President Wendel Thompson called the regular meeting of the Residents’ Council [the Council] to order at 7:00 pm on June 4, 2019. The May 7, 2019 minutes were approved as distributed.

68 association members attended. Visitors included residents, Charles Denton, member of the Board of Directors, and Nathan Blumberg, Associate Executive Director.  The Council observed a moment of silence for those who have passed away.

Wendel called on the following officers and committee chairs for reports; the text of those reports appears following the formal minutes:

• Anne Erfle, Vice President
• Sherry Stewart, Secretary
• Jack Murnane, Treasurer
• Jean Eichenlaub, Chair of the Benevolent Care Committee
• Walt Howe, Chair of the Communications Committee
• Bill Tilles, Chair of the Conservation Committee
• Bob Caulfield, Chair of the Dining Committee
• Joan Green, Assistant Chair of the Finance Committee
• Ted Durr, Chair of the Grounds Committee
• Louise Dempsey, Chair of the Health Services Committee
• Diane Lyons, Chair of the Housekeeping Committee
• Seldra Funk, Chair of the Legislative/Political Committee
• Jackie Graham, Chair of the Maintenance & Engineering Committee
• Sam Cushman, Chair of the Resident Life Committee
• Janet Allan, Chair of the Safety & Security Committee
• Walt Howe, Co-Chair of the Nominating and Election Committee

UNFINISHED BUSINESS: None

NEW BUSINESS: Wendel Thompson has appointed a special committee to come up with a slate of officers for the Council for next year. Sherry Stewart is the chair and Bill Tilles and Janet Allan are committee members. They will present the slate of officers for President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer at the July meeting.

Nathan Blumberg then presented “Words from Management” which appear below for those residents interested in reading the full text of the message.

President Thompson adjourned the formal meeting at 7:56 p.m.

Sherry Stewart, Residents’ Council Secretary
Hope Tillman, Residents’ Council Assistant Secretary

REPORTS—EXECUTIVE TEAM

ANNOUNCEMENTS/ PRESIDENT’S REPORT (Wendel Thompson):

Mission Moments: We are honoring three persons tonight who have acted in ways that make this such a great community to live in.

• First is Austin Johnson whose joyous spirit belies the grief he has experienced in family losses. Showing what a true friend is, he took Bill Ray to the Hopkins emergency room and stayed with him all day until he was admitted. For three weeks he visited him almost daily. Now that Bill is back at Charlestown, Austin continues his visits, takes care of his mail and even helps him shave. Austin is busy with two sisters and yet finds time for his friend.
• Second is Katherine Selig. Katherine loves to dance. She alone arranged for a free Line Dancing class here at Charlestown. She found the teacher and place to meet when the teacher was available. Over 30 residents have taken each of the first two classes, all of whom leave class with a smile, some tired feet, and a spring in their step.
• Third is Louise Dempsey who loves our campus grounds and Lake Charles. On one of her walks at the Lake, she noticed two holes in the perimeter fence and realized the holes had been an intentional effort of someone to get on to our campus. Having her cell phone, she took photos and alerted Security. The Manager of the Day and Security came to the area to secure it and alerted the Grounds Department who repaired the fence within 24 hours. If you see something, say something.

Announcements: (1) The Council has been honored by being invited to meet with Jim Davis, the Chairman of Erickson Living Management and four other top officials of Erickson Living. We met this morning in a friendly give and exchange with Mr. Davis. We heard Jim Davis say that of all his business enterprises Erickson Living is the one he loves the most; it combines his business interest with a mission he loves–making life better for seniors by providing (1) a social environment and (2) on-campus medical care. This was a rare experience for the Council.

(2) The Council is conducting a survey in June to find out how residents give and receive information. The short questionnaire has been put in your cubby. Complete it and put in the campus mail. You can complete it online if you prefer.

VICE PRESIDENT’S REPORT (Anne Erfle):
Nothing to report.

SECRETARY’S REPORT (Sherry Stewart):
The May 13 Council Work Session followed up on the recently held Council Chats and the attendance at the RAC Conference where the 5 Erickson communities in this region meet yearly. Council members were encouraged to review the newest version of the Resident Handbook with special attention paid to areas of their responsibility. There was discussion concerning the Lake Charles work and safety around the lake itself, the issue of firearms, the upcoming meeting of the Council with Jim Davis, the Chief Executive of Erickson Living and the agreement of our Board of Directors to respond to things such as issue papers that we might present to them in the future. There is an interest in having a dialogue about strategic planning between the Council and the Board.

