Planning for your retirement years: the most thoughtful gift for families.

What Is a Waitlist?

A waitlist for a retirement community is similar to a waitlist at a restaurant. By adding your name to the list, you have a place in the queue as openings (homes) become available.

In addition to specifying what type of home you want — for example, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, with or without a den, apartment, cottage or patio home — you may be able to request other criteria, such as:

• A specific floor plan
• The location (on the ground floor, near the elevator, near the dining venue, overlooking a courtyard)
• A certain price range
• A general time frame

The criteria you can select will vary among senior living communities, and so will the deposit you’ll need to make when adding your name to the list.

How Does a Waitlist Work?

If you decide you want to be placed on a waitlist for a specific senior living community, you’ll need to fill out an application and make the required deposit. Waitlist deposit amounts vary from community to community.

If your application is accepted, your name will be added to the list. Then, as soon as a home becomes available that meets your specified criteria, the community will notify you to see if you are interested.

You can turn down the opportunity without losing your place in the queue. The community will simply notify the next person on the waitlist whose criteria meet those of the available home, and you’ll be notified the next time a similar home becomes available.

If you decide you no longer want to be on the list, you notify the community and ask to be removed. Typically, the community will refund your deposit except for an amount to pay for administrative fees.

The Most Important Reasons to Be on a Waitlist

Every person’s situation is different, so your reasons for wanting to be on a waitlist may be quite different from those of another person. Still, there are several reasons that are likely to pertain to most people who are eligible or nearing eligibility to live in a retirement community.

#1: The demand for senior living residences is expected to increase and outpace supply.

By 2030, all baby boomers will be over the age of 65. Most will be older than 70. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, baby boomers are the second-largest age group, at an estimated 73 million. (Millennials, the children from 1982 to 2000, are the largest.)

Additionally, life expectancy increased for baby boomers, thanks in part to improvements in health care. So, not only are there more seniors in the market for senior living, they’re also living longer — which means they have the opportunity to live in a retirement community longer.

Plus, after dipping somewhat during the pandemic, occupancy rates for senior housing are increasing again. Counting the third quarter of 2023, occupancy rates have increased for nine consecutive quarters, according to data compiled and analyzed by the National Investment Center (NIC).

That same NIC data, referred to in a separate blog post, indicates the demand for senior housing is outstripping the number of new homes being added to the market. This trend has also persisted for nine consecutive quarters.

One real estate investment services company estimates that between 25,000 and 40,000 additional housing units will be necessary from now until 2030 to meet the increasing demand for senior housing.

#2: You’ll have more flexibility and control over your future.

We all know life can change our plans in a split second. What we thought we could put off indefinitely can suddenly become quite urgent.

Having your name on a waitlist may make the difference between you selecting the home you’ll live in or someone else making that decision for you, should your circumstances change suddenly.

Being on a waitlist could also keep you from having to settle for a less-than-desirable home, should you have to move on short notice. Some senior living communities have dozens — and some have hundreds — of names on their waitlists. All of those people have priority over anyone who’s not on the list when it comes to accepting an available residence.

#3 Not all retirement communities have the option to expand their footprint.

If you have your eye on a specific senior living community, putting your name on the waitlist practically guarantees you the opportunity to live there at some point.

Some communities with long waitlists have expansion projects planned or underway. Others may not be able to expand, whether due to geographic restrictions, limitations imposed by the community’s governing board or even local regulatory restrictions.

Even communities that are in the process of adding new residences may not have any availability in the near future. Expansion projects can take years to implement and bring new residences to fruition. A lot can happen in the interim.

#4 There’s virtually no downside to getting on a waitlist.

Although you will be required to make a deposit when you add your name to a waitlist, nearly all retirement communities will refund the lion’s share of your deposit if you change your mind. Some may retain a percentage to cover the administrative costs of maintaining their waitlist.

Knowing you have a place in the queue and the ongoing right of refusal as residences in the community become available can provide tremendous peace of mind.

