For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… Ecclesiastes 3:1

In December 2021, Lenbrook, one of Atlanta’s premier retirement communities, welcomed Warren and Lee Culpepper to their spacious new villa on our beautiful campus. After careful deliberation, the Culpeppers made the decision to move from Big Canoe to our luxury senior living community in the heart of Buckhead, and shared their reasons for doing so with their family and friends on Facebook. Today, we are honored to share this post on the Lenbrook blog, and trust that it resonates with many of you who are contemplating your move to Lenbrook in 2022.

 

As Warren Culpepper wrote on Facebook on November 29, 2021:

 

For nearly 30 years, Lee and I have been blessed to have a home in the mountains of Big Canoe. We couldn’t ask for nicer neighbors or a more beautiful place in which to live. Although we are still healthy and self-sufficient, we both will turn 80 in a few months and have to acknowledge that we are entering the winter of our lives. As we have done for our past seasons, we intend to make the most of this final life stage.

 

On Friday, December 3, we will be moving to Lenbrook, a senior living community in Atlanta. However, for a few more years, we plan to keep our Big Canoe home for a retreat.

 

The rationale for our move is probably more than most folks will care about, but for those interested in the details of our thinking, read on…

 

In this season of our lives, a closer proximity to doctors and hospitals has become important. We also know that to be eligible to move into an independent living community like Lenbrook, we have to be in good health. My older brother waited too long to make such a move and had to go to an Assisted Living facility that lacks many of Lenbrook’s advantages and amenities. Also, by proactively making this move now, we spare our children the potential future dilemma of needing to pressure us to do so.

 

Lenbrook, one of Atlanta’s finest retirement communities, has facilities for dining (five venues, all with different menus), fitness, physical therapy, indoor swimming, movie theater, convenience store, hair salon, health clinic and covered underground parking. Its 600 residents are active in a wide range of social organizations and activities. Our villa will also have a 1000 square foot private courtyard where Lee can garden and our dogs can play.

 

While Lee is as healthy and fit as most people 15 years her junior, I am not due to orthopedic and balance issues. Going up and down stairs now challenges me in our three-floor home at Big Canoe. However, at Lenbrook, our home will be on a single floor and on the same level as all of the amenities. Also, hiking with my dogs has long been my favorite activity at Big Canoe, and for many years I enjoyed frequent hikes up to Mt. Oglethorpe, a 700 foot climb and four mile round trip from our house. Sadly, my orthopedic issues have precluded that for the past three years, and I sometimes have to grit my teeth to hike even a mile now. At Lenbrook, I’ll have a very short walk over to the fitness center and pool where I can engage in age-appropriate exercise.

 

We also realize that sooner or later one of us may need a higher level of assistance than the other one will be able to provide. This might be for short-term rehab following surgery or an accident, or on a permanent basis, perhaps due to dementia. In such circumstances at Lenbrook, a continuing care community, the one who needs extra help can receive it in a nearby unit right on the Lenbrook campus. We have 95-year-old friends from our church who are also at Lenbrook. With one on a walker and the other in a wheelchair, they have concluded it is probably time for them to transfer to Lenbrook’s Assisted Living area. Someday, we may also reach that point. Finally, when the first of us dies, the other will have a community of supportive friends very close by. 

 

To our Big Canoe friends, we still look forward to seeing you in the mountains, just not as frequently as in the past. To our Atlanta family and friends, we are happy that we’ll have the ability to see you more often. And to all of you, please come visit us in Lenbrook.