TREASURER’S REPORT (Jack Murnane):
During the month of May, I did not issue any checks and received deposits in the amount of $228.00. The deposits were annual Association dues paid.
There was an account deduction of $55.50 in Bank service charges.

At the end of the month of May, the book balance amounted to $5,000.34 and the Bank balance was $5,000.34.  There was no difference.

The total amount of dues received as of May 31 was $3,693.10. Almost 72% of resident households in independent living sent in $2.00 or more.

A “Thank You!” to all the residents who participated in the dues collection effort. The collection of the Residents’ Association annual dues will continue for those who still wish to make the voluntary dues payment.

REPORTS—COMMITTEES

BENEVOLENT CARE (Jean Eichenlaub, Chair):
The meeting was held on Wednesday, May 22, with Emily Fowler from Philanthropy.

The Benevolent Care Foundation Board is looking at ways to increase donations.  Philanthropy and the Board are focused on new planned gifts through Entrance Deposits, increasing donations from family, etc.  We have limitations on soliciting vendors that have contracts negotiated by Corporate.  They are working on a system where donations could easily be made on-line through a link. With online billing it will soon be easier to add a donation to the payment.  Encourage residents to contribute now because it is cheaper than long term care insurance, and basically is the same thing.

The next BIG Treasure Sale will be August 22, 23 and 24^th.  However smaller sales will be held in the first weekend of August using the RG South Meeting Hall. Items for that sale include artwork, décor, small furniture and TV’s.  The first Saturday of the month Treasure Sale furniture and Ladies Boutique have been open to the public to encourage the public to come shop.  Good participation so far.  Last Saturday sale of the year was this past weekend (June 1^st).
Benevolent Care month is September.

At June meeting we will need ideas for BCF month.  Please come prepared with a NEW idea that we can use to brainstorm the plan.

Tin Cup Golf Outing will be held on Monday July 8^th at Rolling Road Country Club.  All underwriting opportunities have been sold except for the Golf Ball underwriter. Sponsors and golfer registration going well.  Goal for this year’s event is $34k.

Gala:  September 27th.  “A Magical Evening” with Mood Swings Band (same band as last year that got rave reviews), various close-up magic acts, etc.  Need items donated for the Silent Auction.  Ask family and friends.

Next meeting is June 26^th at 2pm in CTS 116.

COMMUNICATIONS (Walt Howe, Chair):
The Communications Committee did not meet in May, since the 4th Monday fell on Memorial Day. The new Resident Communications Preferences Survey was distributed to all cubbies on 1 June. We encourage everyone to fill out the survey and send it along. It can also be completed online. Check the MyErickson website Community Info section Announcements for details.
The next meeting will be held on 24 June at 2 PM in CTS Classroom 116.

CONSERVATION (Bill Tilles, Chair):
The Committee met on May 21,2019. In attendance were members of the Committee and Michelle Fenn, Housekeeping Supervisor.

The committee reviewed the April Recycling and Trash Monthly Statistics for the month of April 2019. The results were somewhat low for recycling because the Charlestown truck was unavailable for several days.

Plastic bag collection efforts continue to be successful. Also there has been an increase in the amount of batteries that are being recycled at Charlestown. It’s possible that residents have become more aware of the presence of the battery collection boxes when they bring their plastic bags to the laundry rooms and we encourage all residents to dispose of their used batteries in the boxes provided.

The committee recognized the success of both the National Earth Day event held in the Charlestown auditorium on April 22 and the Nature Fest event held in the Fireside lounge area on April 25, and thanked Michelle Fenn and Marty Tewksbury for all their efforts in bringing these informative events to Charlestown residents. A representative from Waste Management, Inc., Charlestown’s waste disposal vendor, presented information about the company’s policy on recycling operations at the Earth Day event. It was filmed and can be viewed on the My EricksonMy Erickson is a resident portal. It is provided by Erickson Corporate and is managed by Charlestown staff, mainly Community Resources. See Portal. READ MORE website.

