Kendal at Oberlin

04/29/2026

Across the globe in parks, churches, community centers and the like you’ll find walking paths called labyrinths that are open to the public and offer a quiet space for meditation and contemplation.

And a good day to explore this experience is May 2, World Labyrinth Day.

“Every year on the first Saturday in May thousands of people around the globe participate in World Labyrinth Day as a moving meditation for world peace and celebration of the labyrinth experience. Many “Walk as One at 1” local time to create a rolling wave of peaceful energy passing from one time zone to the next,” according to organizers, the Labyrinth Society (https://hubs.ly/Q04dBnGj0).

Labyrinths, which come in a variety of designs and materials, are not mazes, you cannot get lost. You will arrive at the center if you stay on the path. You walk at your own pace and spend as much time as you want in the center and retrace your path back to the entrance.

May 2 events in the Cleveland area open to the public include:

First Congregational UCC of Elyria, 330 2nd St., Elyria and The Hive: Embodiment Education Center, which starts at 2 p.m. with an introduction to labyrinth, breathwork and guided meditation, followed by self-led labyrinth walk to the rhythms of live drums and ambient sounds. (Consider bringing a chair, yoga mat, or blankets for sitting or lying down during the breath practice and guided meditation.)

Dover Congregational UCC, 2239 Dover Center Rd, Westlake, beginning at 1 p.m.

Lakewood United Methodist Church, 15700 Detroit Ave., Lakewood, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. at its indoor labyrinth.

Kendal at Oberlin residents will be gathering for the first time on World Labyrinth Day, explains resident Marian Thomas: “The Greenleaf Labyrinth in the SCC Greenleaf Whittier Garden Courtyard was completed in late May 2025, so this year will be the first opportunity for Kendal residents and staff to participate in World Labyrinth Day by walking or riding our very own labyrinth.” Photographed in the Greenleaf Labyrinth at Kendal at Oberlin.

Interested but not free on May 2? The Labyrinth Society and Veriditas sponsored a labyrinth locator map, which includes address, labyrinth material and wheelchair accessibility.

04/23/2026

On Saturday, April 25, 2000+ bookstores and thousands of book lovers will come together to celebrate the 13th annual Independent Bookstore Day.

“Every year, Independent Bookstore Day gets bigger and better!” exclaimed American Booksellers Association CEO Allison Hill about the day of sales and foot traffic that many booksellers compare to the holidays. “It feels more meaningful than ever this year to celebrate what they represent: human connection, diversity and inclusivity, independent thought and independence, and the power of community and truth.”

Supporting locally owned, independent bookstores means pumping money back into your communities by way of taxes, payrolls and purchases. And many of these bookstores provide a vital role in the community as a gathering space for families to learn, grow and connect.

Here are 4 in Greater Cleveland to check out this Saturday:

Loganberry Books in Shaker Heights features hourly author signings, games, giveaways, sales and more from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.;

Flame & Fable in Lakewood will have stickers, vendor pop-up, giveaway baskets, author signings and more from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.;

Learned Owl Book Shop in Hudson features local author Julie Hatcher, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., signing copies of three of her latest releases;

The Checkered Shelf Bookshop in Cleveland Heights is giving a portion of its sales to The Literacy Cooperative on April 25.

Other independent bookstores in the area include Ben Franklin & MindFair Books in Oberlin, Ship to Shore in Lorain and Clevo Books in Cleveland.

Two bookstores to include on road trips are Parnassus Books in Nashville, owned by novelist Ann Patchett (and sign up for their weekly email, an entertaining guide to new releases), and Birchbark Books and Native Arts in Minneapolis, owned by novelist Louise Erdrich.

04/20/2026

EarthDay.org a global environmental call-to-action which began in 1970, is Wednesday, April 22, and here’s 3 ways you can get involved.

Attend

The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is throwing a “Party for the Planet” on Saturday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The party will take place across zoo grounds and include fun, family-friendly activities and an array of community organizations. Then on April 22 the Cleveland Zoological Society, the nonprofit advancement partner of Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, and MCPC, a data protection company, are hosting E-Recycling Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Accepted items include IT equipment and home consumer electronics. The recycling truck will be in the Zoo's parking lot at the far back of the Tiger Lot.

Keep Lakewood Beautiful is hosting its annual Earth Day Cleanup, with a meetup at the Lakewood Public Library from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. They will be giving away trees, collecting electronics for recycling and paper for shredding and promoting other initiatives for environmental stewardship.

And save the date for May 9, the 4th annual Earth Fest hosted by West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church. More details to come.

