News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
May, Bill, and Maryann make Chinese dumplings with exchange teachers. photo provided
Absolute Serenity has been caring for elders in their sunset years since David and Leah Tolle opened their first home in Sisters in 2009.
Pennington Place, at 182 E. Tall Fir Ct. in Sisters, will open mid-January or early February. It is named after Absolute Serenity resident Richard Pennington. Absolute Serenity cared for Gina Pennington, who passed under their attentive care.
"Now we take care of her husband, Richard," David explained.
Pennington Place will be Absolute Serenity's third adult foster-care home in Sisters - each named for a resident. According to David, so naming the homes is a way to honor people who have made a lasting impact on the program.
"Basically all these residents have helped us become what we are now," David says.
Others who have played a key role in making Absolute Serenity a key service for Sisters' elder population are the on-site, live-in managers of the homes.
Wendy Waltosz is the manger at Helen's House and is "a huge factor in our growth," David says.
Wendy came to Absolute Serenity as a caregiver, with some experience in caring for family members, but no formal experience in adult foster-care.
"As she started, she loved it, she says it was a passion, it's what she wanted to do," David recalled.
David and Leah got Wendy trained and certified to be a manager - and Wendy ran with it.
Once we got her going, she was just amazing," David says.
Anna's Home Manager Ashley Raymond came highly recommended from adult foster-care facilities in Redmond. Absolute Serenity's exceptional willingness to accommodate the needs of their managers made a position there workable for Ashley. Anna's home offers a separate living apartment with its own entrance, so Ashley could live and work there with her family.
"She was young," David says, "but she's really energetic and had the willingness to just do whatever it took... She's just been a rock star."
The Sisters community at large - from medical providers to contractors and service-providers - have been tremendously supportive of Absolute Serenity, recognizing the vital need they fill in the community.
They fill that need in an exceptional way. Each home is comfortable and intimate - a home rather than a "facility." From the beginning, David and Leah wanted Absolute Serenity to be a place apart from the run-of-the-mill. What makes Absolute Serenity different?
"I think it's truly looking at it as a family," David says.
Residents feel that sense of family - and so do their loved ones who come to visit. Visitors come in and "it's like walking in to mom and dad's place," David says.
Pennington Place will be the final home for Absolute Serenity in Sisters.
"That's it for Sisters," David says. "And we're really on the fence about future growth into other areas."
With Absolute Serenity, the priority is - and always will be - creating that healthy, safe, family environment for elders through end-of-life. The very name Absolute Serenity marks the commitment to providing a sense of peace and security - not only for the residents but for the families who love them, knowing that their beloved elder is in capable and loving hands.
For more information or to inquire about openings at Pennington Place, visit www.absoluteserenity.info or contact Absolute Serenity at Pennington's Place, 182 E. Tall Fir Ct .; 541-848-3194; or [email protected]
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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