And, if you do move into the community, your deposit will be applied toward the entrance fee.

The Future Residents Program at Heron’s Key

After reaching an occupancy rate of over 90%, Heron’s Key recently decided it was time to begin a waitlist, which we call the Future Residents Program.

When our community was in the conceptual stages, development plans included the option to expand Heron’s Key in the future. We are actively considering this possibility but have not yet made any firm decisions.

The Heron’s Key waitlist, which we call the Future Residents Program, will help us manage demand for homes that become available while we work through the decision-making process regarding a potential expansion.

Our First Future Residents: Jill Guernsey and Tom Stanfield

Jill and Tom made it their mission to be the first participants in the Future Residents Program.

Tom, who was our director of sales and marketing from the time Heron’s Key was in conceptual development until he retired in 2019, had advocated for a waitlist for quite some time.

Jill was on Gig Harbor’s city council when Heron’s Key was in the development stages and then served as mayor of Gig Harbor for three years while Heron’s Key was under construction and preparing to open. She currently serves on the board of directors at Heron’s Key, Emerald Communities and Emerald Heights, our sister community in Redmond, Washington.

Both Jill and Tom had been in previous long-term marriages and lost their spouses to cancer. Their involvement with Heron’s Key was instrumental in bringing them together. They began their relationship in 2018 and were married the following year.

When asked about their decision to put their names on the waitlist, Jill pointed out that they are both in their 70s and one day will no longer be able to life in “this gorgeous house we built.”

“I don’t want my kids to pick where I’m going to live,” she said. “I’d rather pick it myself.”

During his career of 20-plus years in sales and marketing for senior living communities, Tom said he’d heard every possible excuse and argument about why someone would not choose to live in a continuing care retirement community — and he says he wasn’t going to let those affect his decision.

“Gig Harbor is where we choose to live, and Heron’s Key is the best solution available to seniors in our local market,” he said.

“Because of my extended experience with Heron’s Key, I know a good majority of the residents there, and they are my friends,” Tom noted. “I have an appreciation for the people who live there and an appreciation for the culture of the community. When it’s time for us to make the move, there won’t be any culture shock.

“The people who live there are very ambitious, they’re active and they want to be involved not only in Heron’s Key but also in the Gig Harbor community at large,” he said.

Jill reinforced Tom’s observations: “I love the fact that they are their own community,” she said, referring to Heron’s Key residents. “They shaped Heron’s Key, and they run it. And they’re actively involved in the Gig Harbor community in many ways. I think that’s fabulous.”

If you’d like to learn more about the Future Residents Program at Heron’s Key and the benefits of being on a waitlist, let’s get in touch! 

Featured Image: Drazen Zigic / Shutterstock

Senior living communities promote a lifestyle that appeals to active seniors, offering a profusion of activities designed to stimulate and engage residents socially, physically and mentally. This, in turn, helps residents maintain or even increase their level of activity — along with improving their quality of life.

Bill Sams, who moved to Heron’s Key in 2022 with his wife, Janet, can attest to the abundance of opportunities they’ve had to expand their social circle and become involved in the community.

Older adults choose to live in a retirement community for many other reasons, as well, such as convenience, access to care and a desire to make things easier for their family down the road.

Sometimes, they discover certain advantages of living in a community like Heron’s Key after the fact, like Bill did.

Bill says if they hadn’t moved to Heron’s Key when they did, he might not be around to share his story.

How Bill and Janet Came to Live at Heron’s Key

Before moving to our community, the couple lived on Bainbridge Island, about an hour away from Gig Harbor. So did Janet’s sister, Barbara.

Bill notes that their social network was dwindling. Some of their friends had moved to be closer to their grandkids. Others had found new homes in communities like ours. A few had passed away.

“We were losing friends faster than we were making friends,” Bill says.

Bill and Janet were also taking care of Barbara after she experienced medical events that left her less independent than before. They began looking into senior living options for her, which brought them to Heron’s Key.

