born in Kansas. After she married she moved to Randalstown, MD where she raised Bert and his sister. She moved to the Asbury Methodist Home in September of 1953. Her room was where Rev. Martha Brown’s office is now. As we look back in the history of Asbury we find that Maude was

Photo: Hal Gaut

Al Benson

Photo: Bruce Small

Bob McDonough

The Fabulous Four; Keith Steele, Carmine Castel-lano, Earl Sulmonetti and Bruce Kuehnle.

Continued on page 10

2 June 2014 Village life

One for the Books!By Anita Taylor, Park View

Ending May 1, Gaithersburg’s American Associa-tion of University

Women, supported by patrons AMV and Moyers & Sons Moving and Stor-age, presented its highest grossing used book sale ever.

Full accounting awaits final bills; still, Anita Tay-lor, one of many AMV resident AAUW members, estimates “conservatively” that enough books went home with customers and local charities to pack at least 600 beer case-sized boxes. Sale earnings fund three scholarships at local schools, Montgom-ery College at Rockville and Germantown, and the Universities of Shady Grove. They also send three young women to attend a national leader-ship conference at the University

of Maryland, and more than $5,000 goes to the National AAUW to sup-

port graduate studies for American and inter-national students and supports the AAUW Legal Aid Fund that helps redress inequi-ties in pay and services at universities and col-leges across the U. S.

Traditionally, AAUW groups across the coun-try sponsor used book sales that both preserve books and advance educational opportu-nities for women and girls. This support helps many young (and not so young) women who could not other-wise complete a col-lege education. Today, AAUW tries to direct

most of its support to women who will be first in their families to earn degrees and whose study is in “STEM” fields where women remain

uncommon: science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Gaithersburg’s sale has a less often seen benefit, community involve-ment. Liz Hessel, sale organizer and leader, enlists dozens of youngsters from local schools and folks in our community to help carry it off. “We couldn’t do this sale without these student volunteers,” she says. “We offer each student volunteer a free book of their choice for each day they work. You would love to see how excited and pleased many of the youngsters are with this oppor-tunity.” Supervised by volunteers from the Asbury Community in addition to AAUW members, some of the youngsters come back multi-ple times, not only to earn SSL hours but because they learn to treasure the books..

We can all be proud of our resi-dents, associates and community for engaging in this worthwhile effort. Should you want to take part, join us next year. We always accept vol-unteers. Call Anita Taylor, x3101.

VILLAGELIFE

Asbury Methodist Village201 Russell Avenue

Gaithersburg, MD [email protected]

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

Village Life brought to you in part by

EditorLinda Williams Aber

Director of Communications301-216-4106

[email protected]

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

POSITION OPEN, Kindley

Resident StaffCourtyard Homes: Peter Cascio

Diamond: Mac McCullough, Jan Garman and Hal Garman

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

happy June hugs (not June bugs!) to Betty Goen who visited us all in May!

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, 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.”

Walter Bank is a Leader.

HONORING A LEADER

By Jeanne North, Trott

When Walter Bank tried to resign from the Leader-ship Team of the Asbury

Apple Corps, the Apple Team had a response designed to make his life easier while honoring his service. Reluctant to lose Walter, it gave him a new title, with no responsibilities: it designated him the first Apple Corps Executive Officer emeri-tus, with all the rights, but no bur-dens other than those he chooses to define for himself, of any other member of the extant Apple Corps Leadership Team.

Village life June 2014 3

Martha Brown, Director Pastoral Care to Retire in JulyBy Mac McCullough, Diamond Reporter

It won’t seem the same around Asbury not to see Martha Brown, in her turban and matching out-

fit, hurrying to a meeting, lunch with residents, or to a service at the Guild Chapel. A resident once asked Mar-tha why she wore that outfit and Martha replied, “Let me ask you a question first, and then I will answer yours. Do you like the clothes you are wearing? Are they comfortable? Do you think they look nice?” When the resident answered “Yes,” Mar-tha responded, “I feel the same way about mine.” Moreover, they speak to Martha’s strong African Heritage.

Martha Brown was not always a Pastor. In fact, two of her six aca-demic degrees (BS, MS and PhD) are in the field of mathematics. She held a number of progressively higher positions in the Prince George’s County school system, becoming the overall Supervisor of Mathemat-ics, K-12. But things changed in 1991. Martha’s mother died and Martha tried to make sense of it. She decid-ed going to a seminary might help her accept what had happened. She entered Wesley Theological Semi-nary that fall and graduated seven years later. She took her time to ponder and reflect on the meaning of life and death.

As part of her program, she had two opportunities to intern at

Asbury. Her Clinical Pastoral Edu-cation units for pastoral formation were all completed on the campus of AMV. After graduation from semi-nary, she didn’t come to Asbury. Instead, she left her position with Prince George’s County and became the Associate Regional Minister for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Capital Area. She stayed there for 4 years and, during what would be her last year in that posi-tion, returned to AMV for a period of discernment for her next steps in ministry. While completing addition-

al units of CPE, the position of Staff Pastor for Residential Living became vacant and Ray Stephens, Director of Pastoral Care, asked Martha if she would be willing to fill the position until he was able to find someone permanent. What was intended to be an interim position fast became a permanent one. When Ray retired in 2004, Jim Mertz, Asbury’s Executive Director, selected Martha to replace Ray and she has served as the Direc-tor of Pastoral Care ever since.

Looking back on those years, Martha feels good about a number of things: expanding the services offered to include professional counseling, making Asbury more of a faith community where it isn’t important what particular denomi-nation a resident comes from but where all are included, having Pas-toral Care invited to sit at the AMV leadership table, emphasizing and promoting the “spiritual” compo-nent of the six dimensions of total wellness, and getting more resident engagement, particularly through the PAC system. Lee Harvey tells the

story that typifies Martha’s concern for inclusiveness and engagement. Lee visited the Spiritual Life PAC to invite its members to attend one of the Jewish Communities programs. In no time Martha had convinced Lee that she would make a great chair of the PAC.

Asked what she plans on doing in retirement, Martha first said she was going to do nothing but take naps for 3 months and enjoy not making the daily 80-mile round trips from her home in Fort Washington to AMV. Seriously, she said she want-ed to have more time to give to the American Association of Pastoral Counselors, her professional organi-zation where she currently serves as the Chair of the Atlantic Region; to give to the Christian Church (Dis-ciples of Christ) Capital Area where she currently serves as Moderator-Elect and will be assuming the posi-tion of Moderator in 2015; and to spend more time with her family.

Thinking about her upcoming retirement, a number of residents reflected on the relationship with Martha. Lee Bachrach wrote, “Mar-tha has been my dear friend for many years. I shall miss her wisdom, her smile, her compassion, and, of course, her wonderful sense of humor.”

Norman Heim said, “Martha Brown is a gifted person who inspires peo-ple to do their best, be good and to believe in God. She is a friend to everyone and makes each person believe in themselves.”

Terry Herndon reflected, “It is inevitable that the unique and hum-ble grace that is Martha will move out and leave protégés to carry on.”

Henry Moehring added, “Martha is an amazing person, her wisdom and spirit have made her an invaluable as part of the Asbury Methodist Vil-lage leadership team. Her insights, understanding and perspective will be missed at our table.”

I have been blessed to be a part of Asbury Methodist Village for a bit more than 12 years, 10

of those as the Director of Pastoral Care and Counseling. It has been a good fit. I say “Good-bye” at the end of July and give thanks for the opportunity to have served.

My final thought as I retire to a more relaxed place in life — every now and then, take the time to con-

sider those things that are not the product of human ingenuity: the mountains and hills; the sun, moon, and stars; the streams and turns in the riverbeds; the flora and fauna. Pondering these can give you access to wisdom and patience and peace-filled solace, and above all, the assur-ance that you are not alone in this world.

Inspiration Point

Dear MaryMary R. Ebinger, a Pastoral Counselor and National Certi-fied Counselor, is the author of A Guide to Visitation - I Was Sick and You Visited Me and a chapter in When a Friend is Dying: A Family Deals with Grief.

By Mary Ebinger, Mund

Dear Mary:My friend just lost her husband and I don’t know what to say to her. I

know you also went through this grieving experience. Do you have some suggestions for what I can say that will be helpful?

--Sue

Dear Sue:It is difficult to know what to say to a friend or anyone at this time. Here

are some ideas.l. I am sorry for your loss.2. I am here for you if you ever want to talk.3. I don’t know what to say, but please let me hug you.4. Just be willing to listen if your friend talks about events or experienc-

es. This may be more important than anything you might say. Many times people say nothing or perhaps something inappropriate. But it is always appropriate to be willing to listen.

--Mary

Martha A. Brown Director of Pastoral Care


A Partnership to Meet the Medical Needs at Asbury

Methodist VillageBy Judy Bankson, Park View

Since the fall of 2013 when Montgomery Medical group left our campus, the challenge

of bringing to Asbury Methodist Vil-lage comprehensive healthcare ser-vices became forefront. From the beginning it was recognized that this was a crucial element of resi-dents’ lives and the best way for-ward would be a true partnership between residents, management and corporate leaders, all who have the desire to bring an outstanding, cogent system of caring for the medical needs of residents.

