Why We Decided to Move to Lenbrook


Pictured above: Clarence and Kathleen Kemper

My wife Kathleen and I lived in the Boston area for over 55 years and absolutely loved it. We’re often asked, “Why did you move to Lenbrook?” It’s a short question, but there are really three parts to it:

Why did we choose to move from our home to a retirement community?

Why did we choose Atlanta?

Why did we choose Lenbrook?

Why Move From Our Dream Home?

We built our dream home after I retired in 1999, and we enjoyed living there for 10 years. If you had asked us then if we would ever move to a retirement community, the answer would have been, “Definitely not!”

As the years went by, we saw many of our friends sell their homes and move to condominiums or retirement communities. Those who moved to retirement communities seemed happier than those who chose condominiums. So we began to research our options and decided that if we ever did move from our home, it would be to a continuing care retirement community* (CCRC) where you only have to move once.

In 2008, I lost my three best friends in one year. After helping their widows cope with the many decisions they faced, Kathleen and I concluded it would have been much easier for them if they already lived in a retirement community.

The old-fashioned notion that we should stay in our home until we had to move no longer seemed wise to us. We realized that it’s much better to make such a life-changing decision when you are in good health and you can do it on your own terms. And that’s when we decided we would move to a CCRC.

Why Atlanta?

Kathleen and I had lived in the Boston area since 1953 and were actively involved in the community for 56 years, especially through Kathleen’s involvement with Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts where she ran their two most important volunteer groups, was a member of the Board of Trustees and is a lifetime Overseer.

We loved the Boston area, had many good friends there, but no family. As we started looking at communities in Boston, our daughter in Atlanta asked us to consider moving here to

be closer to her and her family.

So we spent several weeks on three different trips to evaluate retirement communities in the Atlanta area, and by the fall of 2009 decided that moving to Atlanta was our best choice.

Why Lenbrook?

Choosing Lenbrook over the other retirement communities we considered was the easiest of our decisions. The atmosphere as we walked in was much warmer, livelier and friendlier than other places we visited. We felt we’d be happy making Lenbrook our new home.  

After living here for more than four years, I can still say without hesitation that we made the right decision. Some of our friends back in Boston who are still living in their homes or in condominiums are starting to feel lonely and isolated. In contrast, Kathleen and I are more active than we’ve ever been, and have more friends than ever before.

It’s clear to us that staying in your own home as you get older is not the best decision, and if you wait until you have to move, you’ve waited too long. We’re glad we didn’t wait, and we can’t think of any other place where we would be as happy as we are here at Lenbrook.

*As a “Continuing Care Retirement Community,” Lenbrook’s campus not only includes independent living apartments and personal care suites but also complete healthcare services onsite through its Medicare-certified Health Center.

Clarence and Kathleen Kemper moved to Lenbrook in 2010 and quickly became active in the community. Clarence is the immediate Past-President of the Lenbrook Residents Association, former Chair of the Communications Committee and is currently a member of the Programs & Events Committee and the Development Committee. Kathleen has served on the Friends of the Arts Committee, the New Residents Hospitality Committee and is currently a member of the Food Committee.