“We looked around at all of the amenities here, and the amount of things going on every day is just mind-boggling,” Bill says. “Instead of a retirement community, it should be called a retirement resort. It’s like a cruise ship that doesn’t leave the dock!”

Bill and Janet decided not only would Heron’s Key be a good place for Barbara to live — it would be good for them, too. Within a few months, all three were settling into their new homes.

“Everything just dropped right into place,” Bill says, noting the timing worked out in their favor and they were able to get two apartments of the same model.

“It’s been a little over a year since we moved here, and we have a list of a hundred people we’ve had dinner with, some of them multiple times. Our social cohort has dramatically expanded,” he says.

Barbara is happy with her new home as well, according to Bill.

“She’s a very social person, so she’s like a duck in water here,” he says.

Bill, Janet and Barbara are typical of the active senior citizens you’ll find thriving in our community.

Why Bill Believes Living at Heron’s Key Saved His Life

One day, not so long ago, Bill began having upper chest pains. He called his doctor, who advised him to go the emergency room. At first, he was hesitant to go.

“We guys don’t always pay attention to what we’re told to do,” he admits with a chuckle.

When he started to feel faint, though, he took the situation more seriously and asked Barbara to drive him to the ER.

“The reason I was willing to do that is because Heron’s Key is about a mile and a half from the hospital,” he says, explaining that if they had still been living on Bainbridge, he would’ve had to call 911 and wait for the ambulance to show up. Then, the ambulance would have had to take the ferry back to the mainland and to a hospital in Seattle.

He says that would’ve been “enough of a hassle” to deter him from calling right away. Instead, he would have waited for additional symptoms; that decision, Bill later learned from his physicians, more than likely would have been fatal.

The medical team at St. Anthony Hospital found two blockages in the valves in his heart, one at 90% and the other at 99%, and Bill underwent double bypass surgery. Today, he’s recovering well.

“I feel like I dodged a major bullet by the fact that we were here at Heron’s key, with the ease of access to medical services,” he says.

Another Advantage Bill Discovered: Penrose Harbor

Bill notes that the staff at Penrose Harbor, the area on our campus that offers Assisted Living, Memory Care,  Skilled Nursing and Rehab, had access to his medical records at St. Anthony Hospital and kept track of his progress during his stay.

“They had a room reserved for me at Penrose Harbor so that if I needed any rehabilitation when I got out of the hospital, I’d have gone directly there,” he says, adding that Penrose Harbor is just a short walk from their apartment.

“Anybody who’s tried to find a skilled nursing bed on short notice will tell you there are almost none to be had, and certainly none that are a five-minute walk down the hallway. Another huge benefit is the care at Penrose Harbor has the highest ranking of all skilled nursing facilities in Gig Harbor, and has maintained four- and five-star rankings by the state of Washington throughout its history.”

“All of those things considered, we are tremendously glad we made the decision we did to move to Heron’s Key. In my case, I think it was a life or death decision.”

Living Here Will Help Bill in His Recovery, Too

“I’m now seeing that a lot of the exhaustion and other feelings I had over the last year, which I thought were just a matter of getting old, were really the heart problem,” Bill says.

When he completes the 12-week supervised cardio exercise program he’s in, Bill plans to make use of the fitness amenities available to him right here at home.

“Heron’s Key has everything I could want as far as exercise equipment, plus the two fitness specialists and the two full-time physical therapists at Penrose Harbor,” he says, noting that he has a prescription from his physician to work with the physical therapists when he wants.

There’s also a paved path around the ponds adjacent to our property, which Bill says is “ideal for walks.”

“I couldn’t be in a better place to rehab,” he says.

Staying Active and the Benefits of Exercise for Seniors

Bill’s story offers a compelling answer to the question, why is it important for older adults to stay active?

By today’s standards, independent living residents aren’t what most of us would consider elderly, but staying active will help many get the most out of their retirement years — and make it more likely they’ll remain active and independent as they age, like Bill and Janet.