While some changes have come forth with a different approach and process, this healthcare task has been different from the beginning. It included residents in a complete way, not depending on brief input from focus groups. Answering the invitation from Henry Moehring, residents who had medical experi-ence, or who were very interested, volunteered. The Healthcare Ser-vices Task Force includes residents Lee Bachrach, Carolyn Bondy, Floyd Brinley, Audrey Chereskin, Lois Eber-hard, Jay Hatch, Marolyn Hatch, Jack Hutchings, Edith Isacke, David Lin-grell, Marybeth Morsink, Joan Read, Maria Roberts, Murray Schulman, Earl Sulmonetti, John Villforth, and Mary Waldron Ball. Henry Moeh-ring, Brad Andrus and Cathy Rich-ards, along with Cathy Ritter, VP for Marketing and Ann Gillespie, CSO, from Asbury Communities were also members of this group.

Following discussions of the most important elements for medical coverage, a Request For Proposals (RFP) was written, refined and sent to a number of hospital services and medical practices. As the Task Force waited for proposals in response to the requests, further work was accomplished identifying a myriad of elements of a comprehensive medical system for Asbury residents. A system for evaluating the respons-es was established.

Some questions needing answers included: How much space do you need? How many physicians and medical assistants will you bring? What kind of specialists will be available on campus? What would be your office hours? What would the On-Call procedure be? What hospitals would serve the popula-tion? What kind of medical testing

would be available on campus? Will you be able to draw blood? Would you have your own Lab here? What would have to be sent out? What kind of electronic medical record-ing does the provider use and how would that coordinate with AMV and local hospitals? What insurance would they accept? When could you start? Would home visits be available? What kind of medical coverage could you offer at Kindley and Wilson? Would the office make appointments with specific doctors? Would you be able to accommo-date walk-in emergencies? Will you offer “Behavioral” Care? Rehabilita-tion Services? How will you coordi-nate with our SARA System? How will you coordinate with Asbury At Home? How will evaluations of your services be made? What kind of ongoing oversight and communi-cations with Asbury residents will be established?

On May 5, Task Force residents and Associates met with representatives of three groups which sent propos-als in answer to our RFP: Adventist Health Care (Shady Grove), Johns Hopkins Community Physicians, and Holy Cross Health. Each group was here in an interview situation. They started with answers to ques-tions Asbury had submitted to them to clarify ideas from the proposals. After a presentation, usually by the CEO followed by other representa-tives of the hospital, questions from our Task Force were entertained. The questions were in depth and showed a breadth of knowledge of the issues at stake. Judging from the comments after each of the three meetings it was clear that impres-sive as these applicant hospital officials were, they were equally impressed with the Asbury people – residents and Associates. Respect was expressed in both directions.

The Task Force met briefly after the three interviews and ranked its preferences. Those recommenda-tions were discussed with Henry Moehring, Executive Director, who will be discussing this with Asbury Communities senior leadership. Negotiations with the provider of choice will be followed by the announcement of our new Health Care Providers. With a positive part-nership process like this, it is sure that the end result will be an excel-lent choice.

Aspirin for Reducing Your Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke: KNOW THE

FACTSThe Drug Facts label on aspirin

• Gives directions that will help you use aspirin so that it is safe

and effective for treating pain and/or fever

• Labeling information is not there to help you with how to choose

and how to use the medicine safely to lower the risk of heart

attack and clot-related stroke

• You need the medical knowledge of your doctor, nurse practitio-

ner or other health professional

FACT: Daily use of aspirin is not right for everyone

• There may be benefit if you have some kind of heart or blood

vessel disease or if you have evidence of poor blood flow to the

brain

• Aspirin use can result in stomach bleeding, bleeding in the brain,

kidney failure, and some kinds of strokes

FACT: Daily aspirin can be safest when prescribed by a medical health professional. Factors to consider:

• Your and your family’s medical history

• Use of other medicines, prescription, complementary and over

the counter

• Use of other products; allergies or sensitivities

• Side effects, dosage and directions for use

FACT: Aspirin is a drug

• Any drug — including aspirin — can have harmful side effects,

especially when mixed with other products

• The chance of side effects increases with each new drug you use

• Use of aspirin with other drugs including dietary supplements

which thin your blood should not be combined unless recom-

mended by your physician

• Pregnancy, uncontrolled high blood pressure, bleeding disorders,

asthma, peptic (stomach) ulcers, liver and kidney disease, could

make aspirin a bad choice for you

FACT: Once your doctor decides that daily use of aspi-rin is for you, safe use depends on following your doc-

tor’s directions

• Using aspirin correctly gives you the best chance of getting the

greatest benefits with the fewest unwanted side effects

• Discuss with your health professional the different forms of aspi-

rin products

• Read the label to confirm that the product you buy and use con-

tains aspirin at the correct dose

• Look for “active ingredients: aspirin or acetylsalicylic acid”

• If you are using aspirin everyday for weeks, months or years to

prevent a heart attack, stroke, or for any use not listed on the

label — without the guidance from your health professional —

you could be doing your body more harm than good

© www.fda.gov/consumer May 2010

Bob Hartman, retired Family Physician and Geriatric Specialist

Ask Dr. Bob


An Invitation to MinistryBy Anne Porter, Mund

Caring for others here at Asbury is something many

of us do every day. It’s one of the things that make this a special place to live—we truly do support one another.

There are some among us who have been trained to care in a more focused way—as Stephen Minis-ters in our own churches or here at Asbury as Caring Ministers. The Caring Minis-try of AMV functions under the Pastoral Care Depart-ment and the direct supervision of Dr. Martha Brown and The Rev. Anne Ellestad.

We are lay people who are here to help our neighbors who are going through some kind of transition; the move here, for instance, may be overwhelming; or a health problem which is difficult to cope with; the death of a spouse; a change of living conditions, e.g. a move to Kindley Assisted Living or the Wilson Health Care Center. We learn to listen and respond non-judgmentally; to ask the right questions and to withhold advice while being empathetic and understanding. Over the years, since the ministry was started by a few former Stephen Ministers, as many as fifty people have served as

Caring Ministers.All of us would say that it is one

of the most satisfying things we do. We often make good friends, but it is also satisfying to fill a void in someone else’s life. I’m sure there are people on this campus who would find the ministry rewarding.

Pastoral Care would like to add to the number of Caring Ministers and to that end we are planning a training course for the August-Sep-tember period. It will consist of six two hour sessions. If you are a for-mer Stephen Minister, the training is optional. For more information, please call either of the two Resi-dent Leaders of the Caring Ministry: Anne Porter, x 6894 or Rae King, x 3124

The Search: Looking For A PhysicianBy Jeanne North, Trott

When Montgomery Medi-cal Associates and Asbury Methodist Village

parted ways last fall, many Asbury residents fell into a deep pit of the perilous and scary unknown: with no basic medical facilities on cam-pus, how does one cope without a doctor? Moreover, with the arrival of new medical providers months, possibly many months away, how do you, in the meantime, find a medical practitioner that suits your tastes, your needs and your budget, other than going to a “Doc in a Box” or a clinic like Secure Medical Care? One of these might offer a satisfactory short-term solution, but what about a more permanent arrangement?

Asbury stepped in to help out, organizing a group of residents and AMV management personnel to send out Requests for Proposals to medical providers who might be interested in locating at Asbury, and the search for a team to replace MMA proceeded, albeit slowly.

To help those of us who didn’t want or couldn’t wait for the pro-cess to unfold, AMV offered free transportation from Asbury to the Rockville offices of MMA and some residents took advantage of that ser-vice. The plus side of that arrange-ment: transportation was free of charge, available with a phone call to the Asbury transportation office

(x4019). The down side, according to some: the wait in the MMA office for the return bus was tiresome.

Some of us sought a different solution: ask friends for ideas. Who’s your doctor? If location is important to you, ask how far away is he or she? How do you know they are competent, do they have hospital privileges? Sometimes, we forget to ask a basic question: how old are you and when are you going to retire? When the answer is “soon,” and the doctor a few weeks or months later announces his retire-ment, the patient is again left high and dry.

A third option, available to those with internet access: go on line and Google “doctors near Gaithersburg” or some such and see what you get. Look at the website, which should list the medical providers and their credentials and the scope and focus of the outfit’s mission and service. How large is the staff? Where did they get their training? Do they offer what you’re looking for? How long have they been in business? Are they in business for the long haul?

Of course, all this search may turn out to be for naught if Asbury’s search turns up a team that offers AMV a perfect match, and wouldn’t that be just great? But for those of us with immediate medical needs, there are ways to find the help we need.

By Marolyn Hatch, Villas

When I lived in Southern California many years ago, spring was official-

ly heralded by the graceful return of the swallows from their Mexi-can winter quarters to the Mission of San Juan Capistrano. These old adobe buildings thick with tradition provided a shaded, quiet nesting place for these birds. The locals considered them good luck and a spirit-lifting Mass was held annually in their honor. Spring came and the olive trees bore fruit in the gently warming days. Times have changed, and now the locals hold a raucous fiesta “in honor” of the birds that seldom return and the gentle warm spring itself seems to have aban-doned Southern California.

