Join us on Friday, July 31, 2009 from 4:30 to 6:00 for the first gathering of the AIA Seattle Design for Aging Book Club.

We are taking a break this summer from our usual flurry of meetings and presentations and digging into a fascinating book by Beth Baker, regular contributor to the Washington Post Health Section and the AARP Bulletin.

In An Old Age in a New Age: The Promise of Transformative Nursing Homes, Baker takes us on a journey into some of the best places in America for frail elders to live – transformed and transformative nursing homes.

Residents have a say in their everyday lives, enjoy an environment that looks and feels like an ordinary home, live with dignity and purpose, and find comfort in close relationships with caregivers. These are stories from the frontlines of the Culture Change movement.

Baker’s visit to more than two dozen facilities include those associated with the Eden Alternative, Green House, Kendal, and the Pioneer Network – where she made some surprising discoveries.

Baker included two Seattle communities in her book: Providence Mount St. Vincent in West Seattle (Chp. 6) and Buchanan Place (one of two supported living communities owned and operated by ElderHealth Northwest.)

WHERE: Stock and Associates | 109 Bell Street | Seattle
Our Host: Mark Smedley, AIA
WHEN: Friday, July 31,| 4:30 to 6:00
DETAILS: This is meant to be an informal gathering. Bring a snack, an adult beverage, and meet other inquiring minds and practitioners of innovative design to support aging.

The book is available through the Seattle, King County and Sno-Isle Library Systems, as well as for purchase through Amazon and other book sellers.