Act

Use social media to share climate facts about plastic pollution and other environmental issues, shop at used clothing stores and farmers’ markets with recyclable bags, plant a pollinator garden, pick up litter in your neighborhood, switch to reusable eating utensils for carryout meals and add plant-based meals to your diet.

Donate

Check Charity Navigator to find environmental groups that are effective stewards of donor contributions. Some charities with 97% or higher rating include the Nature Conservancy, National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club Foundation, Natural Resources Defense Council and World Wildlife Fund.

04/17/2026

Take one creative and energetic assistant teacher, add 24 creative and energetic pre- schoolers and the result? A whimsical and colorful art exhibit.

“We had lots of fun with it, and I feel like it was a pretty big success,” says Summer DeFouw, who joined the Kendal Early Learning Center two months ago.

KELC’s First Annual Art Exhibit debuted this week, to coincide with The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)'s “Week of the Young Child.”

Summer, who has an associate degree in photography, built the exhibit around the theme of self-portrait. She took a black and white photo of each child and made 8x10 prints, which the children will take home after the exhibit. Each child created a variety of self-portrait images, using a mirror and watercolors and other paints, crayons, markers, glitter and glue. They selected their favorite for the exhibit.

And then Summer “interviewed” each child, asking them what they want to do when they grow up (wash dishes, be in my mommy’s tummy, fix cars, teach) and what they love (myself, cat food, Komodo dragon).

An awards ceremony, attended by parents and friends, was held Monday. “Every child got a special award – most colorful, most daring, most creative,” she says.

Summer had only two months to pull this exhibit together so next year she wants to expand into different mediums, like sculpture, and involve the residents, fondly called grandfriends.

As for Summer, soon she’ll begin working on her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education. “I love getting my hands dirty and working with preschoolers. I want to be their first teacher, and influence how they feel about school,” she says.

04/16/2026

This month Brian Milligan celebrates his 14th anniversary as a PRN driver for Kendal.

He loves the versatility of his job. Some weeks Brian works 10 hours, other times 30, some days he’s behind the wheel of a bus, other times a medical transport or Prius. Some trips take him to local stores, others to Cleveland concerts. “Never a dull moment,” he says.

But the past part of the job, Brain will tell you, are his passengers.

“People attach themselves to me, and I attach myself to them. They’re like family to me,” Brian says.

The feeling is mutual, say residents like Mary Joy Leaper, who last year nominated Brian for a LeadingAge Ohio Stars Award.

“I was new to Kendal, to Oberlin, to Ohio; everything was new, including being without a car,” Mary Joy wrote. “Brian did all he could to make me feel comfortable on my first shopping trip on the Kendal bus, explaining at every step what the routine was. Now, he always remembers that I need a small shopping cart and goes out of his way to find one for me.

Brian does this for every Kendal resident he serves; he is unfailingly friendly, attentive, willing, and caring. ‘I’m here for you,’ Brian said the first time I got on the bus. Those words could be considered his ‘theme song,’ and I have witnessed him living them many times.”

Mary Joy’s nomination moved the LeadingAge evaluators so much that they chose Brian to be given the first-ever Changemaker Award.

Brian lives about 45 minutes from Kendal in Medina County with his wife Linda. They foster dogs and enjoy month-long trips in their RV. Next up, is Savannah, Georgia and other stops along the East Coast.

04/13/2026

This month the Marketing & Sales torch was passed as long-time employee Terry Kovach retired. Terry joined the staff in 1995 and five years ago was named director when Maggie Stark, another veteran employee, retired.

Terry leaves on a high note, with an incredible 99% committed occupancy rate and a building expansion on the horizon.

Terry’s retirement presented an opportunity to reorganize the Sales and Marketing department, a highly visible department given that its mission is to find prospective residents from across the country and handle all the details for their successful move.

CEO Seth Vilensky will oversee the department, which will be run by new hire Nick McConnell, Associate Director of Sales, and Kelly Corcoran, who has worked at Kendal five years and now takes on the role of Associate Director of Marketing and Communications.

Rounding out the department are JoDee Palmer, who joined Kendal in 2000 and will take on the job of Sales Counselor, and new hire Hannah Brod, Sales & Marketing Analysis Assistant.

On her last day of work Terry was honored with a festive sendoff attended by dozens of staff and residents. Staff opened a time capsule from early 1990s, which contained marketing brochures, menus, hand-written prospective cards, and photographs, and Human Resources Director Toni Merleno read a poem, which read in part:

You worked so hard to make this dream come true,
And no one deserves it more than you.
I wish you days of happiness, not filled with any strife,
I hope that your retirement years,
Are the best years of your life!

Kelly gave Terry a Kendal tote bag filled with loads of Kendal marketing items for her many travels, starting with an Alaskan cruise with husband Tom.