Along with staying socially and intellectually active, maintaining a certain level of physical activity (whether you call it exercise or not) can increase your chances of enjoying life to the fullest as you get older.

A regular routine of moderate-intensity physical activity that includes aerobic, cardio and strength training can:

• Reduce your risk of chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease
• Improve your immune and digestive systems
• Help you manage your weight
• Increase your bone density and muscle mass, or at least prevent further loss
• Improve your strength and balance, which will lower your risk of falling
• Reduce stress and ward off depression
• Lower your blood pressure if you have hypertension
• Improve your sleep quality
• Boost your energy level
• Increase your flexibility
• Potentially improve cognitive function and lower the risk of dementia
• Broaden your social circles through shared classes

To be safe, check with your doctor for recommendations before you get started.

We Make Being Active Fun!

The variety of activities, classes and opportunities for socializing at Heron’s Key offers something for everyone. Come find out for yourself. Attend an upcoming event. Or, contact us to set up a visit.

Let us introduce you to an active lifestyle you’ll love.

Featured Image: Fizkes / Shutterstock

As a senior living community, we’re always on the search for activities our residents can engage in that support healthy aging, especially ones that are accessible to essentially everyone.

Katie Lodge, who joined Heron’s Key in June as a fitness specialist, introduced a couple of wellness programs recently that not only support healthy aging but also have generated considerable excitement for residents and our staff: forest bathing and sound bathing.

Both activities harmonize with our holistic approach to wellness, as they benefit mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health. Each person has a unique experience during the activity, even though the sessions are held as a group — so there’s a social aspect as well.

Forest Bathing: An Exercise in How to Be Healthy by Being in the Present

Yoga and meditation are both mindful practices. They help alleviate stress and anxiety by encouraging the practitioner to focus on the immediate moment at hand — the now. Forest bathing works in a similar way.

How to Forest Bathe

What makes forest bathing such an excellent form of relaxation is its simplicity. You don’t need any equipment. You don’t need special clothing or shoes, though you’ll want to be comfortably dressed. (Yes, this bathing you do fully clothed!) You don’t even need a forest, really.

Fortunately, we have plenty of forests here in the Pacific Northwest, so we’re more than happy to practice forest bathing in its traditional form.

The whole idea is to find a place with trees where you can use all of your senses to immerse yourself in your surroundings. It could be a park or even a stand of trees in a residential area.

Leave your camera at home or in the car. If you aren’t comfortable leaving your cellphone behind, at least turn it off.

Walk slowly — you’re not out for a hike — or find a spot to be still. Listen to the sounds around you. The birdsong. The sound of the wind in the trees. Maybe there’s a stream or a brook nearby.

Notice the multitude of hues, the greens of the grass, moss and leaves (or the magnificent reds, oranges and golds of the foliage this time of year). Peer into the sky. Is it a beautiful, clear blue, or are there clouds drifting by? Are there shafts of sunlight streaming through the trees?

If you’re in a pine forest, breathe in the fresh clean scent. If you’re in a park, do you smell the fragrance of flowering plants? If there’s a body of water close by, can you smell it? As you breathe in the air, can you taste it, too?

Give your fingers permission to participate. Let them feel the texture of the tree bark, the leaves, the grass.

If there’s a breeze, notice how it feels against your skin and in your hair. Does the air feel (and smell) damp, or does it feel crisp?

Pay attention to what all of your senses are telling you.

A Quick History

Forest bathing originated as a form of ecotherapy in the 1980s in Japan, where it’s called shinrin-yoku. The director of the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing coined the term and helped establish the practice as a therapeutic way for people to reconnect with nature. He also saw shinrin-yoku as a means to protect the country’s forests.

The concept behind forest bathing is much older, though. For millennia, people have turned to nature to soothe and heal themselves.

Today, urban planners know the importance of including green spaces, such as parks and gardens, where people can get outside and enjoy nature.

