os with elderly care communities

[Harrison Owen]

Never did anything with elder care communities -- but something pretty
close. About 8 years ago, the Northwest Regional Advisor Council for the
AARP (American Association of Retired People) decided they needed to focus
their mission, purpose, and program. Open Space was the chosen vehicle. The
council consisted of some 150 people with an average age of 70+ (actually
more on the plus side.) Space opened, and everything happened as usual, but
I was a little worried about the reports. We were using computers, and for
many of the people involved, a computer was a new and different thing. Most
could type, but a computer....????

Anyhow the reports started to come in, and I passed by the Newsroom. There a
wonderful lady, obviously in her early 80s, confronted the machine,
surrounded by mounds of flip chart paper. Not only was this her first time
out, but she happened to have posted *THE* issue, and many people had lots
to say. I wondered, and passed on my way. Sometime later I came back just to
check. She was obviously making progress, but in a way that pained me. Using
a large magnifying glass to see the screen, she punched in her report, one
finger at a time.

I watched for a moment, and then did what I never would do ordinarily. I
came up to her and offered to help. She didn't quite hear me at first, but
when she did -- her response was surprising. She turned on me like a mother
guarding her children and said, "No young man. I will type my own report!"

I tipped my hat and went on my way. And John, No worries! Works just
wonderful.

Harrison

Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, Maryland   20845
Phone 301-365-2093

Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm
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-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of john engle
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 9:02 AM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: os with elderly care communities

hi again, os listers.

i'm talking with leadership at an elderly care community. the president
really believes in the power of dialogue.

they have about 1,500 people in their community which include several
hundred staff and care-givers and nearly 1,000 elderly persons. some of the
elderly own their homes which are part of the community and do not need
daily care. others live in a special place where they have constant care.

leadership's challenge is to foster a cultural change in their community
from one of medical care to one of overall social care. they want to engage
everyone in conversations about this and are considering organizing one or a
couple of day-long open space events during this summer.

we're interested in learning about any os events specifically in elderly
care communities.

thank you for your time and consideration.

john engle


http://JohnEngle.blogspot.com - Reflections about life and our work.
http://JohnEngle.info
http://TheExperiment.info

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