A native of Baltimore, Estelle found the perfect retirement community in her beloved hometown.

Except for a brief stay in Philadelphia, Estelle has spent her entire life in Baltimore. She completed her education in the Baltimore Public School System. Upon graduation, Estelle entered Sinai School of Nursing.

After becoming a Registered Nurse, Estelle wanted to enlist in the armed forces. However, there was a height requirement — a minimum of 5 feet; Estelle was 4’ 11”. She recalls “puffing up” her hair so that she would appear taller when she went in for her test, but it didn’t work. Estelle’s career went in a different direction.

Estelle worked for four years in the operating room at South Baltimore General Hospital, which is now known as Harbor Hospital. During this time, she continued her education, completing a certification course at Johns Hopkins University for Operating Room Technicians.

One of Estelle’s superiors took note of her skills and work ethic and suggested that she undertake additional studies to become an anesthetist. It was rare for a woman to enter this field, but Estelle did not shy away from the challenge. Soon after, she packed up and headed to Philadelphia for an 8-month program of study to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). When Estelle came home, she returned to South Baltimore General, where her successful career spanned four decades.

As a CRNA, Estelle was considered a child specialist; she had a special gift for helping children overcome their fears of medical procedures. As her young patients were being wheeled away from their parents, they were often screaming and crying. “I would walk beside them and once they were away from their parents, I would look at them and say, “Okay, you don’t have to cry anymore, I am not your parent,’” she recalled. Surprisingly, the children would stop crying and settle down.

During her career, Estelle met and married her husband, who was a salesman. The couple had a daughter, Nancy, who followed in her mother’s footsteps. Nancy graduated with her nursing degree from the Villa Julie College, now Stevenson University, and is currently a nurse researcher at the University of Maryland.

Since her retirement, Estelle enjoys spending time with her friends at Springwell playing dominoes, Bingo and word games. She is very close to her daughter, and they both enjoy taking in cultural events. Estelle’s advice to young people just venturing out into the working world is to take the time to find something you really like. “If you enjoy what you are doing, you won’t mind getting up and going into work each day,” she said.

When we think of a “retirement community,” we tend to picture seniors at leisure, playing games and polishing their golf clubs. But that picture can be quickly shattered by a number of well-dressed CEO-types striding purposefully out the front door of Beaumont at Bryn Mawr. They’re

Beaumont at Bryn Mawr – A Gracious, Resident-Owned Community

setting off for work. For these Beaumont residents, keeping their day job into retirement is a choice. As a 2011 AARP study suggests, 31 percent of people turning 65 are still working full or part time, many simply to remain engaged. A Wells Fargo study goes a step further in saying that fully 74 percent of new retirees expect to continue working in some capacity beyond retirement.

Paul Mecray

Beaumont is a 5-star Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in the heart of the Main Line, the purview of the highly educated, accomplished and successful. No surprise then that Beaumont has its share of MDs, PhDs, CEOs, senators, and so on. These folks don’t keep their day jobs out of economic necessity. “Why would I give up my career and sit around, just because I moved to a retirement community?” asks Paul Mecray as he pats his briefcase full of nightly reading. Paul is managing director of a financial advisory firm, a leisurely 10-minute drive away. “I have spent my entire career analyzing the oil and gas industry… I am passionate about understanding things like productive capabilities of specific oilfields and the geo-politics of OPEC countries. It’s my hobby and my work wrapped into one.”

Heading off to work, Evelyn Rosen, PhD briskly walks out the door. Dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, she is an

Evelyn Rosen, PhD

energetic full-time professor of English at a local college. “I really resisted moving to Beaumont three years ago for fear of losing my independence,” she says. “But I actually feel more independent. Instead of the daily grind of working, shopping, cooking and cleaning, I have time to do the things I love. Everything is taken care of for me…great food, superb facilities and a wonderful staff. Sometimes I feel like I’m on vacation,” she adds with a smile.So what’s going on at Beaumont? A 2009 study by ASHA (American Senior Housing Association) found that the average age of new residents of CCRCs was 81. That’s certainly older and more “retired” than these vibrant professionals.