“I appreciate the many good wishes from residents and staff,” Terry says. “I’ve been fortunate to see how fulfilling a purposeful retirement can be and hope to accomplish the same. Thank you to Seth, Toni and the Sales & Marketing team for organizing a memorable farewell gathering!”

04/09/2026

As Medical Director at Kendal at Oberlin, Georgia Newman, MD, FACP, brings more than 50 years of experience in internal and geriatric medicine to our community. A trailblazer for women in medicine, she remains deeply committed to patient-centered care, lifelong learning, and the relationships that make healthcare truly meaningful. Thank you American Board of Internal Medicine for highlighting Dr. Newman's amazing career.

Georgia Newman, MD, FACP, received her medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 1971 and became ABIM Board Certified in Internal Medicine in 1974 and Geriatric Medicine in 1988. She practices geriatric medicine in Oberlin, Ohio, and continues to participate in Maintenance of Certification (MOC)...

04/08/2026

National Poetry Month started 30 years ago, and has grown into a BIG worldwide event, according to its founders, The Academy of American Poets:

“National Poetry Month is the largest literary celebration in the world, with tens of millions of readers, students, K–12 teachers, librarians, booksellers, literary events curators, publishers, bloggers, and—of course—poets marking poetry’s important place in our culture and our lives every April.”

Here are 5 ways to celebrate, both near and remote.

The Cuyahoga County Public Library features a 30-day “Read + Write Poetry” event, which is a daily email that includes a poem, a writing prompt and a poetry book suggestion.

The Cleveland Public Library has a special exhibit entitled “The Nature of our Times,” which features poems from the anthology of the same name. A poetry reading and reception to highlight the downtown exhibit (which closes April 22) is Saturday, April 18 at 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

The Cleveland Poetry Festival, this year dedicated to Nobel Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner (and Ohio native) Toni Morrison is April 21-25 and includes an array of events both virtual and in-person, free and fee, in many locations. Contact Literary Cleveland for registration information.

“Poetry & the Creative Mind,” a virtual poetry event featuring Louise Erdrich, Maria Shriver and others will be held April 28 at 7:30 p.m. The event is free but registration is required.

The Library of Congress event on April 30 (7 p.m.) in Washington D.C. is free and will be streamed. U.S. Poet Laureate Arthur Sze and U.K. Poet Laureate Simon Armitage will join the stage for the first time, to discuss their new books: Sze's "Transient Worlds: On Translating Poetry" and Armitage's "Gilgamesh: A New Verse Translation."

A free benefit reading celebrating the 30th anniversary of National Poetry Month, supporting K-12 poetry education.

04/06/2026

If you have wall space in need of creative color or a piece of artwork that has seen better days, good news. Kendal at Oberlin’s periodic Art Sale is this week and the more than 150 items are “priced to find a new home, $1 to $25 with most in the $5 to $10 price range,” says organizer Mary Behm.

The sale, open to the public, starts today, April 6, and runs through Thursday, April 10, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The sale is “honor system” so bring exact change or a check. The sale is in the Community Gallery and the money box is at the Reception Desk. Proceeds benefit Kendal’s Staff Emergency Fund.

Items for sale include original oil paintings, watercolors, fiber art, prints, photographs, calligraphy, acrylics with diverse subject matter and often beautifully framed. The sale also includes geometric folded figures by Bob Cothran, a recently deceased resident who designed stage sets and did a large mural in the Heiser Lounge.

The sale’s backstory is an interesting one. Many residents donate original art pieces to the Kendal Art Committee for display in Kendal’s public spaces – hallways, offices, dining rooms and Stephens Care Center. The current collection has about 1,000 pieces, but new artwork is always arriving and displays are routinely changed. Plus, storage space is limited.

“We don’t want to store art, we want to display it. This sale is our way to refresh our collection,” Mary says.

This is Kendal’s fourth sale. In the past, the sale was held for one day in the Heiser Lounge, but that area is now being used for meals because of the dining room renovation.

In addition to Kendal’s public art areas, the life plan community is home to three galleries that feature regional artists throughout the year.

04/02/2026

At Kendal’s annual Spring Fling this month, a troupe of hula dancers will take the stage for the first time. The group was started last fall by Hawaii native and Kendal resident Bobbie Conlan.

“Hula is a connection to my homeland – and I’m a long way from home,” says Bobbie, who informally calls the group “Hui Hula o Kaʻo,” a play on Kendal at Oberlin— “hui” means group or gathering, and Kaʻo is the gentle sway in the dance.

The women – Kathy Hazelton, Tomo Ijiri, and Satsuki Annino –will dance “Puamana,” a well-known Hawaiian song about the composer’s beloved home on Maui.

