WINCHESTER — Unseasonable heat, stifling humidity and a tornado warning were not ample to diminish the enthusiasm of about 150 people who gathered Friday afternoon at Shenandoah Valley Westminster-Canterbury to celebrate a prolonged-awaited expansion of the retirement group.
“This is a really specific working day for us,” Westminster-Canterbury President and CEO Jeannie Shiley claimed at the start off of the groundbreaking ceremony on the campus at 300 Westminster-Canterbury Travel.
The cause for celebration was twofold. Not only has Westminster-Canterbury additional 21.3 acres to its 65.25-acre campus, it was also celebrating its 35th anniversary.
“We’re quite excited about the upcoming 35 several years,” mentioned Shiley as she gave a transient history of Westminster-Canterbury, starting up with the arrival of its to start with resident.
Shiley mentioned Westminster-Canterbury’s tale starts with a cat. An occupancy permit for the brand name-new retirement local community was envisioned to be issued on Dec. 31, 1986, and the incredibly to start with resident was scheduled to move in that day. When the permit’s issuance was unexpectedly delayed, the girl experienced to look at into a hotel instead. The hotel would not let her cat, however, so Shiley said Westminster-Canterbury workers agreed to cat-sit till the pet’s proprietor could transfer in two days afterwards, on Jan. 2, 1987.
The retirement community’s long run begins with an growth that has been in the functions since Might 2019, when Westminster-Canterbury purchased an adjoining 21.3 acres at 654 Fox Generate that straddles the Winchester-Frederick County line.
Shiley mentioned Westminster-Canterbury then assembled a “dream group” headed by Pennsylvania-based contractor Warfel Construction Co., which has a satellite business in Winchester, to oversee the job.
“This definitely is a crew effort, and it truly is superior to be on the group,” explained the Rev. Dan McCoig, pastor of Initially Presbyterian Church in Winchester and chairman of Westminster-Canterbury’s board of trustees.
Additional than two dozen attendees at Friday’s ceremony had been “villa depositors” — people who have put down a 10% deposit on a single of the 97 dwellings that will be found in 10 new villas. The just one- and two-bed room flats have entrance expenses that selection from $299,000 to $671,900, plus month to month services costs from $3,745 to $5,770.
Matt Hartzler, president of Warfel Building, thanked the depositors for trusting Westminster-Canterbury and the progress team enough to dedicate to purchasing properties that will not exist until at the very least 2024.
“You happen to be hunting at a hill and we’re trying to tell you wherever the street is heading,” Hartzler claimed as he pointed at the formerly wooded 21.3 acres that were lately cleared for development. “It normally takes a good deal of have confidence in.”
The afternoon’s most boisterous applause was reserved for the program’s remaining speaker, Farley Massey. The 99-12 months-old — 99 and a fifty percent, to be precise — has lived at Westminster-Canterbury considering that 1995 and is enthusiastic to see the retirement local community develop.
“Occasionally previous people have words and phrases of knowledge to share, and this outdated person does,” Massey explained. “Allow the soiree start.”
With that, the assembled crowd of 150 turned its focus from Westminster-Canterbury’s foreseeable future and began celebrating its earlier at a specific 35th anniversary celebration that highlighted stay music, a specific cake and loads of tale telling.
To find out additional about Shenandoah Valley Westminster-Canterbury, go to svwc.org.
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