It was more than 80 years ago when the first 14 people moved into a residence on Washington Avenue for assisted living. As the years rolled on, so did the ideas and aspirations to make Epworth Manor one of the best personal care homes in the area.
The Manor rolled another step forward yesterday with the dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony at its new, $11.7 million expansion project on Lincoln Avenue, which includes 10 new apartments, 28 personal care suites and a state-of-the-art memory support neighborhood.
More than 100 interested attendees, including residents of the Manor, local political figures and company heads crammed into the conference room at the Manor yesterday afternoon to hear officials talk about the project and the future direction of the personal care facility.
“Aging is truly about living,” said keynote speaker Lori Gerhard, acting secretary of aging for the state of Pennsylvania. “In the past, preparing for death was the perception of older Pennsylvanians, but that’s just not true.
“Older people really know what they have to offer, and it’s our job to help bring that out.”
Gerhard’s short, 10-minute speech centered on senior living in Pennsylvania.
“There are twenty-four hundred people over the age of 100 living in Pennsylvania right now,” said Gerhard. “These people know the importance of living life to the fullest. We need to provide them with the means to meet their goals and Epworth Manor’s continued tradition of doing these important tasks will only be improved with this new addition.”
Construction of the 65,000-sqaure foot expansion project was completed this summer after a groundbreaking in May 2001. Twenty additional full-time employees will be added to support the increased capabilities of the community.
“This is really the nicest assisted living unit in the area,” said Edwin C. Thomas III, president and chief executive officer of Asbury Services Inc., an affiliate of Epworth. “Epworth Manor now had more activities, more dining and more living space that any similar sized residences in this area. It’s a beautiful building that has dedicated workers and special residents who deserve to have the best that life has to offer.”
According to Thomas, more than 80 percent of Pennsylvanians own their own home. He said Epworth gives these kinds of people the opportunity to sell their homes, “bank” the proceeds and pay an affordable monthly fee for services that can’t be matched anywhere.
“We’re hoping that we can continue to expand Epworth Manor,” said Thomas. “We want to continue to provide better services for our residents and build more jobs for this special little community of Tyrone.”
Earle Martin, chairman of the board at Asbury Services, said the first word that came out of his mouth when he visited Epworth was, “wow.”
“These facilities are incredible,” he said. “This establishment is the premiere provider of services for older people in Tyrone. It has served this great community for the last 80 years and there’s absolutely no reason to believe it won’t continue to provide these services for another 80 years.”
Following the speeches, Epworth Manor resident Ann Getz helped cut the ribbon in the lobby to help make the dedication official.
“We’re extremely pleased that this project was completed quickly, and with such attention to quality and detail. This not only expands our available space, but more importantly, expands our ability to provide quality care to seniors in this area,” said Robin Maslanik, executive director at Epworth Manor. “This project was a great challenge for everyone involved in planning, organization, development and construction, and now the rewards for all of the hard work are evident in the results.
After the ribbon cutting, guests embarked on self-guided tours of the facility which included visits to Memory Support, the personal care lounge and bathing spa, nurses’ station and dining room, activity room, personal care room, personal care lounge, two different apartments, the family room and the library and the billiard room and beauty salon.
Epworth Manor is a licensed, 122-bed comprehensive health care facility. It was the first Methodist Home for the Aged established in Central Pennsylvania and has been a leader in providing senior care and quality service throughout its more than 80 years.
Epworth Manor is owned by Wesley Affiliated Services in Mechanicsburg, a not-for-profit corporation that owns and operates Epworth Manor and Bethany Village, a continuing care retirement community in Mechanicsburg.
Wesley Affiliated Services is an affiliate of Asbury Services, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation based in Gaithersburg, Md., which provides management support and services for its affiliated organizations that provide housing and health-care services for older adults.
For further information about Epworth Manor’s expansion project or further details regarding event, contact Andrea Young, director of marketing for Epworth Manor, by phone at 686-2538 or vi e-mail at ayoung@asbury.org. The company also has a website at www.wesleyservices.com.