“I love discovering a new way to move to music and capturing a little bit of what I saw on TV shows as a kid. It's fun to learn a little bit about Hawaiian culture and language, and I always enjoy learning a new skill (if only to a beginning level!)” Kathy Hazelton says.

Bobbie started dancing hula in her teens, then moved off the island and “life happened.” In her early 50s, her mother asked her to join the other hula dancers performing at her birthday party, and Bobbie’s desire to dance returned. She joined a hula hui in Virginia and then one in Hawaii when she moved back home in 2012 with her husband, Steve Ristow.

The couple moved to Kendal in 2022, in part drawn to the area because Steve’s son teaches at Oberlin College. The couple still has a home in Kailua where they spend a few weeks in summer and winter.

In Hawaii, folks who dance hula will often get up to perform a favorite song at private parties or in restaurants and bars that offer live Hawaiian music. “For the dancers, the music is irresistible, and the musicians enjoy having the story told by the dancers,” Bobbie says.
She hopes Hui Hula o Ka’o continues after the Spring Fling and maybe attracts more dancers. “If you’re dancing 45 minutes to an hour, you’re on your feet and getting a workout. It also exercises your brain because you must remember the feet and hand movements along with the story you’re telling,” she says.

03/31/2026

Here’s something we all might be able to wrap our hands around: Let’s laugh more.

Explains comedian Chris Duffy, author of a new book entitled “Humor Me: How Laughing More Can Make You Present, Creative, Connected, and Happy:”

“We are living in a moment when anxiety and despair are troublingly on the rise. Between climate change, structural injustices, political dysfunction, and pandemics, there’s a pervasive sense of hopelessness and isolation among many people I interact with in my daily life, especially younger people. Humor offers us a powerful and immediate antidote, not to deny the reality of these struggles but to cut through the cynicism and nihilism that we might otherwise resort to, to release tension and fuel the kind of creativity that leads to social change.”

And on the eve of April Fools’ Day no better time than now to lighten up. The holiday has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, embraced by the media, companies and your average prankster.

Some major pranks, according to HISTORY include:

In 1957, the BBC reported that Swiss farmers were experiencing a record spaghetti crop and showed footage of people harvesting noodles from trees.

In 1985, Sports Illustrated writer George Plimpton tricked many readers when he ran a made-up article about a rookie pitcher named Sidd Finch who could throw a fastball over 168 miles per hour.

In 1992, National Public Radio ran a spot with former President Richard Nixon saying he was running for president again… only it was an actor, not Nixon.

In 1996, Taco Bell duped people when it announced it had agreed to purchase Philadelphia's Liberty Bell and rename it the Taco Liberty.

Popular amateur pranks include putting sugar in the saltshaker, fast forwarding the alarm clock, announcing “I WON the lottery,” and leaving a phone message to call “Mr. Lyon” with the zoo phone number.

Whatever the prank, but sure to execute early in the day before someone realizes it’s April Fools’ Day.

03/27/2026

Now that Spring is here, it’s time (we hope) to put boots and snow shovel away.

Regardless of the weather, though, Spring means it’s time to:

Start seeds indoors. A quick internet search will give you all the dos and don’ts, which include – start small, use seed-starting mix, invest in inexpensive artificial grow lights and don’t over water. Even if you plan to forego indoor planting, heading to a garden store and browsing through seed packets is like getting hit with a dose of springtime sun.

Spring clean. That may mean different things to different people but look around and you’ll know what needs TLC. Overflowing bookcases and closets? Cluttered garages and basements? Dusty blinds, curtains, ceiling fans? “Spring cleaning is a time-honored American household tradition promoting a boosted mood, better focus, and overall relaxation,” according to the American Cleaning Institute

Break out seasonal scents. Thanks to companies like Mrs. Meyers Clean Day in Wisconsin and Root Candles in Ohio, you can find candles, liquid hand soaps and room sprays scented with lemon and lime, basil and rosemary, lilac and rose and more. Mrs. Meyers also makes scented cleaning supplies that can give your spring cleaning an added boost.

Treat yourself to a spring thing to wear. Maybe it’s time for a new lightweight jacket, sun hat or Guardians cap, sunglasses, shorts. Glance in your closet and pull out what’s seen better days, or flip through an L.L. Bean or Lands’ End catalog for ideas.

Head to your local park. Spring is a wonderful time to explore the outdoors as spring wildflowers bloom, turtles come out to sun and birds take to the sky. Many parks offer guided hikes.

The ingredients in your cleaning products fall into several different categories, added to provide different characteristics and cleaning functions.