James Zug

As James Zug, another working resident, puts it, “We moved to Beaumont at the perfect time… while we were fully able to manage the move mentally and physically.” Jim retired from a ‘Big-4’ accounting firm when he was 60, moved to Beaumont at 72, and is fully engrossed in his encore career: angel investing in tech and pharma start-ups and serving on the boards of four major public companies.That’s more than a full day’s work; yet Jim says brightly, “Life is so much simpler now. And my wife and I didn’t lose anything…like control over our lives. Beaumont is resident- owned and resident-run, so you can be as involved or uninvolved as you want to be in decisions that affect you and the community.”

Margit Novack, expert on senior relocation and moving, echoes Jim’s sentiment. “The main reasons seniors wait too long to make the move are that they can’t let go of their “stuff” – the big house, the antiques, the mementoes – and they fear a loss of control. But doing nothing until age or events overtake you…that is a loss of control.”

Adolf “Dolf” Paier

Jim introduces Adolf (“Dolf”) Paier, who has a twinkle in his eye and a handshake that demands respect. Dolf has been a resident for a little over two years, “an escapee from the hassles of maintaining my old house,” he said. Dolf also started his career at a ‘Big-4’ accounting firm, but followed his entrepreneurial bent as President/COO of a large technology and healthcare incubator, CEO of an early stage medical software company, and now board member of a number of public companies. As a “side job”, he is chair of Beaumont’s finance committee “proud of our positive balance sheet” and board member and treasurer of a local arts university.“I like going to my office and interacting with other professionals… I call it being externally engaged while internally taken care of,” said Dolf. When asked what prompted his move to Beaumont, he smiles and says, “My wife. She was a Geriatric Nurse Practitioner and insisted we move to a CCRC with a Nurse Practitioner on staff. For me, it’s Beaumont’s location, its non-institutional character and the fact that it is owned and run by residents.”

Granted, these “retired” professionals provide only a snapshot, but they exude energy worth bottling. They turn the old notions of retirement living upside down. As 7,000 baby boomers turn 65 every day and represent the leading edge of a senior population swell, will a working retirement become the new normal?

Mr. Paier’s words “externally engaged…internally taken care of ” perhaps sum it up best. Words to live by, regardless of age.

Following this passion led naturally to many other interests. Whether crafting a vase for one of her favorite Ikebana flower arrangements, experimenting with glazes or teaching others how to throw a pot, Sylvia is doing what she loves to do.

While teaching pottery in the Pine Run Craft Barn, Sylvia Roman came to know Pine Run and the people who live there. A full service retirement community owned and operated by Doylestown Hospital, Pine Run is popular among active and artistic seniors. Drawing inspiration from a location well known for harboring creative types, Sylvia’s ceramics classes came alive with resident artists, designers and adventurous others taking full advantage of the new instruction and energy.

An accomplished potter, Sylvia is a juried member of the Pennsylvania Guild of Crafts. She has exhibited locally including in Philadelphia and has been featured in shows and galleries throughout Canada and the United States. She became known for her skill in the ancient primitive Japanese process of Raku, where the piece is grabbed from a blistering hot fire and smothered in sawdust and leaves, allowing the smoke to chemically alter the liquid glaze and adding a unique metallic luster.

“My husband Robin assisted me pulling the pieces from the flames and was relieved when I shifted my focus.” explained Sylvia, “He jokes about finally growing his singed eyebrows back.”

The couple met as young University students in Canada, Robin destined for pharmaceutical research and Sylvia for pottery. After living and traveling all over the world, they found Bucks County to be as beautiful as any place they had ever been.

Sylvia credits their happy marriage to having similar tastes but different approaches. “Robin has a Ph.D. and works with his brain; I have to jump in and learn by actually doing it,” she said.

“We went to France last year to attend cooking classes and had such a great experience; we are going to take a class in Italy next. Robin is a wonderful cook,” said Sylvia. “I like it too, and I know how to debone a turkey.”

To support these interests and more, a unique 1,300 square foot cottage with a vaulted ceiling and skylights is taking shape at Pine Run. The new cottage features a gourmet kitchen boasting all the bells and whistles, a media room and a potter’s personal studio. Ebony cabinetry will complement a large Chinese brush painting of bamboo and horses.