The Health Benefits of Forest Bathing

Research suggests forest bathing is more than a pleasant pastime. Although studies so far have been small and have limitations, they indicate forest bathing may:

• Decrease concentration of the stress hormone cortisol
• Lower blood pressure and heart rate
• Boost immune function
• Improve mood and energy level
• Increase focus, mental clarity and, potentially, cognitive functioning
• Promote better sleep

Trees — especially evergreens — and other plants release compounds called phytoncides to protect themselves from insects and disease. When we breathe in these compounds, which are basically airborne essential oils, our bodies increase the number and activity of natural killer cells, a type of white blood cell. As their name implies, these cells kill tumor- and virus-infected cells. This is how forest bathing is believed to improve immune function.

Forest air is also purer, in general, as trees absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen.

Forest Bathing at Heron’s Key

For our first-ever forest bathing session, Katie and Chuck Hammonds, another fitness specialist here at Heron’s Key, took more than 20 enthusiastic residents to the Japanese garden in Tacoma in August.

For the September session, they stayed closer to home, here in Gig Harbor — where there’s definitely no shortage of forests. About the same number of residents participated. The next outing is planned for Bainbridge Island.

“It was a really pleasant surprise, to see how many people were open to trying it for the first time, and then how many people came back for the second session,” Katie says. “We’re hearing good feedback — the only complaint was that the sessions weren’t long enough!”

Katie notes the sessions are structured enough so that residents have a guide if they want it, but everyone has the opportunity to “get what they need while they’re out there.”

For now, the plan is to go forest bathing monthly, weather permitting, and eventually the sessions may be extended with a yoga class or maybe a picnic, according to Katie.

Sound Bathing: Let the Good Vibrations Begin!

Although various forms of sound therapy have been around for thousands of years, sound bathing in the U.S. has mostly been used for meditation and as a healing activity in yoga studios and wellness centers.

To a lesser extent, sound bathing is also being used as a form of treatment for people living with Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia.

In a sound bathing session, the person leading the session plays a therapeutic instrument such as a sound bowl, also called a singing bowl. Whether they’re made of crystal or metal, these bowls produce sound through vibrations — like a gong, a chime or a bell.

Those who are participating in a sound bathing session either sit comfortably or lie down, using blankets and bolsters to make themselves comfortable. As the tones from the bowls resonate throughout the room, participants focus on the sound, letting go of stress and negative thoughts.

Proponents of sound bathing suggest the frequencies of the vibrations help to balance the body’s energy centers so that energy can flow as it should. Potential benefits include:

• A sense of calmness
• Less muscle tension
• Better sleep
• Pain relief
• Improved mood
• Lower blood pressure

Session #1, a Resounding Success

Heron’s Key recently had our first sound bathing session, and the room was full! We even had a waiting list of those wanting to participate.

“It was really cool to see how open-minded everyone was, how curious they were about this idea of meditating and sound and vibration,” Katie says. “The feedback was the same as with the forest bathing — people said the session could have been a little longer.”

A few members of the staff attended this session, which Katie was pleased to see.

“Employee wellness is absolutely crucial to prevent burnout, so we can better care for residents,” Katie says. “But also, it’s great when employees and residents get to participate in programs together because it creates stronger relationships.”

Wellness for All

Everyone has their own opinions on how to age well. The truth is, there is no single diet, no one type of exercise, no set of habits or daily routine that will have the same effect for everybody.

We believe the best approach to healthy aging is to choose activities you enjoy that also benefit you mentally, physically, emotionally or socially. It’s why we strive to make sure there are plenty of options and opportunities for all Heron’s Key residents to live well and be well.

“Chuck and I are always looking for ways to get other modalities of wellness out to the residents,” Katie says. “We continue to innovate and come up with ideas for different activities.”

“We’re using these new programs to reach more people with the idea of wellness practices outside of the gym,” she adds. “Not all of our fitness classes involve lifting weights. With an activity like sound bathing, the whole idea is that anyone can come. Anyone can do it, and everyone is welcome.”