When Jay was young and attend-ed St Paul’s School in New Hamp-shire, he recalls spring being her-alded by the pond ice cracking. All winter the boys scraped snow from the taut surface to play ice hockey. Their voices rebounded from the

old stone chapel that stood dark and expectant against the late snow. And while the cracking of the ice may have been the first announce-ment of season change, the result-ing New Hampshire snow melt was more noticeable. Mud, mud and more mud almost seemed to swal-low the campus until the hardy daf-fodils marked the true change of seasons.

Winter at Asbury, unlike that in Southern California or New Hamp-shire, is not clearly defined. We have occasional snow accumulation, but often the winter season is simply a stasis in time. Trees seem to reach pleadingly to the sky for warm weather. The few fox or birds pres-ent are predatory, and their screech-es and howls in the deep of night are not comforting even to us who sleep in warm beds.

This year our tulips and daffo-dils asserted themselves through the cold ground and withstood the

caprice of a winter that seemed unwilling to give up. An ice scrim covered my bird bath in mid-April. I began to despair that spring would be cancelled, and we would move straight into summer heat. Certainly a few days during both March and April threatened that.

But one day in late April as I walked bundled against a chill wind, I caught the true indicator of spring. It wasn’t glorious gardens of yellow. Nor was it the flocks of male robins who each year seem to arrive much too early to catch the proverbial worm. No, it was the worm itself. Nothing so marks spring for me than the pungent, almost overpow-ering scent of spring earthworms.

There is nothing Disneyesque about an earthworm. A seemingly naked, tubular digestive machine, they eat their way through living or dead organic material. They have no eyes, no ears. They are her-maphrodites so there is no roman-

tic courting or spring family image, no Bambi and his mother with Dad standing strong and attentive. Two worms are required for each to pro-duce tiny cocoons of future eating machines.

So why do I look forward to the “scent of a worm” to think it is near-ly time to take my winter woolies to the cleaner? Because worms are indispensable to the growth of veg-etation, the flowers and fruits of the summer season. They enrich and recycle the soil. Where there are no worms, there is no garden, no lus-cious, ripe tomatoes or rich greens. Without them our dreadful soil would be even worse. Those robins would have to become vegetarians. We should greet these unattractive fellow animals with joy. The first flush of worms, often literally after a heavy rain, assures me that they rather than Punxsutawney Phil should be credited with announc-ing the true spring. I have inhaled the odorous whiff of worm. Spring is officially here.

Hallmark You Are So Wrong

Front: L-R: Bea Kikawa, Shirley Moore, Wes Bishop, Rae King; Rear: L-R: Anne Ellestad, Esther Saito, Julia Sessions, Jim Voldal, Lois Lord, Anne Porter;

Missing: Cathy Heim, Luella LeVee, Peg Vert (The Rev. Dr. Martha Brown)


By Luella Nash LeVee, Edwards-Fisher

In the springtime, our thoughts gently turn to what young peo-ple have been thinking about

all winter.After a somewhat convoluted

examination of the Bard’s oft-quot-ed message, Bobbie Carr (Diamond) and I turned our thoughts to a mod-ern-day dialogue about spring on our ride back to Asbury after a lun-cheon with friends.

“Since college, spring has always meant to me a convertible and an ice cream cone,” I opined after we passed a beautiful convertible, own-ers smiling, their hair blowing wild-ly in the wind.

“Well, I can’t get you a convert-ible,” Bobbie answered. “But let’s go find ice cream cones!”

We got lost; then, after several cell phone calls to family members for directions, we drove out Frederic Ave. to the ice cream stand we had both heard of. We got the cones and pulled off onto the shade to enjoy them

When I got home, I mused that spring also meant my 9th anniversa-

ry of living at Asbury. To commemo-rate it, I wrote the following poem – written to be part of the preface to my new book-in-progress (work-ing title: Aging Joyously) which will examine how we (many residents of AMV and elsewhere) are pursuing contentment and joy.

FINDING YOUR DREAM“Out of your plans can come a

dream”said Brad Pitt on morning television.He was promoting a new moviebut his words bounced onto meleaving a plethora of poemsabout the plans I had nine years agofor coming here to a place I con-

sidered

was a warehouse for the aged.

That was the negative imagethat I boreas I crossed the thresholdof a new life which I pursued with no joy.At the age of eighty,with mounting physical limitations,few other optionswere open to me.

Yet there was a glimmer of hope –always hope, inmy way of thinking –because I looked up and saw pink dogwood and red tulipsaround the doors of my new buildingand because someone

smiled at me.

There was steady supportfrom my familyas they helped me packand then unpackbox after box of allmy earthly possessions.But I did not look back to what

had been before.Just do the next thing, I had readand that is what I did.

So gradually the dream unfolded.I live it now.in utmost contentment,with God’s hand on me. I write about it – plus the dreams

of many others whofind contentment jn a myriad of

ways –so you may find your own dream –a life that is right for you –and that you may live it fully,exuberantly, joyously –every day, every moment

God grants to you on earth.©2014 Luella Nash LeVee

This C.O.I.K. column reminds you of the working relationship among the various administrative and advisory groups that

contribute to AMV’s budget and decision mak-ing processes. Other contributors with resident input include the Quality Service Board (com-prising Council Chairs), the Partnership Advisory Committees and Resident Task Forces.

Roles of the AMV Administration 1. To make final decisions on all matters affect-

ing AMV within the scope and authority granted by the Governing Boards.

2. To seek the opinions and suggestions of residents on matters affecting the delivery of resident programs and services at AMV. They will do this by utilizing the experience and expertise that individual residents offer through the CCAV, PACs, the Resident Councils and the apartments, Villas and Courtyard Homes QSB.

3. To make a good faith effort to obtain opin-ions and to seek suggestions early in the stage of consideration of changes or enhancements to the delivery of resident programs and services at AMV and to communicate plans to residents in appropriate timeframes.

4. To respond to the opinions and suggestions of CCAV, PACs, the Resident Councils and the apartments, Villas and Courtyard Homes QSB through a mutually agreed upon process that will enable the Administration to effectively com-municate plans to implement those opinions and suggestions or if they are not implemented to explain the reasons why.

Roles of the Asbury Communities Corporate Office

Asbury’s mission is to do all the good we can

by providing exceptional lifestyle opportunities to those we serve.

1. To support our mission by providing effi-cient, effective, thoughtful and considerate man-agement services to all of the Asbury communi-ties in the areas of:• Operations and Performance Excellence• Finance• Marketing and Communications• Human Resources• Clinical Resources• Legal and Regulatory Compliance• Information Technology • Project Development when appropriate

2. To provide system-wide strategic direction, long-range goals and financial strategies in sup-port of all the Asbury communities to effectively fulfill their mission, vision and strategic plans and to maintain their not-for-profit tax status.

3. To provide centralized systems, processes and operating standards in support of all the Asbury communities in order to provide excep-tional services to residents.

4. To innovate affordable and quality services, programs and products for current and future residents in all the Asbury communities.

Roles of the Governing BoardsThe Asbury Methodist Village Board of Gov-

ernors is responsible for oversight of AMV and focuses on:1. Master campus development, periodic review

and updates2. Annual tactical planning and budget develop-

ment input3. Quality of care and wellness philosophy

implementation4. Exceptional service for and program delivery

to residents5. Local fundraising in cooperation with Asbury

Foundation

The Asbury Atlantic Board of Directors is responsible for oversight of AMV and other relat-ed organizations and focuses on:1. Quality of services to residents2. Operational performance of the various Con-

tinuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) campuses that it owns and operates

3. Overall marketing strategies for all the areas served

4. Master campus development approval 5. Annual tactical plans, budget approval and

financial monitoring

The Asbury Communities Board of Directors is responsible for oversight of all supported organi-zations including AMV and focuses on:1. Mission, vision and core values2. System-wide strategic positioning3. System-wide financial planning and debt

structure strategy4. Management services for AMV and related

organizations5. Ratification of significant Asbury Atlantic

approvals

Please read the 2013 AMV Disclosure State-ment for further detail and clarification of the roles of Asbury Atlantic, Inc., Asbury Communi-ties and AMV. Copies should be in your libraries.

[Sources: Resident Handbook 2013, Tara McDaniel, ACOMM, Henry Moehring, AMV]

By Marolyn Hatch,Villas

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

2


Computer Corner

Eek! A mouse! No, two mice!By Jeanne North, Trott

The thing about the Apple Place is, there are always mice there. Once there was

one of the four-legged critters. Saw him with my own eyes, I did, as he scampered about the room. Hate to tell you what happened to him, but now that I’ve started, I have to finish the tale. He got swatted. Not quite smooshed, but should we say,

more delicately, incapacitated. Before Housekeeping arrived with a broom (what good that was going to be, I don’t know). Put out of business before he could find his way to the Crawford Dining Room, or the Shop-pe, or the Cafe. (I won’t say by whom, but it warn’t me.) Poor little guy.

But that’s not the kind of mouse I was going to tell you about. There are eight other mice in the Apple

Place, one for each of the beautiful gleaming iMacs that grace the place. Now each of those mice belongs to a particular iMac. If you fiddle with one, will it work its magic on its master, or if you pick up the wrong mouse, will the magic work on the iMac next door? That could get con-fusing,

Jim Utterback, coach and Wednes-day morning tutor at the Apple Place,

may have an answer. Working in the lab one day, to update the iMacs, he noted, “By the way, one pair of iMacs had their mice switched so that when you moved the mouse on the left hand machine, it controlled the right hand machine and vice versa. Is there a mouse gremlin in the house?”

