SERVICE COMES
IN MANY FORMS
“They also serve who
only stand and wait.”
Most people associate this phrase
with World War II, when it was
quoted by everyone from Winston
Churchill to Eleanor Roosevelt.
They used the phrase to pay tribute
to those who were not on the front
lines of combat but who still played
vital roles in the war effort.
NIKKEI VETERAN REFLECTS ON
TIME IN SERVICE
current with paperwork and regulatory requirements.
One of the guiding principles of
Seniority Spirit is “I own every
problem I see.” That phrase also
applies to our collective team
members — visible and not so
visible — who make the lives of
our residents safer, happier and
healthier than if they lived alone in
their homes.
Joe Anderson
President, Seniority, Inc.
ans this month, let’s also think
about the varied services that
all of our team members and
families provide.
In our retireBy the way,
ment communithat famous
As we honor our military veterans this month,
ties, many team
phrase actulet’s also think about the varied services that all of
members aren’t
ally was the
our team members and families provide.
necessarily the
closing line of
“front-line troops”
a John Milton
but still play significant parts in
Families also play an important
poem that was written around
our residents’ lives. Housekeepers
role in our communities. Our resi1655. It’s from a sonnet entitled
work on weekends to ensure that
dents appreciate visits and close
“On His Blindness.” Let us see
we meet our cleanliness standards.
connections with children and
the light and remember that
Maintenance team members keep
grandchildren, even when they live
we all enhance the indepenour campuses safe and secure. The
far away.
dence, well-being and security
finance department makes sure that
of older adults.
All of these people also serve.
residents are accurately billed. Our
As we honor our military veteradministrative assistants keep us
Spotlight NOVEMBER 2014
Seniority, Inc.
6120 Stoneridge Mall Road
Third Floor
Pleasanton, CA 94588
Spotlight
NOVEMBER 2014
925.924.7187
www.seniorityinc.com
Dr. Bob Yonemoto’s
parents came to this
country as immigrants. They raised a
son who would serve
it in uniform.
country more than anything,” says
Yonemoto of his service, though he
also appreciated the hands-on medical experience. “It let me practice
surgery,” he says.
“You’re happy that you’re fulfilling your obligation to your
He also raised five children with
his wife, Tomiye. They’ve lived at
Nikkei Senior Gardens for the past
three years.
Besides the community’s Japanese
menu — the sashimi is a favorite
— Yonemoto also enjoys Nikkei’s
Veterans Day activities. Sailors from
nearby Naval Construction Battalion
Center, Port Hueneme lead a ceremony for Nikkei’s veterans. The day
includes speeches, war stories and
presentation of the colors, says Marc
Aronoff, Nikkei’s director of sales
and marketing.
Yonemoto, 93, is a secondgeneration Japanese-American,
a retired surgeon and just one
of approximately 20 U.S. military
veterans who will celebrate this
Veterans Day as residents of Nikkei Senior Gardens, an assisted
living retirement community in
Arleta, California.
Yonemoto served as a captain
in the U.S. Army Medical Corps
from 1955-57. He spent his service in Munich, Germany, where
he used his medical training to
treat U.S. soldiers and their families stationed there.
years at City of Hope, a hospital in
Duarte, California.
Dr. Bob Yonemoto
Yonemoto operated on everything
from accidental shootings to thyroid
conditions during his two years in
the Medical Corps. As a civilian he
moved on to specializing in cancer
surgery and research, working many
One of Yonemoto’s favorite parts of
the ceremony last year? The American flag pin he and other veterans
received on their lapels, a small
symbol of the service they remember
with pride.
Veterans Day is Tuesday, Nov. 11.
The federal holiday celebrates the
service of all U.S. military veterans.
REMEMBERING VETERANS
SENIORITY COMMUNITIES
CELEBRATE SERVICE
Robert “Bob” Davenport joined the U.S.
Naval Reserve just
before his 18th birthday and spent the next
three decades in military service.
“I’m fortunate and proud to be in
three services,” says Davenport, who
also joined the Coast Guard in 1951
and later the California Air National
Guard, where he worked until he retired in 1982. Today, he lives at Cottonwood Court in Fresno, California.
In observance of Veterans Day on
Nov. 11, Seniority-managed communities will honor resident veterans,
like Davenport, with parades and
ceremonies throughout the month.
At Nikkei Senior Gardens, students from local high school ROTC
groups will present the colors while
residents share medals, photos and
other memorabilia.
“Many of our veterans served in the
442nd Regimental Combat Team
Spotlight
NOVEMBER 2014
Only about 1 million of the
16 million veterans who
fought during World War II
are still alive today, according to the National WWII
Museum and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Examples of celebrations in
Seniority communities.
and many people tell stories of their
service,” says Mark Aronoff, marketing
and sales director at the JapaneseAmerican community in Arleta, California. The U.S. Army unit was composed
almost entirely of Japanese-American
soldiers and received numerous citations for valor in World War II.
Belfair of Shawnee, a memory support community in Shawnee, Oklahoma, will honor veterans in an event
where they will receive flag pins and
framed certificates. “The local ROTC
will also present the flag ceremony,
and we’ll share cake and punch with
everyone,” says Connie Driever, Belfair’s life enrichment director.
More than a dozen veterans at
Cottonwood Court will participate in the 95th annual Fresno
Veterans Day Parade. The event,
which will be televised on the
DoD News Channel, is the largest Veterans Day parade west of
the Mississippi River.
“I was in eighth grade in 1941
when the Japanese attacked
Pearl Harbor, and I remember
sitting in the auditorium while
President Roosevelt gave us
updates,” says Davenport, who
will attend the parade. “I didn’t
know it then, but that day was so
important and would change my
life forever.”
The VA estimates that by 2036, no living veterans from
the conflict will remain.
Here’s more information on veterans:
•The last Civil War veteran, John Salling, died
at age 112 in 1958.
•The last World War I veteran, Frank Buckles,
died at age 110 in 2011.
•More than 2 million Korean War veterans
and about 7 million Vietnam War veterans are
alive today.
Residents Remember, Reflect
Through Life Skills Stations
Creative life skills stations in
Seniority-managed communities
cover a number of
interests and activities, but the military
station is always one
of the most popular.
Life skills stations are spaces at Seniority communities
that encourage interaction and movement related
to past interests or activities enjoyed by older adults.
These decorative and functional places are sanctuaries
for residents with memory loss. They have such items
as life-like infant dolls in a nursery, an office with typewriters and business accoutrements from a day gone by or
gardening spots with pots and seed.
Veronica Sibley, Seniority’s regional
sales manager, says that residents enjoy seeing the uniforms, photographs
and metals at the military station, and
some will stop to salute.
“The military station celebrates the
lives of residents and sparks memories of that period of
time when they served our country,” Sibley says. “I have
also seen it bring comfort to a few of our female residents, as it reminds them of their weddings, their husbands, the 1940s and civic pride.”
Spotlight
NOVEMBER 2014