What Are You Waiting For?

You may be wondering, “Is it too late to get healthy?” There’s no age limit on getting started on the journey to better health. We routinely see people in their 80s and older trying new wellness activities and having a great time.

Here’s an idea: Come visit us and see for yourself. Talk with a few residents while you’re here. Ask them what they’re doing to improve their health and wellness, and see what piques your interest.

To set up a visit, contact us!

Featured Image: Udo Herrmann / Shutterstock

Dr. Michael Copass, who’s lived at Penrose Harbor for three years, recently reunited with a friend he’s known for decades through Medic One, the Seattle-based paramedic training program that has garnered worldwide attention since the early 1970s.

Dave Mataftin retired this month as fire chief at South King Fire and Rescue (SKFR), after nearly 50 years of service with the fire department. As a special surprise, Sandi Semler, the social services coordinator at Penrose Harbor, and Jerry Clos, the captain at SKFR, planned a celebration in mid-August for Dave at Gig Harbor, and Sandi arranged for Dr. C. to be there.

According to Dr. C., “Mataftin was a loyal, hard-working, intelligent member of the fire service. He was a real asset [who made it possible for the fire service to] do more with what they had, and better serve the community with the same amount of money. He was that kind of far-sighted fire official.”

It was more than a reunion of two long-time friends. Dr. C. is at least partly responsible for extending Dave’s career by about a decade, which helps explain why the chief felt honored to see Dr. C. at the celebration.

To thank Dave for helping SKFR secure the Zenith, a new maritime emergency response vessel SKFR put in service a year ago, Jerry wanted to take him on one more ride on the fireboat. To everyone’s delight, Dr. C. joined them for a spin around the harbor.

The Extra Decade

Around 10 years ago, Dave experienced an intracranial hemorrhage after being bumped in the head with a piece of machinery. Although his regular physician initially didn’t find any significant injury, Dave knew something wasn’t right.

He persisted, and when he found out about the head bleed, Dave called two people: his wife and Tom Gudmestad, one of King County’s earliest Medic One paramedics, who worked closely with Dr. C. Tom then contacted Dr. C.

At the time, Dr. C. was a practicing neurologist and director of emergency services at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, in addition to being responsible for the Medic One training program.

He says, “We got [Dave] from his home to the medic unit to the emergency room to the operating room in one smooth transition.” In the OR, neurosurgeons removed a clot that had been detected during a CT scan, and Dave “woke up completely normal,” according to Dr. C.

Although Dr. C. doesn’t take credit for saving Dave’s life, he says his friend “would not have been in any shape to continue his service to the fire department” if the Medic One team and the hospital hadn’t acted so swiftly.

How a Neurologist Helped Make Seattle the Best Place to Have a Heart Attack

Dr. C. served as a general medical officer in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. He received his medical education before enlisting as a captain, but had not yet completed a residency.

After being discharged in the late 1960s, Dr. C. headed for Chicago, hoping to restart a residency in general medicine at Northwestern University. That didn’t work out quite as he’d planned.

“Best thing that ever happened was to be denied access to that residency, so I had to make do,” he says. “I made do by getting on a red-eye to Seattle,” which is where he’d grown up.

He earned a residency in neurology at Harborview Medical Center, where he “fell into cahoots with” Dr. Leonard Cobb, the chief of cardiology at University of Washington School of Medicine.

Dr. Cobb’s Collaboration With the Fire Chief

After reading about first responders in Belfast, Ireland, who were saving lives by bringing emergency medical care to people who’d experienced cardiac arrest, Dr. Cobb (who passed away last February) came up with the idea of training local firefighters in pre-hospital emergency medical care. Firefighters were always on duty and could respond quickly if someone in their service area was having a heart attack. With the right training, the firefighters could keep patients alive until they reached the hospital, where physicians and other medical staff could take over.

Dr. Cobb shared his ideas with Gordon Vickery, Seattle’s fire chief, in 1968, and the two developed a paramedic training course for firefighters that would become known as Medic One.