A mouse gremlin?! First a live one, now a gremlin!

The Village Green - Asbury’s Re-Psychling EffortsBy Peter Cascio, Courtyard Homes

Here at Asbury we try to talk ourselves into getting a little greener every year. Lance Connolly set his mind to getting the recycling program moving and our new chief of Housekeeping, Harold

Jones, will continue this effort and think about ways to improve it physi-cally and mentally.

Let’s look at Lance’s numbers for the previous three years (in pounds).

CATEGORY 2011 2012 2013

Mixed Paper 582,359 2,351,388 1,082,199

Corrugated Cardboard (Separate) 255,018 395,148 199,778

Shredded Paper (Separate) 15,360 22,060 19,584

Commingled Materials 445,755 838,448 707,110

Scrap Metal 58,920 59,131 54,771

Yard Trim (everything that was once green & growing) Brickman

760,000 1,520,000 500,000

Batteries 300 No entry No entry

Trash 3,571,236 4,669,358 3,164,774

Electronic waste 1,332 146

Lights: tubes, bulbs, ballast 415 2,511

Oil: cooking grease 650 850

Carpet 134,425

Totals 5,688,948 9,857,930 5,866,148

Right at the start we notice that last year we recycled less than half as much Mixed Paper as the year before. As soon as the words were almost out of my mouth both Harold and his assistant Becky Baxley improved my education almost in unison with: “Because we bought less than half as much paper.” To achieve a more accurate measurement we should probably include paper purchases in this comparison in the future.

Commingled Materials is made up of our discarded glass, plastic and tin cans. We throw our paper in with it for collection day but it is removed and measured separately as Mixed Paper.

Our Scrap Metal is collected from us by Operations & Maintenance staff after we call 4071 for a work order to pick it up. The category includes pots & pans, large appliances, furniture, tools and pipes. Soup cans still go in Commingled Materials.

Yard Trim is taken away by Brickman; weighed, chipped and returned to us as mulch.

I asked Harold about all the lowly plastic bags like those often hanging from our trees. The word is that bundled together they can be deposited at most grocery stores. Sometimes signs on these plastic bag depositories say, “Plastic grocery bags only.” Thus, what do we do with those clean zip-lock bags from the deli or the bags from our bird seed or dry cleaners or the bags that our new mattress or computer or newspaper came in. Plus we have all that bubble wrap we are saving in the garage just in case we get an opportunity to ship it to someone else as cushioning.

Such plastic goes out with the Trash. I allowed as how much it must be contributing to our non-biodegradable landfills every day. Harold said he will take that observation to the next Montgomery County meeting and maybe there will be a solution.

Meet Harold Jones, Director of HousekeepingBy Marilyn Gaut, Trott

Asbury’s new Director of Housekeep-ing, Harold Jones, has only been here a few weeks, but he already has

good feelings about Asbury. He says, “ this place breathes happiness and community.” He walks everywhere because the campus is so beautiful. (He still gets lost now and then.)

Before coming here he worked at George Washington University Hospital. He has used his job moves to widen his experience, but he particularly likes working at a retire-ment community where he can get to really know the people. He also likes working for Sodexo. His Rookie of the Year Award from

them is very special to him.When asked what he liked outside of

work, he said he loves cars, especially mus-cle cars. He has had 8 Camaros and 4 Dodge trucks. He also does some weight lifting and likes technology gadgets. But Harold Jones’ biggest joy is his 3-year-old daughter, Cache. She is adorable. I’m sure he will show you pictures of her. They take frequent road trips to South Carolina to see his sister (Cache’s aunt).

At present Harold lives in Prince Georges County, but is hoping to move to this area soon. We welcome him to Asbury!

Harold Jones

8 June 2014 Village life Village life June 2014 9

Behind the scenes at VILLAGE LIFE: THE MUSICAL

It’s show time in the Rosborough Theatre. Everyone is comfortably seated, and eager-ly awaiting the premiere of VL the Musi-

cal. But wait, something is seriously amiss. The curtain has opened on a dark stage, and while there appears to be some shadowy activity, there is no sound. Strange!

Well, that’s what it would be like if a few unsung (this is a musical after all) heroes weren’t quietly doing their jobs. Long before we even took our seats this evening these anon-ymous folks have been hard at work behind the scenes responding to the director, helping

the actors, organizing lights, choreographing microphones, setting sound levels, and a myr-iad of other chores to create the environment that we all take for granted. Ironically the mea-sure of their success is whether we enjoyed the production without being aware of what they were doing.

The gentlemen we’re talking about are David Kosow, Nico Bernklau, Eric Thornett and Joon Kim. Without them the show could not have been the hit that it was. And if you weren’t conscious of their efforts, they must have been doing a very good job. Well done!

Photo: Joon Kim

It’s All Over But the Shouting...N o more early morning calls from Larry or Harry

or Lawrence or Lewis about the set-up for Hef-ner auditorium;

no check-ups from Joon or Eric or Keith about lighting cues or scene changes or video-taping in Rosborough.

No slogging bags of scripts and lyrics and sheet music to relentless rehearsals. No 3:00 a.m. emails to Gail Flanagan about cast calls or rehearsal times or script changes or the printing of all the music.

“ Village Life: The Musical” in Rosborough Theatre is all over but the shouting! And what shouting there has been!

Not only did stories appear in Asbury’s Village Life newspaper and Park View’s “Breeze,” but in a front page article in Gaithersburg’s Gazette on May 21 and a week later in the Washington Post’s Lifestyle as well!

And why was this story so newsworthy? Because we’re all so old? I DON’T THINK SO!

Like The Little Engine That Could, that huffed and puffed its way up the mountain, chanting, “I think I can, I think I can,” our cast of 41 performers plus 10

stage crew “Knew We Could, Knew We Could” and we did!

The cast heard from the very beginning that this would not be a “sit down” show where they’d sit in rows of chairs on the stage, holding their music books in their hands. Instead, they’d stand up and sing and move and dance...not for one number, but for 13 numbers for more than an hour. Yes, they

might grow tired, but their exhilaration would carry them through. And it did, for three and a half months of rehearsal and two nights of actual performances.

The word, “invalid,” is in-val-id at Asbury! Why does anyone expect less from us just because we’re in our 70s and 80s and 90s? WE know you should see us and Anticipate MORE!

At the close of “Village Life: The Musical,” Agatha Sigmond, Diamond, sings...

“I Think Young,I don’t think like fuddy duddies,Justin Bieber suits me fine,Frankly he and I are buddies,Even though I’m 99!”

If you think young, you are young. My philosophy has always been: “As the reflection of God, man/woman has infinite capabilities, limitless opportuni-ties and ceaseless occupation.”

At Asbury Methodist Village, we prove that every day!

(P.S. Ladies--hang on to those white pants for next year’s show!)

Z-Notes

By Phyllis W. Zeno, Wallace

Musical Director Sylva McCulloh

Bag Ladies of Asbury Carmine Castellano, Gordon Forbes, Dave Lingrell, SARA Joan Dunlop, Dick Evans and Bob Wood sing

about SARA to the rescue

Wouldn’t it be amusing

to see retired performers

flocking to Asbury now?

Congratulations!

Chantal Astore, Villas

At right, Gordon Forbes, Barbara Melzer and

Scott Brewer are ready for the finale!

Mary Waldron Ball, Elaine Neidecker, and Joan Dunlop meet in the Village Life office

A poem by Langston Hughes below expresses my thought today: Hold fast to dreams For if dreams die’ Life is a broken winged bird That cannot fly. Hold fast to dreams For when dreams go Life is a barren field Frozen with snow

Thank you. Scott Brewer, Diamond. Barbara Barnard, Joan Dunlop, and Tony Barnard in "You'"re Much Too Good For the Average Man."

I’d like to add to the chorus of praise you are undoubtedly receiving following the debut of the musical. You had me smiling from ear to ear the whole time. Thank you for bringing so many laughs and creating an outlet for artis-tic expression for dozens. Bravo. Warmly, Pat O’Toole

I laughed and clapped

so hard I thought my

hands would come off.

Kathy Lowe, Edwards-Fisher

Linda Aber owes her singing career to Mother, Artha Jean Snyder

Thank you! The two words are not enough to fully tell you how much joy you have given us... to find out Grandpa is going on stage.

Mary Castellano, Wallace

Nice to have the men sing-ing some numbers them-selves. Best of all was your reference to “next year!” It would be fabulous if you took this on again. Thanks for all the work that went into this. Much appreciated by all! Phyllis Naylor, Trott

Congratulations on your wildly successful produc-tion. It was truly a winner. “Thank you for giving so much of your “Gifts of the Spirit” for all of us to enjoy.Betty Fiske, Wallace

Phyllis Zeno, Music and Lyrics and more!

I had no idea that moving

to Asbury would present

an opportunity to be on

the stage—a completely

new experience and one

that was most enjoyable.

Thank you for encourag-

ing me to participate.

Barbara Barnard,

Diamond

Thank you for giving all of us a wonderful expe-rience to treasure. Ruth Anne Thran, Villas


By Keith Steele, Wallace

Many of you probably know that I have been work-ing for a long time on the

genealogy of my family. I have also done some investigation into my wife’s ancestors. So this is about her and her roots.