The committee will consider the question of what new projects it would like to focus on in addition to recycling in 2019-2020. Bert Clegern, who was a member of this committee prior to his passing, wrote about the four R’s of environmental conservation in his publication, Eco-Charlestown, namely recycle, reduce, reuse, and restore. Recycling has been our focus for the last two years and we want to consider one of the other areas next year.
The next meeting will be on June 18, 2019 in HR 142 at 2:00 pm.

DINING SERVICES (Bob Caulfield, Chair):
The Dining Committee met on May 20th with Aida Blanco representing Charlestown management, two guests and fifteen Dining Committee members.
The various Dining Committee sub-committees met in May as follows: Atrium – 5/6 and 5/14, Dietary Focus Group – 5/3, Chesapeake/Shortline – 5/13 and 5/14, Fireside – 5/14 and 5/21, and Refectory/Terrace – 5/9 and 5/16.

Highlights of those meetings included:

1. How should the residents identify the managers on the floor as the people “to go to” when they have a problem?
2. Cross training between line staff and wait staff at the Refectory is ongoing with positive results.
3. A couple of the outdoor chairs at the Terrace are missing. Staff is out looking for them.
4. The Fab-40’s are holding their last event on June 21st on the Terrace Patio.
5. The University of Maryland dietician internees currently working at Charlestown will prepare and serve a Caribbean themed luncheon on June 6 in the Terrace Cafe.
6. New disposables available beginning in June. A review of the recyclable green box containers is being conducted.
7. Chef Bailey Meyers and Sous Chef Q Booker at Fireside made an informative presentation of their typical work day and an overview of their responsibilities in the kitchen.
8. Chesapeake renovations continue on schedule.  Chef Paul with the aid of photos and copies of the new “bar at the Chesapeake” menu elaborated on the concept of food service there.
9. Managers continue to appeal to all residents to allow the staff to valet, park and store walkers and EMV’s. Shortline has experienced broken tiles as a result of damage from these devices.
10. Shortline dining residents should leave their soiled dishes and utensils on the trays when they are finished with their meal. The staff will bus them.
11. A light-fare food menu was recently introduced at the Atrium Black Swan bar area. Service will be provided by the bartender and be available from 4:00 P.M. to 6:30 P.M. This service is not to be considered a part of your daily meal plan.  Food items ordered can be paid for in cash or charged to your monthly account.
12. A suggestion was raised at the Atrium meeting that the hostess might seat guests, hand out menus, then offer a pleasantry to guests before departing the table. This would be akin to the service you would expect to receive at a white tablecloth restaurant. Management will take this suggestion under consideration.
13. Each of the four dining room venues conducted a meeting in May focused on the selection of menu items appropriate for the forthcoming summer menus.
14. Notable dates for Dining Services in May included:    Mothers’ Day – 5/12, Memorial Day – 5/27, and the Dining Services Town Hall – 5/31.

The Dining Committee is aware of the need to reduce the content of the dining committee report each month. The problem is there are several sub-committees submitting minutes of their respective meetings each month. In May there were ten meetings. We are trying to condense this information into a more concise report.

The current dress code, as it pertains to the dining areas, was discussed. There was a range of opinion expressed from leave it alone unless it becomes a problem, to the need to remind our residents and their guests there is a dress code, and it needs to be adhered to.

Aida Blanco reviewed the Chesapeake dining renovations and provided the Committee with several dates in June for “soft openings,” ‘tours” and ” invitation only” events.

The Dining Committee Chair presented the members with a proposed outline for an ongoing written critique of their experiences at the various dining rooms. A lengthy discussion followed with several constructive ideas put forth. The Chair asked the Committee to continue the dialogue with him personally until our meeting in June when a determination will be made if this idea has merit.

The matter of the need to valet walkers in the various dining rooms was discussed. Noteworthy from that conversation are the following items:

1. There is a lack of sufficient space to store the walkers
2. Should an individual employee be assigned the responsibility of valeting the walkers, or should it be the responsibility of any employee readily available?
3. We recognize that dining services management wants staff to valet the walkers not the residents. What should the staff do if a resident refuses to allow their walker to be valeted and stored? At present the policy appears to be that the resident is allowed to bring their walker to their dining table and store it in whatever manner is deemed feasible.

