A6 | March 22, 2017 | Fredericksburg Standard-Radio Post

108 Theodore Specht Dr., Fredericksburg, TX 78624-0513

5115

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Social Security – it’s the choice of a lifetime! When and how you file can impact your retirement income throughout your life.

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Admiral Nimitz Museum, 2nd floor, from 6:00 to 7:00 pm

presented by

Nationwide Retirement InstituteRSVP - 830-997-9531

or email info@frantzen-insurance.com to reserve your seat.

At this seminar, you will learn many filing rules and strategies so you

can make the choice that fits with your overall retirement income plan.

This seminar is designed for people

who have not yet filed for Social Security.The promotional Annual Percentage yield (APY) and “Bump-up” is available on 11 and 23 month Certificates of Deposit (CD) effective as of 2/17/2017. Terms, conditions, and the bump-up promotion are subject to change without notice. Minimum opening deposit is $1,000 in new money. Option to bump-up for one time during the initial term. The new rate will re-main in effect until the CD maturity date. A penalty may be imposed for early withdrawal. Fees could reduce the earnings on the account. No brokered deposits. Member FDIC.

Safety with Flexibility! If our rates go up,

you get the option to “Bump-Up” to the new rate

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BUSINESS My Two

CentsPenny C. McBride President & CEO

FredericksburgChamber of Commerce

We write ourown life stories, but we should read everyone’s

Recreating new memories for wise souls

A few days ago, I met Olga Tyhonova, a gifted translator who is the

team facilitator for a Ukrainian group visiting Fredericksburg this week as part of the Open World program, hosted by the Fredericksburg Morning Rotary Club.

I agreed to host Olga as my house guest and the experience has been incredibly rewarding.

We shared laughter early one morning when coffee spilled onto the counter when I for-got to place the mug in the coffee maker. I heard the gut-wrenching story of her mother who lived in a Russian con-centration camp until the age of four, along with her grand-mother who was widowed fol-lowing the execution of her husband after he was declared an enemy of the country.

We’ve lingered over cozy din-ners with two of her charming and smart female teammates and their host family who live just around the corner from me, comparing our cultures, families and work. One of the more unusual jobs Olga per-forms is subtitling American television shows and movies to be shown to Ukrainian audi-ences.

I’ve asked dozens of ques-tions to better understand the historical context, politi-cal motivations and the effects on daily living caused by the Russian invasion of Crimea and the perspectives shared have been both fascinating and mind-jarring.

In some moments, I feel deep similarity with Olga as we are the same age, share many common interests and were instantly able to carry on deep conversation. She is warm, quick to smile and has a wonderful sense of humor.

Yet, our lives are worlds apart, both in distance and experience.

I agreed to host Olga for several reasons, but primarily

See McBRIDE ▶ A7

When Gerald and Susan Faldyn took over The Paige House last August, they changed the name to CelesteCare Assisted Living and Memory Care.

“Everything seemed to fall from the heavens and Celes-ta is a Greek God who came from the heavens and stars, so I went with CelesteCare,” Gerald said.

One of the things that also seemed to come from above was the news that Susan’s mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

That news helped inspire them to open an Alzheimer’s wing at CelesteCare.

“Memory care is close to home,” Gerald said. “When we looked for a place for Susan’s mother, there weren’t many options. She’s too advanced for assisted living and doesn’t need a nursing home. And we wanted to find a place for those in between who need boundaries with safety.”

The memory care wing is under construction and plans to open in October.

Boasting a 14-bed facility for the existing assisted liv-ing unit, the memory care wing will add 16 beds for residents with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

CelesteCare lends helping hand, plans to open

memory unit in autumn

Mona Hunter, a resident at CelesteCare for 14 months, stands with Gerald and Susan Faldyn in front of Celeste Care on Wednesday, March 15. — Standard-Radio Post/Scott Allen

While the assisted living side provides residents the oppor-tunity to come and go, the memory unit will have a dif-ferent set up.

“It will be a secure unit with key pads to go in and out,” said Melanie Gagliardo, Healthcare Consultant with Loree Tamayo Consulting, the management company responsible for the operations of CelesteCare. “Also, the staff will go through more training.”

CelesteCare has 14 full-time staff and they plan to double for the memory unit and have 25 staff.

Further changes Two other CelesteCare facili-

ties the Faldyns bought are in Llano and Horseshoe Bay.

The goal is to advance care at the three locations.

“Their intention is to bring technology and uniform care to the facilities and bring the standard up,” Gagliardo said. “The education we’ve brought to our staff has been a huge improvement.” The Fredericksburg CelesteC-

are will install fire sprinklers inside the buildings.

“This will change the facil-ity from a Type A to a Type B, which provides more safety,” Gagliardo said.

Resident activitiesThe facility has care 24/7.

They offer minor help for their residents, who can’t live alone, but don’t require a nursing home.

“We provide meals, dressing, grooming, medications and activities,” Gagliardo said.

The nine residents, who range in age from 79 to 100, get involved with games, arts and crafts, lunch bunch, going to the SPCA, reading to kids, visiting the Christmas lights,

touring an alpaca farm, read-ing to pre-k students, dancing, karaoke and spa days.

Those who want to become a resident at Celeste Care need a physician signature, and they offer a respite program.

“They can be part time or as much as they require,” Gagliar-do said.

Being thereThe Faldyns are hoping to

continue the care that The Paige House started when it first opened its doors back in 2002.

“We’re trying to offer that high level of care and want the families to know that their loved ones are being taken care of,” Susan said.

The next focus for CelesteC-are is to further the memory care.

“Alzheimer’s takes a special-ized level of care like brain exercises,” Gerald said. “We plan to put a technology pro-gram in place to see if they are sitting too long and use smart watches to determine statis-tics. It’s beneficial to see the reports to help us understand the needed care for residents.”

The Faldyns hope to con-tinue helping people in every-thing they do.

“It’s very rewarding when you’re working with them and they remember something from the past and they smile,” Gerald said. “That makes all of this worthwhile.”

CelesteCare is open for visits from Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 830-997-4613.

Stumberg

Herber welcomes new agentElla Mae

Herber, Broker at CC Herber Co., Real Estate has announced that Fred Stumberg of Boerne has recently joined the company as a sales agent specializing in rural and com-mercial properties.

Stumberg grew up on family ranches around Marathon in the Big Bend country of southwest Texas.

He graduated from Texas A&M University with a range science degree, worked with ranchers around San Angelo as a range and district con-

servationist with the National Resources Conservation Service and in the early 1980s he was asked by Frost Bank to manage farm and ranch properties.

Stumberg joined the Frost Bank corporate banking team in the late 1980s and served as market president in

Boerne for 24 years. Following a long career in the financial and banking industry, he has had experience leading non-profit organizations serving the Texas Hill Country.

“Now is the time that I want to devote full time to the field I love most — the real estate

profession,” Stumberg said. “My goal is to offer expertise in all aspects of real estate sales with an emphasis on ranch-es, rural properties and Hill Country commercial proper-ties throughout Central and West Texas.”

Stumberg and his wife, Max, a mentor in public teaching professionals, have two chil-dren and four grandchildren.

Formed in 1979, CC Herber Co., Real Estate is a locally-owned company located at 145 East Main Street. CC Herber Co. offers buyers and sellers individual real estate service in residential, bed and breakfast, small tracts, farms, ranches and commercial.