Genevieve’s mother was a Dodson. Much work has been done on the Dodson family line and Genevieve’s ancestry has been traced back to John Dodson, who was born in Eng-land in 1588. Recently I found some stories about John.

John Dodd (son) was born in 1588 in England. John departed Lon-don aboard the Susan Constant on December 19, 1606 along with Capt. John Smith. The Susan Constant, along with her sister ships, the Dis-covery and the Godspeed, arrived on the Virginia coast on May 6, 1607. The ships were driven inland by a storm and they took refuge in the area that is now known as Hampton Roads, Virginia. They then sailed up the James River landing at Jamestown. John Dodd was listed as a laborer on the passenger list for the original 105 settlers of Jamestown. He was also a soldier in the expeditions against the Indians. The colonists erected cabins out of poles and branches and some dug caves to live in. The site of the colony was unhealthy, and the deaths, especially during the first few years, were horrifying. From 1606 to 1618, a period of 12 years, eighteen hundred immigrants sailed from Eng-land for Virginia. At the end of that

time only six hundred were living. Attacks by Indians, starvation, and the system of holding property in com-mon added to the difficulties of the colonists. But by 1612 they began to grow tobacco and they fared better. In spite of the hardships, John Dodd survived and was reported to have been a mighty hunter and fur trader and in his dealing with the Indians became the possessor of large bod-ies of land.

John married Jane Eagle Plume. Jane was born about 1575; she was the daughter of Chief Eagle Plume, Chief of The Iroquois Indian Nation. The census taken by the Virginia Company of London in the years 1624 and 1625 lists John Dodd and his wife Jane living in the Land of Neck village along with forty other individuals. John and Jane had two children: Jesse Dodson b.1621 and William Dodson b. 1623. In naming his sons John probably used the pop-ular practice of the day, known as patronymics. Patronymics describe the act of creating a new name for male members of a family by adding the suffix “son” to the father’s last name. If this was the case the name Dodson stood for Son of Dod.

I was able to find information on the parents of his wife Jane Eagle Plume. Chief Eagle Plume was given his name by whites. I seriously doubt

Native Americans had surnames back in the 1500s. Eagle Plume’s real name was Opechancanough. He was the brother of Powhatan. Nikkiti aka Jane Eagle Plume was his daughter married to John Dodson/Dods. Pow-hatan’s daughter was Pochohantas aka Rebecca Rolfe, after she was bap-tized and married. Jane and she were first cousins. This story was passed down through the Dodson’s and descendants. Chief Eagle Plume led the Jamestown massacre.

“Opechancanough”, a Powhatan chief, born about 1545, died in 1644. He captured Capt. John Smith shortly after the arrival of the latter in Vir-ginia, and took him to his brother, the head-chief Powhatan. Sometime after his release, Smith, in order to change the temper of the Indians, who jeered at the starving English-men and refused to sell them food, went with a band of his men to Opchancanough’s camp under pre-

tense of buying corn, seized the chief by the hair, and at the point of a pis-tol marched him off a prisoner. The Pamunkey brought boat-loads of pro-visions to ransom their chief, who thereafter entertained more respect and deeper hatred for the English. While Powhatan lived, Opechan-canough was held in restraint, but after his brother’s death in 1618 he became the dominant leader of the nation, although his other brother, Opitchapan, was the nominal head-chief. He plotted the destruction of the colony so secretly that only one Indian, the Christian Chanco, revealed the conspiracy, but too late to save the people of Jamestown, who at a sudden signal were massa-cred, March 22, 1622, by the natives deemed to be entirely friendly.

In the period of intermittent hos-tilities that followed, duplicity and treachery marked the actions of both whites and Indians. In the last year of his life, Opechancanough, taking advantage of the decisions of the bat-tle on a litter when the Powhatan, on April 18, 1644, fell upon the settle-ments and massacred 300 persons, then as suddenly desisted and fled far from the colony, frightened perhaps by some omen. Opechancanough was taken prisoner to Jamestown, where one of his guards treacher-ously shot him, inflicting a wound of which he subsequently died.

Opechancanough (alias Chief Eagle Plume) and his wife Princess Cleopatra “Scent Flower” were Gen-evieve’s ninth great grandparents.

Then the question became, “ Do I call my wife, my squaw or my prin-cess?” No contest. She is my PRIN-CESS.

Mac and Zil

very active. In the old home the pre-cursor to Village Life was the Chit Chat, which was published by the residents using an old mimeograph machine. At first, Maude was a report-er for the floor she lived on, but then for some time she was the editor of the newsletter.

Maude passed away in 1990 just two months short of her 104th birth-day. She had been at Asbury for 37 years. Maude was a generous-hearted person. She had minimal assets but she gave as she could and volun-teered wherever she could. So that is why Keith said that he likes to think of our building as the “Maude Wal-lace Building.”

Keith pointed out a display on the table which noted many of the accomplishments of our residents

and the interesting history scrap-books compiled by Genevieve Steele. These scrapbooks are always avail-able in our library.

To conclude the formal part of the program a male quartet, the Fabulous Four, consisting of Carmine Castel-lano, Bruce Kuehnle, Earl Sulmonetti and Keith Steele, rendered a musical piece about the building. The lyrics of the song had been written by an original member of this group, Bob Bernero, who recently had passed away. The song has been sung by a quartet at the 5th anniversary, the 10th anniversary and now at the 15th although the members of the quartet are always changing.

Following the program wine, punch, cake and munchies were served and good fellowship contin-ued for some time. Apparently from the conversations overheard, the res-idents are all glad they live at Asbury.

My Princess

Genevieve Steele, a real princess.

ANNIVERSARYContinued from page 1


Father Val’s Outstanding Service Award

By Deacon John Locke, Trott

Fr. Val is known to many on the Asbury campus and if you have not yet met him, you will be in for a delightful experience when and if you do. He was raised on a farm

in Ireland. He was ordained in 1973 for the Archdiocese of Washington. His roots are deep and he goes back to Ireland a few times a year to work on the farm with his brothers and fam-ily. When he is here, his service is continual; he is available to bring the last rites to anyone at any time of the day or night. He served at several parishes in the Archdiocese and has deep roots in Montgomery County. At the present time he lives at St. Mary’s Parish in Rockville where he says

Mass every Sunday, on First Friday and Holy Days. He says two Masses at Asbury on Sunday, one in the Wilson Health Care Center at 9:00 a.m. and one in the Guild Chapel at 11:00 a.m.

Named after St. Valentine, the saint associated with love, Fr. M. Valentine Keveny (he prefers to be called Father Val) is con-stantly at work as a hospital and nursing home chaplain. He seeks to bring Christ’s love to the sick, to the elderly and to the dying whom he serves. He is known far and wide for red vests and red socks. He is forever asking all he greets, whether Catholic or not, to pray for him as he prays for them.

Speaking after the annual Rose Mass on March 30, 2014, at Little Flower Church in Bethesda, Cardinal Wuerl suggested that the John Carroll Society in the Archdiocese of Washington has demonstrated for many years a Christ’s love with the poor and sick. Pope Francis doesn’t just tell us what the Gospel says, he shows us how to do it. The Rose Mass is celebrated annu-ally to seek God’s blessings on the medical, dental, nursing and allied health care workers and on many health care institutions of the Archdiocese of Washington. The Rose symbolizes life, whose care is entrusted to the healing professions.

Cardinal Wuerl presented a special medallion commemorat-ing Pope Francis’ work to four members of the Society. He also presented the Msgr. Harry A. Echle Award to Fr. Val for outstand-ing service in Health Care Ministry. It was named for a priest who served as a longtime hospital chaplain in the Archdiocese.

Fr. Val is a very busy guy and we love him.

The Beloved Community Initiative (BCI) Celebrates a Successful Year

By Jan Garman, Diamond

Dark and threatening skies with dire predictions of thunder-storms and flooding kept

some students and their families from attending the second annual End of Year Showcase for the Beloved Com-munity Initiative (BCI) on Thursday evening, May 15 but others managed to brave the elements. They were joined by dedicated and supportive Asbury residents and BCI community part-ners who enjoyed an evening of dancing, food and fellowship.

Fourth and fifth grade students had a chance to reenact a bit of their Janu-ary Q and A with Asbury resident and author, Phyllis Naylor. (One of the BCI’s community partners brought her young son so he could meet Mrs. Naylor, who was the subject of his research project!) Sixth graders and mentors-in-training shared their understandings of the pillars of character, which has been the underly-ing theme of the Asbury mentors’ and the students’ work together. Added to the mix were a proclamation of May 15, 2014 as “Beloved Community Day” in Gaithersburg by Mayor Sidney Katz, a brief and lively video prepared by former Wesley Seminary BCI intern, Jazmine Steele, and expressions of grat-itude from two young men on behalf of the students from Gaithersburg Elementary School who attended the

fiftieth anniversary celebration of the 1963 March on Washington with the BCI last August.