At the May 31 Dining Services Town Hall meeting Chef Victor Cirrincione announced that in August 2019 the a la carte restaurants will be changing out their menus monthly rather than every three months. This change will give staff a better opportunity to incorporate more seasonal items and increase the frequency of resident favorites based on feedback and menu focus groups. The menu focus groups will continue to be held quarterly with feedback incorporated monthly.
The next Dining Committee meeting will be in Brookside 1 on June 17, 2019 at 2:00 P.M.

FINANCE (Joan Green, Assistant Chair):
The Finance Committee met on May 28 with Pam Stiner, Finance Director, and Eric Schwab, Assistant Finance Director. Fifteen committee members were present.

Pam presented the Occupancy and Financial reports for April. Occupancy rates were excellent for independent living, assisted living, and memory care. The skilled nursing occupancy exceeded budget projections but will be in flux because of the transition to Wilton Overlook.

The April total operating revenue exceeded budget projections by $430,000. Operating expenses were slightly higher than budget projections. The expenses for wages was higher because of higher occupancy levels. Looking at non-operating items, investment income was $1,443, 000 higher than projected because of the favorable investment market. Pam indicated that the cash flow is right on target.

Turning to restricted funds, in April, 15 residents received benevolent care assistance, and these expenditures totaled about $85,000. The Scholars Fund is in excellent condition thanks to the successful campaign in recent months (in which $232,173 was raised).

The Committee approved a draft memorandum for management with suggestions for the 2020 budget. The draft has been sent to Residents’ Council members for their approval at our June 10 work session. The suggestions this year include some thoughts on reducing operating costs.
The next Committee meeting will be on June 25 at 9 am in Brookside 2 Classroom.

GROUNDS (Ted Durr, Chair):
Ted reflected on comments from the meeting with Erickson Living management this morning that looked thirty-six years in the past to the beginnings of Charlestown, to today, and then to thirty-six years in the future. While the Charlestown 36 years from now may look very different from today, as he approaches the end of his term in August, Ted hopes that residents in Charlestown of the future enjoy the natural beauty of Charlestown as much as he has.

The Grounds Committee met on Tuesday, May 28, 2019 with 8 committee members, Kevin Crawford and guests, Richard Griffith and Joyce and Mike Rose.

Ronald Dempsey made an audit report. Lucy mentioned once again the need for replacement shrubbery at Brookside.

Ted commented that Brightview, the landscape company, is behind schedule and that the transition of companies has been difficult. They are not performing well and may be subject to end of their contract.  Kevin reviewed Brightview responsibilities.

The Atrium patio is being handled by Dining.  It is to be enlarged by three times.  Work has been started.

Pat Kasuda said Caton Woods needs wildflowers on the side as promised but still has only weeds.

Louise spoke of Lake Charles vandalism.  Security took care of it and are now making extra rounds.    She suggested that we use our pendants and then walk away from impending problems before making a call to Security.  That number should be posted on a sign.  Kevin also discussed the fencing condition.

John noted the Memory Walk bricks are settling.

Ted read Marty Tewksbury’s report about Lake Charles. Kevin said the current plan is to upgrade the electric.  It could include motion detectors later.  They will add several repeaters as well as aerators.

Clarification of “Bucket of Wellness Programs” as in Marty’s report.  Wendell made a motion concerning the language which was discussed but did not pass.  He will bring this up with the administration.

Pat reported that TWG, the tree group, met this month with low attendance so it was decided to meet quarterly in the future.

OLD BUSINESS:  There is $3,000 in the Bert Clegern Memorial account.  His family would like to plant two flowering trees and place a bench on the trail near the Old Stone Bridge.  Some protection will also be put in place to keep people off the bridge itself.

NEW BUSINESS:  Wendel had a memo about capital improvements and how to save money.  Changing our use of some areas to native grasses was an option.  Again, a motion made by him was defeated.  Another motion for the Grounds Committee to appoint a sub-committee was also defeated.

Kevin said an energy audit is being conducted by Stan Yeakel from corporate.

The next meeting will be Tuesday, June 25 at 10 AM in the General Services Conference Room.

