connections - Methodist Hospital of Chicago

Bethany Methodist Communities
Celebrating 125 Years of Service!
5015 N. Paulina St, Chicago, IL 60640
A non-profit, non-sectarian organization
Non Profit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Wheeling, IL 60090
Permit No. 38
UPCOMING EVENTS
CONNECTIONS
Bethany Methodist Communities
Autumn 2015
Bethany Retirement Community • Methodist Hospital of Chicago • Chestnut Square at The Glen • Partners in HOME Healthcare
A CELEBRATION OF THE GOOD
SAMARITAN PROGRAM
Join us for fellowship, music, refreshments
and Bethany Methodist Family news!
Sunday, November 8, 2015 at 2:30 PM
North Shore Holiday Inn
5300 W. Touhy Ave, Skokie, IL 60077
To learn more, please call (773) 989-1354.
BETHANY’S FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS
Open to all, the evening includes caroling,
lighting Bethany’s beautiful winter landscape
and a reception with live entertainment.
Friday, December 4, 2015 at 5:30 PM
Bethany Retirement Community
To learn more, please call (773) 989-1354.
BETHANY RETIREMENT COMMUNITY
Independent Living & Nursing Support
4950 N. Ashland Ave • Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 989-1501 • bethanyretirement.org
METHODIST HOSPITAL OF CHICAGO
Comprehensive Care for Adults of All Ages
5025 N. Paulina St • Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 271-9040 • methodistchicago.org
CHESTNUT SQUARE AT THE GLEN
Independent Living with Homecare On-Site
2601 Chestnut Ave • Glenview, IL 60026
(847) 998-1118 • chestnutsquare.info
PARTNERS IN HOME HEALTHCARE
Flexible Homecare & Home Health Services
Serving Cook & Lake Counties, IL
(847) 904-5134 • partnersinhomehealthcare.org
Leaving a Legacy with Bethany
“Bethany Retirement Community is
my home. I trust that my bequest
will help ensure that many who
follow me will also find a home at
Bethany.” ~ Fritz Siegfried
Planned giving is one of the greatest things you can do to support
Bethany Methodist’s mission of providing faith-based, exceptional
health and housing programs.
Fritz Siegfried knew this when he made a legacy gift to Bethany
Retirement Community’s Capital Campaign before passing away on
Christmas Day, 2014. His gi6 will make a difference for many who
will follow him.
Making a planned gi6 through your estate leaves an enduring legacy,
and options include outright gi6s, life-income plans, endowment funds
and bequests. Charitable bequests can also be made through your will
for a stated amount, a percentage of the estate or a residual of the
estate. To learn more about any of these options, please call
Bethany’s Office of Mission Integration at (773) 989-1349.
Don Klein (L) with
older brother Bob (R)
in 2015 and 1935.
CHESTNUT SQUARE BROTHERS SHARE A REMARKABLE BOND
For eight decades, brothers Don and
Bob Klein have been a dynamic duo.
Growing up on Chicago’s north side,
they shared the same group of
friends, and as adults, the two worked
together at the same bank where Don
served as president and Bob was vice
president and treasurer.
It should come as no surprise, then,
that they would eventually end up at
the same senior living community.
Bob skydiving near Titusville, FL.
“Moving to Chestnut Square was one
of the best decisions my wife and I
ever made,” says Don. “Mary Jane
and I were always telling Bob how
much he would enjoy living here.”
When Bob’s wife, Shirley, passed
away in 2013, he began touring
different facilities and realized that
Chestnut Square was the perfect fit for
him as well. He moved in soon a6er.
Fellow residents have quickly embraced the siblings and their unique
personalities. As both brothers will
point out, Don is the more social one
and loves organizing clubs and
activities—especially when sports are
the focus. Some of the staff affectionately call him “The Commissioner,”
and this past year, he was elected chair
of the community’s resident council.
Bob, on the other hand, is the more
adventurous type. He has travelled
all over the world exploring different
cultures, and in August, he celebrated
his 88th birthday by jumping out of an
airplane. “I saw George Bush, Sr.
skydiving on TV, so I thought, why
couldn’t I?” explains Bob. “My granddaughter joined me on the jump and
it was a real thrill!”
When asked to describe her husband
and brother-in-law, Mary Jane perhaps
said it best. “Don and Bob bring out
the best in each other and everyone
around them. I’ve never known two
finer men.”
Bethany Celebrates Historic Roots in Andersonville
Residents, families, friends and neighbors recently gathered at the Swedish
American Museum in Andersonville
to celebrate and support Bethany
Retirement Community’s 125th
Anniversary Capital Campaign.
The evening included hors d’oeuvres,
exciting raffle gi6s donated by neighborhood businesses, and a special
The Bethany Glee Club performs at the
Swedish American Museum.
performance by The Glee Club–
featuring our very own Bethany
Retirement Community residents!
Updates were also given on Bethany’s
Egel Medical Clinic and a variety of
new programs that respond to the
needs of our diverse community.
“Bethany Retirement Community
and Methodist Hospital have deep
roots in the Swedish Methodist
Church,” explained Rev. Sunny
Lopez, Bethany’s Vice President of
Mission Integration. “Hosting this
event at the Swedish American
Museum added extra meaning and
reminded us of our shared history
on Chicago’s north side.”