Emceed by BCI’s Advisory Commit-tee Vice-Chair, Carolyn Camacho, aided by BCI’s Resident Coordinator, Hal Gar-man, the evening also featured tributes to Reverend Dr. Martha Brown, who has guided the BCI since its inception, and to Nico Bernklau, AMV’s intern from

Germany, who has played an important role in the BCI this past year. Both Dr. Brown and Nico will be greatly missed when they leave Asbury this summer. The evening was capped by colorful dances performed by Raices Hondu-reñas with a two-year-old dancer who stole the show, and delicious Hondu-ran cake, almost too beautiful to eat. The BCI is grateful to AMV’s Executive Director, Henry Moehring, for his pres-ence and support, to Joon Kim for his technical expertise all evening and to the AMV Housekeeping Staff, as well as many others who made the celebra-tion possible. Dark skies and rain may have prevailed outside, but inside it was bright and lively indeed!

Ready For Summer Travel? Try Cuyahoga Valley National ParkBy Jean Hubbell, Villas

Many Asbury residents, like me, may have never heard of this national park in

northeastern Ohio. It is only a 6 or 7-hour drive away and is a more recent addition to the National Park Service list, having achieved its National Park status in 2000. It is one of our largest parks encompassing 33,000 acres along 22 miles of the Cuyahoga River valley. Cuyahoga is the Indian name for crooked, which aptly describes that river with its many turns on its way to Lake Erie from farther south. Earlier it was designated by Congress in l974 as

the Cuyahoga Valley National Rec-reational Area, an urban part of the National Park system. It is managed by the National Park Service cooper-ating with owners of property with-in its boundaries. The Park is also part of the Ohio and Erie Canalway extending 110 miles from Cleveland to New Philadelphia.

I had the opportunity to enjoy part of this beautiful park while visiting in Brecksville where my daughter’s family moved a few years ago. Brecksville is one of the com-munities in the greater Cleveland area and is one that borders the Park. My introduction to the Park included a short walk on the canal

towpath and a drive through other areas of the Park including a stop to hike out to see Brandywine Falls, a beautiful sight. The Park offers many activities with lots of bike and hike trails and also horse trails, variety of picnic areas, 4 golf courses, fish-ing, canoeing and kayaking, visits to historic homes and farms with-in the Park boundaries, and a sce-nic railroad that runs through the park with opportunities to stop and reboard at various points of inter-est. A Park Ranger is on board to discuss natural features and history. At the Canal Visitors Center, exhibits illustrate the 12,000 years of history including that of the canal. Other

visitor centers feature exhibits espe-cially designed for children. Rangers also lead nature walks where visi-tors might see one of the 200 great blue herons in the park as well as over l00 other species. Many spe-cial cultural events are scheduled throughout the year.

Interestingly enough, although the Park itself is surrounded by urban communities, the small town of Peninsula is totally surrounded by the Park. There is far more to see and do than can be covered here but all in all, it is a beautiful Park and well worth considering for a sum-mer adventure.

Fr. Val

Photo credit: Hal Garman


Asburyians Cruise Charleston To JacksonvilleSat April 5th – Vivian Otto, Group leader, Diamond

With thirteen Asbury residents, and three friends, we left by Eyre bus to BWI, flying to Charleston to start our

week-long cruise on American Cruise Line where the captain greeted us on the ship. The ship left Charleston and headed south .

Sun 6th – St. Helena’s Island, Claire McLaughlin (a new friend from Silver Spring)

In the company of a knowledgeable and delightful tour guide, we were taken back in time by a visit to St. Helena’s Island. There we visited Penn Center, the first school for slaves in the South. We toured historic sites dating from the arrival of the first African slaves in 1736 and their descendants through the Civil War era. These are known as Gullah communities today for the lan-guage developed over the years. Walked the ruins of the Chapel of the Ease and Cemetery where slaves worshiped – constructed of the tabby material of crushed oyster shells, lime and sand. We viewed a lovely restored plantation house and beautiful gardens. Our last stop was Coffin Point Community House, called a “Praise House” where slaves gathered to worship and “shout” – a tiny, tiny house – amazing!

Monday, 7th – Hilton Head, Jean Hubbell, Villas

Hilton Head was the tour of the day. The alliga-tor tour took us to a wildlife preserve in the inte-rior of the island. At the waterway we boarded boats and toured a beautiful area teaming with alligators in the water and birds of various kinds. Of particular interest were the anhingas or snake-birds, members of the cormorant family. They are large black birds who perch in trees and spread their large wings to dry. When hunting they are submerged in the water with only a snake-like head above water. Of most interest was the moth-er alligator with six little ones, stretched out on the bank soaking up sun. The island is 12 miles long and up to 5 miles wide and named after Capt. William Hilton, an Englishman who arrived in the Sound in 1663. Plantations over the years were growing indigo, rice and sea island cotton. In 1770 the cotton gin was invented, making cot-ton a profitable crop.

Tues 8th – Savannah, Jean Young, Villas

Our next stop was Savannah, Georgia. A num-ber of us boarded the trolley for a delightful tour of this beautiful city. General James Oglethorpe, a representative of King George, landed here on February 12, 1733 with about 100 people who would start agriculture in the area. Early products were Carolina rice, indigo dye and cotton. The city of Savannah was founded on that date and today is an industrial center and haven for tour-ists. It was a strategic port city in the American Revolution and during the Civil War, and one of the first planned cities in the United States. It was the prime objective of General Sherman’s march to the sea in 1864. We visited the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum on the tour and were treated to a breakfast reception. On the tour we passed a lovely park with a statue of John Wesley. In 1735 John Wesley and his brother Charles sailed from England to Savannah at the request of James

Oglethorpe, who wanted John Wesley, an Anglican cleric, to be the minister of the newly formed Savannah parish. His mission was unsuccessful, however, and he eventually returned to England.

Wed. 9th – Sapelo Island, GA, Jane Carroll, Villas

The day kicked off with a lively lecture on the history of pirates. The most notorious years were 1670-1730, when shiploads of gold, silver, rice, tobacco, and other valuable goods passed through the Caribbean and attracted the atten-tion of pirates, who lurked among the marshes and islands. In the afternoon we toured Sapelo Island with a descendant of slaves who were brought there in the early 1800s to work the plantations. Now only 48 people live there, and the island is home to the University of Geor-gia Marine Institute and the National Estuarine Research Reserve. Highlights of our visit were an oyster roast and visits to the newly restored Sapelo Island lighthouse and to South End House. Built in l810 as a plantation house, it was mod-ernized in l934-64 by R.J. Reynolds as a winter retreat and is now owned by the Georgia Dept. Of Natural Resources.

Thurs. 10th – Brunswick Joyce Waugh, Wallace

Docked in Brunswick, Ga., the county seat for Glynn Co., population 16,000, offices for legis-lature and lawyers. The morning tour by coach through the marsh memorialized in a poem by Sidney Lanier, to Jekyll Island, now owned by the State of Georgia. At the Sea Turtle Center which rescues and rehabilitates we saw a turtle actu-ally be operated on by a doctor. Many turtles are returned to the wild while others remain there for protection. Trolleys carried us past eleven remain-ing homes, the hotel and church where many weddings take place. Once the home of the very wealthy as a fishing and hunting retreat, now all can enjoy this park. After lunch on the ship, Independence, a coach took us to another island, St. Simons, for a tour with Bunny, a local fixture who provided a colorful account of the history. It seemed like a prosperous, well maintained beach community. The state flower, Cherokee Rose, treat-ed us to its annual ten-day appearance.

Fri. 11th – Fernandina Peter Cascio, Courtyards

Barbara and I aimed for a totally relaxed cruise leaving all our resident-participant obligations behind. It worked for a day and a half until Vivian started asking seven different travelers to write

about one day each. My awarded day was num-ber seven. If my memory is correct (and often it isn’t) we docked around midday at Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida. After yet another perfect lunch our group of a dozen or more was led around the town by a local guide. The history of Fernandina Beach was formed over the cen-turies by the various dominant though compet-ing occupiers who were Native Americans (the Creek Indians), the French, the Spanish and other European immigrants who also thought they had a right to the place. I could be wrong, but my understanding of the Creeks is that they were various Seminole tribes accommodating both freed and escaped slaves into their ranks. This, in combination with the other inhabitants, was not conducive to harmony. Thus the local expression hopeful of continuing neighborhood peace arose: “God willin’ and the Creeks don’t rise.” Like a lot of the southeastern Atlantic coastal towns, the local economy rose and fell with the times. Ame-lia Island has some stabilizing industries (wood pulp, wood chips and cement; shrimp fishing has almost entirely gone to the shrimp farms of Southeast Asia. Tourism was mainly going to the neighboring islands of St. Simon’s and Jekyll. Not-ing this, the town fathers changed the name from Fernandina to Fernandina Beach, thus creating a local summer attraction to add to its more estab-lished influx of winter tourists from the north.

Sat. 12th – Home Terry Herndon, CourtyardsWhen the odyssey is for a limited term, there

must be a last day with all of its strange emotions. For our little band of travelers, the beginning of the end was midnight on the day before because this was the deadline for putting our packed bags outside the stateroom door. The short night’s dreams were filled with fantasies revitalized by the low country—pirates sorting their treasures in the marshes; cavaliers and ladies waltzing in grand homes hidden behind live oaks covered with Spanish moss; shrimpers, crabbers, and fish-erman harvesting the bounty of the waterways. Sunrise came quickly and presented an uncom-monly beautiful serenity. The sky was rose col-ored; the smooth water glistened; the anchored sailboats bobbed all around us; both Fernandina Beach and its marina came to life. We could delight in the scene and the interrupted memories if not the departure. But, on the other hand, there were sweet thoughts of home, and we had been gone long enough.