Moby Pig 

During his residency, Dr. C. spent a substantial amount of time in Harborview’s emergency department (and became its medical director at 34). Every day, he says, he would see these “big, burly firemen” driving a red and white mobile unit they called Moby Pig because it was so large and hard to steer. The firemen were “bringing in patients who supposedly had been dead, but now they were alive again, moving and talking.”

Dr. C. took a keen interest in what they were doing, and Dr. Cobb asked if he would draw upon his knowledge as a neurologist to teach the firefighters about the human nervous system.

Meanwhile, in 1972, in tandem with Medic One, other members of the community began receiving “citizen CPR” training through a program called Medic Two. The goal, Dr. C. says, was to teach one-fifth of Seattle’s population how to do CPR.

In 1974, the TV program “60 Minutes” did a segment on Medic One, during which Morley Safer referred to Seattle as “the best place in the world to have a heart attack.”

Eventually, Dr. C. took over responsibility for developing the entire Medic One training program and “making sure the entire system worked together.”

Medic One Takes Wings

A house fire in 1982 in Sitka, Alaska, claimed the lives of three children. Dr. C. was in Sitka, giving a lecture, when it happened.

After receiving a call for help, Dr. C. tried to get one of the children, a 12-year-old girl, to Harborview’s burn center, which was 850 miles away. Unfortunately, by the time he could arrange her flight to Seattle, too much time had passed, and she died during the flight.

The experience led Dr. C. to apply Medic One’s underpinnings to a new collaboration between the UW School of Medicine and Harborview Medical Center called Airlift Northwest.

Initially, the air ambulance service used one small plane based in Seattle to fly trained staff to people who needed trauma care but were too far away from the hospital to receive it in time. Airlift Northwest flew patients to Harborview Medical Center, or a closer hospital if it could provide the necessary care.

Today, Airlift Northwest has a fleet of small planes and helicopters outfitted as “ICUs in an aircraft.” The program has partnerships with hospitals throughout Washington as well as Alaska, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

Dr. C.’s Retirement

After 35 years as the director of emergency services at Harborview, Dr. C. stepped down from that role in 2008 to spend more time with his family. He also retired as the medical director of Airlift Northwest, but stayed on at Harborview as medical director of Seattle Medic One. He also continued to see patients in Harborview’s neurology clinic.

Dr. C. fully retired five years later after having a stroke, leaving an extraordinary legacy.

Even with all of his work making Medic One an exemplary service that would be replicated all over the world, and his considerable contributions in making Harborview Medical Center the only facility across Washington, Alaska, Idaho and Montana that provides Level I trauma care (as well as one of the country’s highest-volume trauma centers), Dr. C. may be best known at Harborview for his sense of social justice and excellence in care.

In particular, he was known for emphasizing that all patients were to be treated with equal respect and attention to care, advising the staff to approach their work as if “every patient who walks in the door at Harborview is the president of Seafirst Bank.”

Dr. C.’s wife, Lucy, still lives in their home in Port Angeles, which they were building for their retirement when Dr. C. fell ill. Although Port Angeles is about a two-hour drive from Penrose Harbor, Lucy says when it was time to find a more advanced level of care than Dr. C. could receive at home, they “sacrificed proximity to get better care and nicer surroundings” at Penrose Harbor.

One of their daughters lives near Port Angeles and their other daughter lives not too far from Penrose Harbor. Their son lives in California. Lucy and Dr. C. also have four grandchildren.

More Fascinating Stories

Dr. C. isn’t the only resident in our community who’s led a remarkable life. You’d be amazed by how many have a captivating story (or several) to share.

What’s also impressive is how many residents at Heron’s Key and Penrose Harbor continue to inspire others, give of themselves and make the world a better place in ways large and small.

If these sound like the kind of people you’d like to have as neighbors, and you’d like to know more about Heron’s Key, contact us and we’ll arrange a time for you to visit!