HEALTH SERVICES (Louise Dempsey, Chair):
The Health Committee met on May 14, 2019 with 9 members and David Gearing, Director of Continuing Care.

The Old Medication Collection held on April 19th again resulted in a large amount of unused drugs turned in.

The Nature Festival held on April 25^th in the CTS area was well attended.  The Health Services provided information on diseases transmitted by ticks, mosquitoes, and spiders. Information and pictures of poison ivy, snakes, and the recently publicized kissing bug were also displayed.

Dr. Pelczar summarized the flu season. According to the CDC, as of May 4^th (week 18), there had been 43 million cases with 637,000 hospitalizations and 59,600 deaths – the majority of which were children under 5 years of age or persons 65 and older.  Influenza A (H3N2) accounted for 84% of the flu. The vaccine was 47% effective. (Of note: There were no outbreaks of flu requiring precautions at Charlestown due in part to Flu vaccinations and the use of a new antiviral misting machine on surfaces.)

Dr. Pelczar also discussed the resurgence of measles. 765 cases have been reported nationally as of the meeting date. The first case of the measles was first recorded in the 9^th century. In 1912 there were 6,000 deaths in the USA. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat and a red rash. Dr. John Enders received a licensure for a measles virus vaccine in 1963.  A combination vaccination of mumps and rubella was 90% effective when 2 doses were administered. By 2000, the measles was considered eliminated in the US.

When questioned about the Kissing bug, Dr. Pelczar explained that it is a blood sucking insect that causes Chagas disease. Kissing bugs have that name because their bites are often found around the mouth. They are blood sucking flying insects and they usually hide during the day and are active at night when they feed. Their bite is painless. They are typically found in Central and South America and Mexico in poor rural areas. Travel to those countries has resulted in reports of the insect here in several states. There is currently no vaccine for the Chagas disease transmitted by the kissing bug.

Renaissance Gardens/Caton Woods:
In place of the video projector, a 90-inch television will be installed. There will also be access to Netflix. A desired podiatry cart dedicated to Continuing Care remains an issue. Summer gardens have been planted.

Wilton Overlook construction is on schedule and meetings are being held with staff, residents, and families to assure a smooth transition. Residents are scheduled to begin moving in on July 8 and moving is expected to be complete in August.

Staffing:
-Patricia Hagan has been hired as Memory Care Manager
-Social Workers: April Orr, Becky Kopp, (now full time), Allison Allen, and Kathy Anszewski
-Assistant Director of Nursing Carla Roberts, April Orr, and Allison Allen will move into the North Building – located a short distance from Wilton Overlook.

Continuing Care will participate in the Holleran Survey. Family members and/or volunteers will assist residents if help is needed.

Other topics:
Recently Erickson Living’s Corporate Director of Program Managers hosted Program Managers from the other Erickson Communities here at Charlestown. Four Charlestown residents, including Pat Kasuda and Louise Dempsey from the Health Committee, were invited to sit on a panel to ask and answer questions. Ideas were exchanged related to what memory care should look like in the future.

In a follow up to that meeting, Pat Kasuda met with that Director and exchanged information regarding Standards of Care for memory care. Some states now have standards of care but Maryland does not. (Pat has worked diligently with Maryland Legislators for a long time in an effort to establish standards in Maryland.)

The Retired Nurses luncheon was held on May 30^th at 11:30 am in the RG meeting room.
The next Health Services meeting will be on June 11^th at 11am in BS CR2.

HOUSEKEEPING (Diane Lyons, Chair):
The meeting was held on Friday, May 17, 2019.   Michelle Fenn, Housekeeping Supervisor and one guest attended plus six members.

St. Charles: Areas that need cleaning of carpet stains were described

Bldg 9:  2^nd level between 205 and 209 walls already need paint touchup even though recently renovated. G level furniture that was removed during renovation has not been replaced.  Michelle recommended contacting Rose Suter.  Because of contractor activity the rugs at the 2 entrances of Bldg 9 need frequent vacuuming.  Also the entrance nearest the auditorium suffers from a dog relieving itself on the carpet.

Chapel Court:  The elevator near the Fireside Dining Room has high traffic and the carpet frequently needs shampooing. The use of “SaniSticks” is recommended in reference to a resident with a problem sink backing up. Regular use keeps the drain clean; SaniSticks are available at Home Depot.

