Last Updated on July 16, 2023
Throughout the month of June, the Residents’ Council continued to celebrate Charlestown through the work of its very busy committees. The latest effort has been for the Nominating and Elections Committee to recruit 13 residents to run for the Council, seven of whom will be elected for the 2023-24 year. You have all received a packet containing a picture and a bio for each candidate. During the month of July, the candidates will be sporting a red ribbon on their badges and will be coming into your living room via Ch. 972 with short, recorded videos. Please take time to get to know them before you cast your ballots on Election Day, August 9. The packet also has the election procedures and instructions on how to obtain an absentee ballot. There will also be posters at each restaurant detailing all of the candidates’ information. I am very excited that we have a pool of enthusiastic candidates, each of whom would be a terrific addition to the Council. My heartfelt “Thank You” to the Nominating and Elections Committee for a job well done!
June brought another opportunity to have joint activities between Independent Living residents and those in Continuing Care, a goal that we set for this year. We had a very rewarding “Tapestry” event with a small group of residents at Wilton Overlook and Caton Woods. All attendees expressed how positive and fun the activity was for them. So, events will be planned to integrate both Independent Living and Continuing Care residents, as we are all members of one community. Thank you to Denise Puckett and Rob Hunter for their cooperation in setting up the event. They, too, got to know their residents better.
Forty-one persons participated in the Legislative and Political Committee’s “Meet and Greet,” via ZOOM, with our state representatives: Senator Charles Sydnor, Delegate Eric Ebersole (44A),County Councilman Pat Young, Delegate Sheila Ruth (44B), and Aletheia McCaskill (44B). An in-person meeting is planned for the fall. We are fortunate to have such engaged and transparent legislators advocating for things that matter to Charlestown residents.
Our partnership with Administration and Erickson Living executives continues to get stronger. Following are a few examples of this partnership. Don Grove met with the Council at its Work Session to discuss the statistics, 13 pages of verbatim comments, and analysis of the just-completed Communications Committee’s Survey. Action plans are already underway by Council committees to address problems identified, and Don Grove has shared the comments with his executive staff for possible individual departmental attention. Kevin Bunn, Vice President for
Erickson Senior Living Dining Services and Paul Poholsky, Regional Director of Dining Operations, met with members of the Dining Committee to update them on what measurable action plans have been introduced to improve our dining experience in response to the Holleran Survey results. More information will be forthcoming in July. The Council met with Don Grove and General Services Director Jason Spivey to review the findings on water intrusions reported by the Board of Director’s Strategic Planning and Capital Oversight Committee. The second Technology Bar was held at The Gallery and was, once again, very well-received and attended. They are planned to be held on a quarterly basis.
Details of the events mentioned above will be presented at the July Residents’ Council meeting.
Don’t forget that the next Medication Take-Back event will be held on Monday, July 17, from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. at the Cross Creek and Fireside lobby areas. Check the posters and bulletin boards for detailed information.
Important: Due to the 4th of July holiday, the next Residents’ Council meeting will be on THURSDAY, July 6 in the Auditorium at 3:00 p.m. Stay abreast of the news and invite your neighbors to attend with you!
Council President, 2022-2023