Blog Post
Continuing Care: Retirement Community Chaplaincy
- By Sarah Judson
- •
- 15 Nov, 2018
Faith-based retirement communities provide seniors with personalized care encompassing not only basic needs, but relational and spiritual needs as well.
These communities offer service on a continuum from independent and assisted living facilities, to nursing care and memory support, and while many know of the opportunity to volunteer in these communities, fewer know of opportunities for Chaplaincy. As both full and part-time staff, Chaplains offer spiritual support for residents through worship services, counseling, and patient care. The Chaplains in these communities are able to develop relationships with the residents and minister to them, supporting them spiritually and emotionally through the last stages of life.
Chaplain Laura Baker, who serves at Shannondale Retirement Community, emphasizes the importance of these relationships, as they are not short-term patients, but residents. She spends time in ministry and fellowship with them each week, and says she loves being able to hear their stories, as they have so much to share. Chaplain Baker was first introduced to Retirement Chaplaincy as a student at the Pentecostal Theological Seminary. While fulfilling her Clinical Pastoral Education, she was assigned to serve at Alexian Village Retirement Community, and was immediately drawn to the people there. The Alzheimer’s Unit was specifically impactful, as her own grandmother suffered from Alzheimer’s, and she felt a personal connection with the residents. When she and her husband, Herschell, moved back to Maryville, TN to pastor their own church, she knew she wanted to serve someplace similar, and reached out to Shannondale Retirement Community. After doing her CPE Residency at University of Tennessee Medical Center, she was hired at Shannondale. There, she serves primarily in the Healthcare Unit and Assisted Living and leads Sunday services and weekly Bible studies. As the Minister of Music at her home church, she incorporates music into her day-to-day activities, singing hymns with residents during visitations and leading worship at services.
The retirement community is unique, and “it is the most loving place I have ever worked”, says Chaplain Deborah Valiton-Carnish, who serves at the Masonic Village at Elizabethtown. CPE experiences with Alzheimer’s and Dementia patients drew her to the older generation as well, and when the opportunity to serve in a Continuing Care Community was presented, she knew it was God’s divine leading. Over the and over the last five and a half years, she has been overwhelmed by the love and support from the community. There is remarkable participation in spiritually-focused events, as more than 300 residents attend services on Sunday mornings, and over 450 more tune in to watch the broadcasts. Services are also offered for those in the Health Center, and Chaplains visit with each patient there twice a week. The four Chaplains on staff officiate weddings, funerals, baby dedications, and baptisms for not only the 2,000 residents, but the 1,700 employees as well. Weekly devotions are held in all nine “neighborhoods”, or levels of care, as well as monthly women’s groups. Chaplains are on call 24/7, and serve to notify residents, their spouses, and families of any deaths and respond to hospital calls. It’s intense, yet incredibly rewarding, as this is a time of life when people can “take off their mask”, sharing their diverse backgrounds, and allowing Chaplain Valiton-Carnish to truly live out the gospel and learn so much along the way.
While building relationships is one of the best aspects of this ministry, it is also one of the most difficult, as much time is dedicated to end-of-life care. Residents want to give back to the Chaplains as well, and Chaplain Baker speaks of one woman who has difficulty communicating due to a stroke, but never fails to have a smile. During visitations, she takes Chaplain Baker’s cold hands in her own to warm them, the woman’s past as a nurse shining through. Chaplain Baker shares that while the Lord is using her to minister, she feels that she receives more in return. Being able to walk alongside these residents through this stage in their lives and grow from their teachings is a privilege, she says, and is grateful for this opportunity to work for the Lord. Chaplain Valiton-Carnish agrees, adding, “There truly is no better place to work”.
Recent Posts
The Chaplains Commission congratulates Chaplain (CPT) Gary D. Sands for being selected as the best Soldier Recovery Unit (SRU) Chaplain for the third consecutive year (2020-2022). CH Sands was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for his duty performance and leadership that inspired his unit to win the SRU of the Year award for the first time.
The competition is steep for such recognition by the Army Recovery Care Program Senior Leadership Summit at Fort Belvoir, VA. There are 15 Soldier Recovery Units in the Army nationwide and they’ve cared for 55,000 Soldiers since their activation in 2007.
A native of Texas and a fourth generation Church of God member, Chaplain Sands has been married to Ginger Locklear Sands for more than 30 years. Both are graduates of Lee University and the proud parents of two adult children. Mrs. Sands is a career school teacher. In 1999, they established the Mount Olive Ministry Center in Arlington, TX, where they pastored for 16 years until Gary entered active duty on 21 September 2015.
Chaplain Sands is a 1996 graduate (M.Div) of the Pentecostal Theological Seminary. Afterwards, he earned a Ph.D. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (2004) and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Wesley Theological Seminary (2020). He is also a Clinical Pastoral Education graduate from Madigan Army Medical Center, WA (2019).
Following this assignment, Chaplain Sands hopes to be promoted to Major and stationed at Fort Bragg, NC. He wants to be assigned as an Airborne Brigade Chaplain, where he can mentor junior Chaplains in providing ministry to their respective battalions.
Thank you, Chaplain Sands, for making us all stand a little taller. Your faithful work and successful ministry at America’s largest military installation is sincerely appreciated.
Please send your notes of congratulations and encouragement to Chaplain and Mrs. Sands at his email address: garydonsands@gmail.com
--Charles Howell, Chaplain Colonel (USA retired), 23 FEB 2023
The competition is steep for such recognition by the Army Recovery Care Program Senior Leadership Summit at Fort Belvoir, VA. There are 15 Soldier Recovery Units in the Army nationwide and they’ve cared for 55,000 Soldiers since their activation in 2007.
A native of Texas and a fourth generation Church of God member, Chaplain Sands has been married to Ginger Locklear Sands for more than 30 years. Both are graduates of Lee University and the proud parents of two adult children. Mrs. Sands is a career school teacher. In 1999, they established the Mount Olive Ministry Center in Arlington, TX, where they pastored for 16 years until Gary entered active duty on 21 September 2015.
Chaplain Sands is a 1996 graduate (M.Div) of the Pentecostal Theological Seminary. Afterwards, he earned a Ph.D. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (2004) and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Wesley Theological Seminary (2020). He is also a Clinical Pastoral Education graduate from Madigan Army Medical Center, WA (2019).
Following this assignment, Chaplain Sands hopes to be promoted to Major and stationed at Fort Bragg, NC. He wants to be assigned as an Airborne Brigade Chaplain, where he can mentor junior Chaplains in providing ministry to their respective battalions.
Thank you, Chaplain Sands, for making us all stand a little taller. Your faithful work and successful ministry at America’s largest military installation is sincerely appreciated.
Please send your notes of congratulations and encouragement to Chaplain and Mrs. Sands at his email address: garydonsands@gmail.com
--Charles Howell, Chaplain Colonel (USA retired), 23 FEB 2023
She and Kelly Artemis founded Milspo Gurus for this community, and engage in honest discussion through blogs, Q&A videos , and a personalized course. Their course was recently featured in military family focused Legacy Magazine , and both are published in other military resources, found on their site. Claire shares more about the creation of Milspo Gurus here:
