Empowered power.
Dosia Carlson & Mim Hoover
Some of the most powerful people I know are living right here at Beatitudes Campus. I stand back in awe of how, when asked to take responsibility for some aspect of our community’s growth, a vision that once seemed grand soon pales in comparison to what the resident(s) actually create. A few weeks back, at the Arizona LeadingAge Conference (an organization that unites non-profit communities like ours), there was a powerful exhibition of purpose, power and empowerment – and it was by our very own Beatitudes Center for Lifelong Learners.
Dosia Carlson and Mim Hoover, with the help of Nell Bennett, who was not able to be present, put together a presentation, aptly titled, Success Story. It wowed the administrators from the other communities who sat in on their workshop. In the workshop, the participants learned how, when residents in a community like ours, are given a task to create, that the sky becomes the only limit, far surpassing what any one staff person could ever create or do. The resident-run, Lifelong Learners Team, have created, not only a success story of a program in terms of number of participants and diversity of class options, but have impacted the lives of almost all those who participate and have been given a sense of purpose in creating excellence.
As I said at the beginning, we have not a resident on Campus who is not gifted with immense power and talent. The true sign of a successful community is how capable is it in empowering its members to be free to use their gifts toward the betterment of the entire community. The ultimate job of administration in a community like ours is to facilitate the freedom to excel, and clear the path for creativity and ingenuity for any resident ready to take our community even further toward our goal.
I can testify for our administration that few things are more gratifying than seeing our residents work together with us to accomplish great things, making our community innovative and on the cutting edge of our field. More and more of you are taking leadership roles and bringing great transformation to us with visions and ideas that we as staff would never come up with. To just name a few – the Environment Committee, the Garden Club, the Recycling Program, our English Language Assistance program, the resident’s Life Enrichment Team who plan our outings and activities and that is just the beginning.
You are leaders and models for senior communities, and I thank you for being a point of pride (and also for letting us boast a bit to our competitors) when it comes to residents with power and purpose lived out.