The wonder of America’s twenty-first centu-ry technology, while considerably less than Star Trek’s “beam me up,” moved us home efficiently. A van, a plane, and a bus brought us safely to the front door of the Diamond building. The cruise had been wonderful, but nary a sight nor an expe-rience on the trip was as sweet as the anticipation of entering the Asbury gate. The cherry blossoms, the pear trees, the forsythia, the daffodils were glo-rious. For us home is a beautiful place. We are the blessed of the blessed, and we are thankful: Happy as we go, but happier still when we are home.

PS. Those not writing but were with us are: Esther Saito, Lois Fisher, Diane Carvey, Sylvia Hughes, Jane Farber, Jeanne Lacerte, Jane Carroll, Barbara Ellis and Mary Herndon.

Vivian Otto joins Walter Bank, Donna and Chuck Taylor and others for dinner on the ship.


A Family Gathering: Wishing the Young People WellBy Jeanne North, Trott

The May 22 Keese School event was not only a cel-ebration of the end-of-the-

academic-year but also an acknowl-edgment of the achievements of 14 servers from the Crawford and Hef-ner Dining Rooms. The ceremony brought Asbury friends and relatives together in a joyous family gather-ing, a convivial party of a standing-room only crowd (until some 25 extra chairs were brought in to sup-plement the 100 already set up) that cheered and applauded as the win-ners received their awards.

Challenges and adventures are nothing new to the 14 servers hon-ored at the ceremony, who are used to juggling classes, study and jobs (sometimes more than one) as well as family responsibilities. Now it’s on to even more ambitious territory.

With donations of $14,272 from residents added to the $4000 from the Keese School, a grand total of $18,272 was available for educa-tion awards. This meant that each of the 14 chosen servers could

receive an award of $1,300, desig-nated to their college or university for tuition. These servers from Craw-ford received such awards:

Carlos Alcantara (Montgomery College, Rockville), Jessica Cespedes (Montgomery College, German-town), Oscar Lopez (Montgomery College, Germantown), Aniqua Mat-thews (Johnson & Wales University, North Miami, FL), Chorister Nfonkaa

(Towson University, Towson, MD), Mitch-ell Vanderhall (The Art Institute of Washington, Arlington, VA), Rayven Williams (Montgomery College, Takoma Park, MD).

And these servers from Hefner received awards of a similar amount, each desig-nated to their col-lege or university for tuition:Kimberly Agui-lar (Old Dominion Uni-versity, Norfolk, VA), Sara Cruz (Montgom-

ery College, Rockville, MD), Tiffany Fletcher (University of Maryland, College Park, MD), Alexia Guidry (Montgomery College, German-town, MD), Devon Mathis (Freder-ick Community College, Frederick, MD), Priscilla Oppong Owusu-Siaw (Montgomery College, Rockville, MD), Drevan Thomas (Montgomery College, Germantown, MD).

In another gesture of support,

Mary Lou Luff, representing the Catholic community on the Asbury campus, gave each winner an award of $150 for books.

Along with the celebration of the servers, there was some busi-ness news: Dean Don Woodward announced that the search is on to find a replacement for Dr. Norman Heim, Concert Coordinator, who is retiring; also, the Keese School is suspending tours for the coming year, pending additional review of the alternatives.

Marybeth Morsink, Chair of the Education Awards Committee, who has left her mark on the program by professionalizing it and broad-ening the appeal for funds within the Asbury community, introduced Bruce Kuehnle, her successor.

Finally, Frances Stickles, president of the Keese School, introduced Dave Kosow, next year’s president, who acknowledged the eagerness of the crowd for sustenance and sociability and the fun continued over the food and group hugs as friends and family rejoiced.

Remembering Ma on Mother’s Day!Editor’s note: The ending of this article, which is important, was inadvertently left off in the May issue. Here it is in its entirety.

By Harvey Meltzer, Wallace

Inever had a mom or dad. I was born in 1926, and in those years, parents weren’t called Mom

and Dad. I called my parents what my older brothers called them... Ma and Pa, and our last name was not Kettle.

I was privileged to have two very special parents ... a mother who was not only a parent, but a friend, pal, defender, co-conspirator and fantas-tic chef and baker. And a father who was a very strict disciplinarian ... a mentor who taught me how to play bridge, checkers, chess and to root for the NY Giants baseball and football teams.

His special attribute was his love for my mother.

My mother had asthma in an age when people died from it, as did her younger sister. My father did not tell her about it for a year after her death. He issued strict orders to his three sons to be sure to do the dishes, make the beds, vacuum the carpets, etc., etc., etc. And my pal let this youngest son goof off, and

she kept it secret from my father. I could break any rule, and she covered for me.

Then World War II arrived, and son Number Two joined the Navy. When I reached age 18 in March, 1944, I registered for the draft and secretly volunteered for immedi-ate induction. In April, my induc-tion notice arrived, but my moth-er was not told because I would be in the Army three days after Mother’s Day. So my father’s rule was observed, and it was not until Monday, May 15, 1944, she was told. My father’s Army instruc-tions to me were simple. Do not write anything that would cause my mother to worry.

So off I went into the Army, and my first stop was Camp Croft in South Carolina. Four summer months of 24-mile forced marches through the countryside and worse!

At its end, I was sent to the 42nd Infantry Division, but first came a furlough. And I had diligently sent letters home telling how wonderful the Army was. One day my mother sat me down and told me a neigh-bor said her son wrote telling her how terrible this Camp Croft was. I had to convince my mother he was

in a different area of the camp, and I did.

Soon after arriving in Camp Gru-ber, OK, with the 42nd Division, we were sailing from New York to Marseille, France, arriving Decem-ber 8, 1944. Then we were off to Strasbourg and to the 90th Division on December 26. I was still writing home twice a week, but then in Jan-uary, we were sent to the front lines.

Living in a foxhole when it was five degrees below zero was no place for writing letters. After three weeks, we were taken off the front and sent to a rest area. And it was here I realized that I had not written home in three weeks. My father would surely give me hell! So I back-dated a bunch of letters. Then I decided to play it safe, so I post-dated a bunch of letters.

I was so proud of myself over this creative idea that I did this post-dating until the war ended in Europe. And when I finally came home in May, 1946, the subject never came up!

So fast forward 60 or so years, and I am sitting in a chair relax-ing and thinking of the war, and a terrible scenario races through my head:February 9, 1945, an Army offi-

cer delivers a notice to my parents telling them their son Harvey was killed in action on 2/1/1945.

February 16, 1945, a letter from Harvey arrives, dated 2/7/1945.

February 21, 1945, a letter from Harvey arrives, dated 2/11/45.

Let the Army explain this one to Ma and Pa!

Harvey and his Ma

Photo: Hal Gaut

A proud crowd gathered to see 14 Asbury dining associates accept their awards.


The Erickson life journey is a fas-cinating all-American story. Carl’s American story starts when a great- grandfather in Sweden wanted his son to follow him into the zinc mines. The lad had other ideas and ran away from home, all the way to America. In Boston, the run-away married another Swedish immigrant, a cook he met on his milk deliveries. Their son married a Scotch Irish-American and became an international banker, who was posted to the Dominican Republic, where Carl was born. It was only when the family returned to the US in 1944 and settled in Washington, DC that Carl learned English…no, it wasn’t Swedish that he was speak-ing, but Spanish…Scandinavia came back into his life later with Astrid.

Carl graduated from The Citadel in 1962 and served as an infantry officer in West Germany. He then became a management trainee at Riggs National Bank, where he met Astrid. Astrid was born in Swe-den, daughter of a lawyer for the city of Orebro and a Norwegian mother from Oslo who was edu-cated in Music in Wiesbaden, Ger-many. Swedish and Norwegian are mutually understandable despite their differing accents, and Astrid

still remains fluent in both after 50 years in the USA. Astrid was receiv-ing her higher education in foreign languages when her mother died, so she returned home to care for a younger sister. Astrid applied her love of mathematics to work in a bank for a couple of years and then at age 24 decided to go to America for a year to perfect her English. To support herself that year, she went to work as an international teller at

Riggs National Bank, where she was delighted to coordinate paperwork with the handsome young manage-ment trainee with a Swedish name, and they married in 1966. Carl received an MBA from Loyola and continued as a corporate planner at Riggs, Perpetual Financial Corp, Commodity Credit Corp, and the US Departments of the Treasury and Homeland Security until retirement in 2007. Once their youngest was

in high school, Astrid specialized in accounting and taxes. She became an IRS Enrolled Agent in 1984 by passing an exam similar to that for a CPA but pertaining to taxes. She also retired in 2007 but continues to be called upon by an accounting firm during tax season.