Herbert’s Run: Several areas on 6^th floor have torn wall paper and damage to the plaster. A flag draped over the railing on the 6^th floor will be checked out by Michelle to see if it is a safety hazard.

Brookside:  The laundry room needs a new chair.

Thanks to the Chesapeake Dining staff for maintaining cleanliness during this time of construction.

And thanks for smooth table cloths at the Council Meeting. The laundry room needs a new chair.

Cross Creek:  any hope of getting a sink installed in the card room area? The cleaning person in charge of keeping the coffee area neat has to go outside to throw the overflow over the wall.

Michelle updated us on the staffing.  Most jobs are now filled.  There was a job fair recently and offers made to several applicants – but few responded.
Next meeting is June 21, 2 PM in HR142.

LEGISLATIVE/POLITICAL (Seldra Funk, Chair):
The committee’s 2019 Wrap Up Event with legislators went well, but the committee discussed improvements to our publicity strategies for the 2020 Event.

This was the initial year of tracking proposed legislation during the General Assembly. However, in order to provide more residents with this information, the committee proposed that there could be an ELLIC class on the legislative tracking system prior to the 2020 legislative session.  The committee also proposed that beginning in January 2020 there could be panel discussions on Channel 972 about the 2020 legislative bills of interest to residents.

Also information about the 2020 Elections:

1. 2020 is not an election year for the Maryland General Assembly.
2. Neither one of Maryland’s two U.S. Senate seats will be up for election in 2020.
3. However, Maryland’s District 7 U.S. Representative’s seat WILL be up for reelection in 2020.
4. As of May 4, 2019, there were officially 21 democratic presidential candidates and 2 republican presidential candidates.

The following election information is correct as of May 8, but is subject to change:

1. Super Tuesday 2020 will be held on March 3 with 12 states holding their primaries, including Texas and California.
2. Maryland’s primary is scheduled for Tuesday, April 28, 2020.

Topics of interest for future meetings include health care, pharmacy pricing, 2020 census, Baltimore County issues, changes in election laws, the electoral college and CCRC issues.

The next meeting of the Legislative/Political Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, June 12 at 10:00 a.m. in Brookside 1.

MAINTENANCE & ENGINEERING (Jackie Graham, Chair):
The committee did not meet in May.
The resident reported issues concerning the laundry room in Herbert’s Run have been addressed and all machines have been repaired or replaced.
The next committee meeting will be Tuesday, June 25 at 2:00 pm in the GS Conf Room.

RESIDENT LIFE (Sam Cushman, Chair):
Five committee members were present on May 15 in HR142, along with two visitors.

PET LOVERS:  Pets, particularly dogs, always seem to be a major issue primarily related to the failure of a few pet owners to follow the clean-up rules.  One example is a dog owner who rides an EMV but can’t reach out to pick up the dog’s feces.  Members of the Pet Lovers group are always trying to follow up specific issues, but enforcement beyond negotiations and regular reprimands is unclear.  An effort is underway to work with Security to use CCTV to identify unknown, but regular, violators of the pet rules.  The group is one step closer to offering a dog clinic here at Charlestown in parallel to the successful cat clinic.

BIRTHDAY ANGELS:  Continuing smoothly.
EATING TOGETHER GROUPS:  No updates.
COMMUNITY VALUES:  The Committee continues to get Mission Moments to review.  We discussed the importance of vigorously supporting our community values here at Charlestown.
WELCOME CARDS:  No updates.
CONDOLENCE CARDS:  No updates.
FIREARMS:  BCPD conducted an informational session on firearm safety. The Residents’ Council thought that we could bring in Janet Allan and Louise Dempsey with information on mental health.   They found that the doctors in the medical center could gather information on mental health and safety on firearms. Erickson Living is planning a new program to increase awareness of mental health challenges and how to deal with this issue.

TRANSPORTATION:  Management reports that whatever improvements have been approved are now in service.  We asked Management that more information be published regarding these services, particularly on a regular basis at the end of the monthly bulletin.  The approved improvements fall well short of the proposals brought to the Transportation Committee as a result of the convened focus groups.