“We found the painting in our travels; the design sensibilities are wonderful, and I love horses,” explained Sylvia.

Relocating for a time to Great Britain for Robin’s job meant that Sylvia had to sell her kiln and equipment, trading it all in for jodhpurs and boots. She seized this new opportunity to ride around Surrey’s country estates. Most fun was participating in old-fashioned pub rides full of good fun that held the promise of comfort, camaraderie and a pint at the end of a long ride.

This same adventurous spirit now leads Sylvia to Pine Run Community in Doylestown. “I really love it here,” she said. “I can’t wait to be able to walk right out of my door and over to the Craft Barn.” She says she feels a complete sense of happiness in this creative environment, working in the muddy water of a slip bucket, using her donated potter’s wheel as a teaching tool. As part of this new adventure, Sylvia is excited to see others give rise to a curvy pot or vase to sell at the Fall Festival or to be wrapped and given as a treasured personal gift.

Staying regularly engaged in social interaction, pursuing new interests and playing challenging mind games are recommended steps for seniors to adopt a brain-healthy lifestyle.

Surveys of adult “baby boomers” consistently find that memory loss is a top concern, and Alzheimer’s disease is their most feared disabling disease. Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, is a progressive and fatal disease of the brain in which brain cells fail. The disease seriously impairs a person’s ability to carry out daily activities.

Adopting a brain-healthy lifestyle can not only help keep your brain healthier as you age but also protect you from chronic illnesses. A study of older men and women found that those who were more physically and mentally active and more socially engaged had a lower risk for developing dementia. To protect your brain, follow these recommendations.

Stay Physically Active. Exercise helps maintain good blood flow to the brain, encourages the growth of new brain cells and can significantly reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and diabetes, which are all conditions that put you at higher risk for developing Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Just 30 minutes a day will get the body moving and the heart pumping.

Adopt a Brain Healthy Diet. Like the heart, the brain needs the right balance of nutrients to function well. A brain-healthy diet reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes, encourages good blood flow to the brain, and is low in fat and cholesterol.

Stay Socially Active. Research shows that people who are regularly engaged in social interaction maintain their brain vitality. Stay active in the workplace, have lunch with friends, go to church, volunteer in community groups and join social groups.

Stay Mentally Active. Mental decline as you age may be due to altered connections
among brain cells. But research has found that keeping the brain active seems to increase its vitality and may build its reserves of brain cells and connections. You can even generate new brain cells.

“The best way to stay mentally active is to cross train your brain by engaging in a variety of brain-stimulating activities on a regular basis with increasing levels of challenge,” says Karen Briskie, Director of the Medical Team’s Journey Behavioral Health Program. Here are some ways you can improve your thinking skills and stay mentally active:

 Commit to lifelong learning: read a book and discuss it with a friend, or take up a new language;
 Play games to challenge your mind: chess, jigsaw puzzles, cards, and memory games;
 Pursue a new interest: learn to play a musical instrument, or go to the theater;
 Break your routine: walk on a different route or change the order of your morning routine;
 Involve one or more of your senses in a novel way: use your non-dominant hand to perform daily tasks such as brushing your teeth;
 Play stimulating video games like Tetris, which has been shown to improve efficiency in parts of the brain associated with reasoning, critical thinking, language, and processing;
 Keep up hobbies such as scrapbooking, knitting, and gardening.

“If you have concerns about memory loss, thinking skills and behavior changes, consult your doctor since an early diagnosis can have many advantages,” says Briskie. No treatment can stop Alzheimer’s, but there are drugs that can relieve symptoms in the early and middle stages of the disease and help control behavioral symptoms. There are also programs available, like THE MEDICAL TEAM’s Journey Behavioral Home Health Program, which can help patients with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. The program assists and educates patients and caregivers in areas such as safety, medications, communication techniques, coping strategies and provides assistance with activities of daily living.

Sources: THE MEDICAL TEAM Aging and Memory Loss Wellness Program, Understanding Alzheimer’s Disease Health Sense from THE MEDICAL TEAM, Alzheimer’s Association (www.alz.org), and Ask Dr. Sears (www.askdrsears.com).