Raffle winners were treated to a
variety of great prizes including
theater tickets, yoga classes, restau-
Bethany staff from L to R: Rev. Sunny
Lopez, Kirsten Riiber & Anne)e Murray.
rant gift certificates and box seats to
the Chicago Cubs! All proceeds
from the fundraiser will directly benefit residents of Bethany Retirement
Community and allow us to continue
serving our neighbors with affordable
and accessible senior housing.
We would like to thank everyone
who celebrated with us and whose
contributions will help us fulfill our
mission into the next 125 years!
Moving a Family Member with Memory Care Needs
a gradual transition for those with
some short-term memory intact, or a
“move straight in” approach for those
who usually forget new experiences.
Moving into a new home can be a
stressful event for anyone, regardless
of age. Moving a loved one with
dementia can be even more daunting.
At Bethany Retirement Community,
we have walked with many families
through this process and have a few
tips for this difficult situation.
Dr. Jy7e Lokvig at Caring.com recommends two ways of transitioning a
family member into a new residence:
In the gradual approach, your family
member is introduced over time to the
new community: take them to meals
in the dining room and activities they
may enjoy. A6er a few positive visits,
you can suggest they “try out one of
the rooms here.”
If the situation requires moving
straight in, Dr. Lokvig suggests
telling a “loving lie” such as, “I will
be out of town for a few days but I
found this nice ‘hotel’ for you while
I’m gone.” Guilty feelings are completely normal for the caretaker,
but when someone cannot process
what’s happening, the kindest thing
you can do is engage them in their
own reality and maximize their
happiness.
“With either of the above approaches,
we recommend giving your loved
one a li7le transition time a6er the
move,” says Alex Schwaninger,
Memory Care Director at Bethany
Retirement Community. “Allow their
new home to become home, and
consult with Bethany’s dedicated
staff on the timing and nature of
your first visits.”
To learn more about memory care at
Bethany Retirement Community,
please call (773) 989-1502.
UMC Pastor
Brings Interfaith
Calling to
Chestnut Square
This summer, Chestnut Square at
The Glen had the honor of welcoming
Rev. Betty Jo “B.J.” BirkhahnRommelfanger to its staff. Known
throughout the senior living
community as “B.J.” or “Pastor
B.J.,” she brings a wealth of interfaith
experience to her new position.
“I recently retired as a pastor in the
United Methodist Church, where I
served for 40 years in the Northern
Illinois Conference,” explains B.J.
“It was a wonderful experience, and
while that chapter in my life is now
complete, I’m still drawn to new
opportunities where I can make a
contribution.”
A graduate of Garre7-Evangelical
Theological Seminary in Evanston,
B.J.’s career has focused on the interfaith movement and she regularly
contributed to shared worship and
dialogue with leaders in the Muslim,
Jewish, Catholic, African Methodist
Episcopal (AME) and Ecumenical
communities.
Spiritual care programs
for a variety of faiths are
available at each Bethany
Methodist campus.
To learn more, please call
(773) 989-1349.
CEO’s Corner
Rev. Be)y Jo “B.J.” Birkhahn-Rommelfanger
She has also served as a reconciling
pastor for people of all sexual orientations, races, disabilities and backgrounds.
“Bringing people together has been the
common thread in B.J.’s life,” says Beth
Welch, Chestnut Square’s Director of
Resident Services. “She is already
doing just that with our residents,
and in her short time here, she has
enhanced the spiritual care available
to people of all faith traditions. We’re
incredibly lucky to have her.”
Many of Chestnut Square’s programs
have expanded with B.J.’s arrival.
Residents and guests can participate
in bible study, hymn sings, interactive
presentations, discussion groups and
services for a variety of faiths.
B.J. is also on-site three days a week
to offer counseling, pastoral care
and guidance with different prayer
requests.
“Since my first day, the Chestnut
Square residents have been exceptionally warm and welcoming,” says
B.J. “Everyone brings a rich history
to this place and the diversity that
I’ve encountered is inspiring. I’m
grateful that I can serve in such a
special community.”
B.J. and her husband, Jerry, live in
Skokie and have been happily
married for 42 years. Their family
includes three children and four
grandchildren, all of whom live in
the Chicago area.
As we complete 125 years of serving
our neighbors with compassionate
and high-quality housing and health
programs, The Bethany Methodist
Family has much to celebrate. Our
founders’ legacy is a vibrant mission
based on the Good Samaritan story.
We are called to care for adults of all
ages, abilities and resources . . . and we
respond to that call by meeting their
physical, social and spiritual needs.
Our Family is exactly that—residents,
patients and their loved ones, volunteers, congregations, staff and other
friends bound together by the same
values and a vision to sustain
Bethany’s mission through another
125 years. You are an important member of the Family, and we are grateful
for your encouragement and support.
I hope you, your own family and
friends will join me at Bethany’s
November 8th anniversary gathering,
A Celebration of The Good Samaritan
Program, scheduled for 2:30 p.m. to
4:30 p.m. at the North Shore Holiday
Inn, 5300 W. Touhy Ave, Skokie. We’ll
exchange memories; enjoy fellowship,
music and refreshments; and share
news about our exciting future. Please
watch for your invitation to this
complimentary event and call me to
learn more: (773) 989-1354.
Peace,
Stephen Dahl
Rev. Dr. Stephen A. Dahl has been
Bethany Methodist’s CEO since 1984.