EMV USERS:  No updates.

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION:  An effort has been under way by Sam to develop mechanisms for continuing to bring awareness to the Charlestown community that bigotry is still a deep-seated problem, here as well as in our larger world community.  This discussion will continue in the form of a resident effort paralleling the Management Diversity and Inclusion Council but is only beginning.

The next Resident Life Committee meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 19, at 2:00 pm in HR142.

SAFETY & SECURITY (Janet Allan, Chair):
The Safety& Security Committee met on May 14 with 9 members, Craig Nelson, Assistant Manager of Security and 3 guests.

Craig Nelson reported that the April 19^th Coffee with Reyn Giese drew over 40 residents and focused on robo calls and scams.

Parking striping /space numbering continues at Caton Ridge and Wilton Overlook.  Chapel Court parking spaces are being resized to match the rest of the campus.  Additional parking spaces are being added in front of Charlestown Square.

Town Halls will be scheduled in the near future to discuss new car decals, car re-registrations, and the Family/Frequent Visitors pass process.

Firearms: The Committee continues to pursue small focus groups of residents. There is planning for a meeting with the Medical Center to learn what they do re safety (such as firearms, handling sharps, etc.) when they see indicators of cognitive decline in patients.

The Committee unanimously approved a Lake Charles Safety Statement and forwarded the statement to the Nature and Grounds Committees.

The Committee is sponsoring an informational event on June 12 to highlight National Safety Month. Handouts and safety awareness stickers will be available at the Cross Creek Lobby, Fireside and Terrace from 11:30-1pm. Safety Posters will be on display around the Community during the first 2 weeks in June.

The next meeting of the Committee will be on Tuesday, June 11, 2019 in Brookside Classroom 1 at 1:00 pm.

NOMINATING AND ELECTIONS (Walt Howe, Co-Chair):
The Residents’ Council Nominating and Elections Committee met May 2nd for a final meeting of the nominating group. The committee members reviewed the bios of the 13 candidates who have agreed to serve.

A Candidate Orientation Meeting was held in the Gallery on May 29th, and Hope and Walt met separately with any candidates who were unable to attend this.  Candidates will be formally announced at the end of the month and introduced at the next Council meeting.

Members of the Committee nominating group are Janet Allen, Bernice DeBels, Bob Caulfield, Walt Howe (Co-Chair), Pat Kasuda, Phyl Lansing, Bill Tilles, and Hope Tillman (Co-Chair). We thank the members for their fine work in assembling the nominees. The Committee will continue with Election preparation. Janet Allen agreed to meet separately to review what was done last year.

WORDS FROM MANAGEMENT (Nathan Blumberg):
Nathan Blumberg spoke of the excellent meetings of Erickson Living owner Jim Davis and his team first with the Charlestown Executive team and then with the Residents’ Council. It was very nice to be together. Featured at the meeting was the Embrace Wellness program, begun at Charlestown and now rolled out across 19 of the Erickson Living communities with great promise on how it will evolve.

Nathan announced the grand reopening of the Conference Center on July 12. The Chesapeake will be having a soft opening in June.

In process right now is the patio refurbishment at the St. Charles Atrium.

Nathan commented on the $232,173 on behalf of the Scholars Fund.

June 10^th at 1:00 PM a Town Hall Meeting will be held in the Auditorium covering Capital Projects. It will be National Iced Tea Day, and different teas may be served.

June 14^th Conversations with Clara and the Executive Team in the Auditorium at 1:00 PM in the Chesapeake Fireplace Lounge.

June 17 there will be an Elder Justice Initiative in the Auditorium in partnership with the Maryland Attorney General’s Office.

July 6 work on the Brookside elevator will begin.

July 8 will be the day the first resident moves into Wilton Overlook.

Save the date of September 25 – There will be a session (9:30 with staff, 10 with residents) where representatives from the MVA will explain what you need to know about the new Maryland ID requirements.

Wednesday is the Residents’ 14^th Annual Softball Game, beginning at 9:00 AM on the softball field. A fun day of softball with residents from Charlestown, Greenspring, Oak Crest, and Riderwood can be enjoyed by all.

With this great weather, enjoy our beautiful campus. Nathan recommended taking a walk on the Nature Path.