Astrid remains active in the Nor-wegian- and Swedish-American communities in the greater DC area. She loves various handicrafts, such as pottery, knitting, embroi-dery, and sewing. Some of her pot-tery is glazed with ash from Mount St. Helens. She is also active in the local group, Society of Women Addicted to Needlework, estab-lished by Asbury’s own Jean Young. Carl played Scottish bagpipes for 30 years in several bands. He also enjoys genealogy and the building of museum-quality scale models. After living in their Potomac home for 34 years, Carl and Astrid said they downsized over several years to prepare for their August 2013 move to Asbury. We are pleased they saved the best of their art to grace their Villa home. Astrid and Carl have a daughter and grandson in Northern Virginia and a son and granddaughter in Seattle.

—Tiiu Kera, Villas reporter

Welcome New Residents

Sally and Terry Byrne Villa 418, x4544

Terry and Sally Byrne moved to Villa 418 in January 2014. Their former home in Fallsmead, an active community in Rockville where they had lived for 41 years, wasn’t far from AMV, so they can continue to participate in several local interests developed before and since retirement. Terry met Sally by chance 51 years ago when Sally’s sister introduced them over a workday breakfast at Tehaan’s Bar & Grill in Georgetown. Having earned an Economics Degree at Notre Dame and served a tour of duty as an Air Force officer, Terry was working at CIA. Sally had just completed her Physical Therapy degree at Mar-quette and was starting a job at Georgetown University Hospital. As the cliché says, the rest is history and an interesting one.

They married and moved to Providence, RI, where Terry earned a PhD in Economics at Brown University while Sally served as “bread winner.” Before leaving Providence Sally also gave birth to their first son. After the family returned to the DC area, Terry resumed work as a CIA economic analyst, and their second son was born. Terry’s job involved assessing foreign economic, trade, and financial issues that affect US security interests, initially focusing on the Soviet Union and later branching out to other areas. After twenty-some years, he transferred to a supervisory position with the State Depart-

ment. This international focus and his own belief that knowing a foreign language is important led to his learning Russian and French. The latter remains a strong interest that includes his partici-pation in a French book club and volunteering as a French interpreter/translator for non-profit and governmental organizations. If you are interest-ed in maintaining your own French fluency, you might want to contact Terry to parler français. Terry also has taught economics courses on an adjunct basis at the University of Maryland and at Loyola University in Baltimore. Both he and Sally enjoy travel within our borders and beyond.

While Sally worked part-time as a physical therapist, she also volunteered her consider-able energy and skills to The ARC of Montgom-ery County, an organization whose focus is to enhance the lives of people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. She served on the board of directors for many years, two of them as president. The ARC has worked toward greater public awareness of the needs of people with disabilities and for legislation to help them. Vol-unteers such as Sally have seen their efforts bear fruit, although state funding remains woefully inadequate.

Following Sally’s retirement several years ago from Rock Physical Therapy Associates, she earned the designation of Master Gardener, com-pleting 50 hours of training from the University of Maryland Extension. Her welcoming personal-ity has served her well as a volunteer with the U of MD master gardening program at the Quince Orchard library and at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton. She is one of the few who are certified to handle the glorious butterflies of Brookside’s Wings of Fancy exhibit (closed for 2014). And needless to say, Sally has joined the Asbury Gar-den Club and will be among others who love gardening and sharing tips and tastes from their harvests. Sally is a gourmet cook, so Terry looks forward to what she will do with fresh produce from the garden. We look forward to getting to know Terry and Sally better.

—Marolyn Hatch, Villas reporter

Astrid and Carl Erickson Villa 580, x6776


Welcome New ResidentsGerald and Alba Hanson

Diamond 906, x5203Alba was born in Buenos Aires. Her parents

had both emigrated from Croatia and her mother was on one of the last ships to leave before the Nazis took over Europe. Alba’s first language was Croatian. Later she mastered Spanish, English, and French; and was conversant in Italian, Portu-guese and Russian. She studied interior design in Argentina and designed the chairs for the refur-bishing of the opera house in Buenos Aires.

Gerald grew up in Owosso, Michigan and grad-uated from Flint Junior College in 1955, receiv-ing a scholarship to the University of Michigan, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering and in radiological health. He left Michigan for Kansas in 1960 to become the first Radiation Control Program Director for the Board of Health. In 1962 he went to the Defense Department’s Harry Diamond Laborato-ries in Washington, D.C. to be its Radiation Safety Officer.

In 1964. Jerry was sent to Lima, Peru as a Regional Advisor by the Ministry of Health/ Regional Office of the World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) to organize radiation protection services in the health ministries of Latin America

and the Caribbean. In 1967, after transferring to Santiago, Chili, Jerry was in Buenos Aires to lec-ture in a course on Radiation Protection. He met Alba on an unexpected blind double date and they were married in Buenos Aires a year later

After living in Santiago for a brief period, they

moved to Los Angeles, where Jerry earned his Doctorate in Public Health at UCLA. During this time their first child, Karen, was born.

The family moved to Washington, D.C. so that Jerry could work at the PAHO Headquarters and soon after their arrival their son, Eric, was born. During the next 16 years, Jerry traveled frequent-ly to Latin America and the Caribbean as the pro-gram expanded to include diagnostic imaging, radiotherapy, and nuclear medicine.

When the children were in middle school, Alba entered the Georgetown University pro-gram for translators and interpreters and became the Senior Translator for District of Colombia’s Office of Latino Affairs. She held that position until 1987, when Gerry was invited to the WHO Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland to be the Chief of the Radiation Medicine Program.

After his retirement from WHO, the Hansons returned to Washington where Gerry continued to assist PAHO as a consultant and Alba collabo-rated with organizations that provided assistance to impoverished communities in Argentina. Alba was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease in 2012. They searched for a continuing care retirement community and chose Asbury. Sadly, Alba died just seventeen days after moving into Diamond.

—Mac McCullough, Diamond reporter

Barbara Carlson Trott 507, x4829

Barbara has always lived in the Washington, DC area, and certainly her life here has been a busy and productive one. She was born in DC, but moved soon to Garrett Park, which in those days was out in the countryside - reached via a two-lane Rockville Pike. Both of her parents were involved in political life, working on Capitol Hill. Her father had come from Wisconsin on Senator Robert La Follett’s staff. Later her father ran for Congress himself, winning the primary, but losing the general election. How-ever, to keep it in the family, her mother went to work in the office of the victorious Congress-man. Later she worked for all three of his suc-cessors. Her father worked for the Department of Agriculture for a number of years.

In contrast to her parents’ absorption in polit-ical life, Barbara was always drawn to art, study-ing at Walter Johnson High School and graduat-ing from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond with a degree in graphic arts. Her initial job was at the National Gallery of Art as a technician doing photography work. Two highlights while there were an encounter with Salvador Dali and the weeks spent with the Mona Lisa before its display to the public. She also enjoyed visiting art museums and galleries both here and abroad.

Barbara married her first husband and had three sons, but she found time to learn quilting and to sell crafts. As if that weren’t enough, she went back to school to earn a teaching degree from Hood College in Frederick. She then taught photography for 20 years at Walt Whitman High School. She has led a rich life as a volunteer in various capacities at the Montgomery County Mental Health Association, in Literacy Council programs, and at the Hot Line Crisis Center. Somehow she also worked in running a tutoring business.

Barbara married Herb Carlson 10 years ago, and they lived in Bethesda. About a year ago Herb was admitted to the Lutheran Home in Rockville. Barbara decided to move to a safer environment, selecting AMV. Then Herb’s condition improved and he was able to move here also. Two of Barbara’s sons live close by; the other is in Atlanta.

—Jack Hutchings, Trott reporter

Barbara Harbison Trott 204, x5816

Many Asbury residents have travelled far and wide and some are still travelling, but Trott’s new resident, Barbara Harbison, has a record probably none of us can match. She has lived or worked in all 50 States except two.

Her first state was North Carolina, where she was born in the small town of Morganton. When she was two she moved to Philadelphia, where she grew up. She graduated from a high school for gifted girls and then attended Morgan State College, where she earned a degree in Mathematics.

Barbara went to work for GE in their space program and there she learned computers from the ground up. She rose in the company and became a manager of project managers who were installing and implementing personnel systems in other Fortune 500 companies, school systems and government agencies.

Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Bar-bara continued to work for 15 years. Then, after her final assignment for the State Department, she retired.

Barbara had already settled in Montgomery Village, where she lived 5 years and then bought a house in Germantown, where she has lived 27 years.

She has been an active volunteer. The Mayor appointed her to the Advi-sory Board of the Gaithersburg Senior Center and she is on a County proj-ect for transportation for the disabled and seniors called “Getting Around Montgomery County.” She tutors 2nd graders at Daley Elementary School and she is an active supporter of MS activities.

One more thing: She took a four-year course from the University of the South and earned a degree in Theological Education for Ministry. She is a member of Ascension Episcopal Church in Gaithersburg.

A great advocate of exercise, Barbara has already signed up at our Fitness Center. You will see her there and at a lot of other places and events around the Campus. She will greet you with a big smile and a warm “Hello!”

—Becky Ratliff, Trott reporter

Photo: Hal GautPhoto: Hal Gaut


Asbury Methodist VillageCommunications Department201 Russell AvenueGaithersburg, MD 20877-2801

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PAIDRockville, MD

Permit No. 4297A NEWSPAPER FOR ASBURY METHODIST VILLAGE

VILLAGE LIFE: A NEWSPAPER FOR ASBURY METHODIST VILLAGE

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