And like so many at UCH, Kylie felt that familiar internal nudge—the call to serve that every NaviGuide carries.

An Idea Turned Action

What began as a simple idea—“What if we had a food pantry here on campus?”—quickly grew into something much bigger. Kylie shared her thought with Parkvue’s Regional Director of Healthcare Services, Jedd Rawlings, who immediately saw the potential.

Within days, employees and families began donating items. UCH leadership, encouraged by their efforts, matched a gift and the pantry shelves were fully stocked.

Kylie and her mother Robin O’Brien, didn’t wait for a workday. On their day off, they went shopping—cart after cart—filling them with groceries, staples and holiday essentials that they knew Parkvue employees would need most this season.

Jedd looked at the outpouring of generosity and knew this couldn’t be a one-time effort.

He made the decision: this would become a yearly tradition at Parkvue, a holiday helper pantry for staff who give so much of themselves all year long.

Living the UCH Core Values

The pantry may have been created to support employees through a temporary SNAP delay, but what it revealed was something much deeper—how United Church Homes lives its core values in the most practical, human ways.

• Compassion: Identifying a need before it becomes a crisis.
• Hospitality: Creating a welcoming resource with dignity at its core.
• Respect: Supporting team members without judgment or hesitation.
• Integrity: Acting quickly and transparently to serve those who serve.
• Stewardship: Using donations and matched gifts wisely to maximize impact.
• Transparency: Keeping the community informed, engaged and connected to the mission.

The pantry is more than shelves of food. It is an outward expression of UCH values.

The NaviGuide Heart

As a NaviGuide, Kylie’s role is grounded in advocacy, problem-solving, and unwavering care for those she serves. But her willingness to extend that care to team members—on her own time—captures what makes NaviGuides unique.

Kylie’s initiative embodies what every NaviGuide feels: a calling to anticipate needs, connect people to help, and bring hope to moments that feel heavy.

A Tradition Begins

Because of Kylie’s spark, Robin’s help, Jedd’s leadership, and the generosity of donors and families, The Parkvue Community now has a new holiday tradition—one that reminds everyone that they are part of something bigger.

A community that cares.
A workplace that sees its people.
A mission that lives beyond words.

This is the UCH way.

And this is the kind of compassion that changes lives—one canned gift, one act of kindness, one person at a time.

The post How One Idea Sparked a Tradition of Care at The Parkvue Community appeared first on United Church Homes.

Food pantry initiated by the service coordinator at The Parkvue Community.

Across the country, UCH service coordinators are stepping up to ensure older adults have access to food and essential resources. Many communities have created onsite food pantries, stocked through donations from churches, local businesses, food agencies, and community partners. Others are working with Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) to compile and share updated lists of food resources tailored to older adults.

Because food banks often serve limited ZIP codes, coordinators are advocating for exceptions, coordinating with neighboring agencies, and arranging transportation to ensure residents can access what they need. In several communities, local restaurants have pledged weekly meal donations, and Meals on Wheels programs are being expanded to reach more residents.

Holiday meals are also being prioritized. Nearly all UCH communities have planned traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, with one even receiving a donated grill and outdoor roaster—creating a space for fellowship and shared celebration.

In a heartwarming extension of this spirit, UCH is inviting employees to donate their holiday gifts—typically food items such as turkeys or cheesecakes—to fellow staff members who may be facing hardship. This initiative reflects the organization’s deep commitment to caring not only for residents but also for its own team members.

Further strengthening this season of care, United Church Homes has received a $45,000 grant from the H.W. Durham Foundation to support basic needs for older adults in nine affordable housing communities across Mississippi and Tennessee. The funding will help supply cleaning products, personal care items, and perishable food to approximately 285 low-income residents living in Austin Run Estates, Canterbury Crest, Fox Hollow Community, Glendale Commons, Hollyview Place, Meadowview Village, Shelby Station, Southern Pines, and Woodhollow Glen.

“Providing these basic necessities not only safeguards residents’ health and well-being but also offers peace of mind during times of financial strain,” said Dan Fagan, Vice President of Housing Operations at United Church Homes.
Gloria Hurwitz, Vice President of Advancement, added, “The H.W. Durham Foundation’s gift allows us to extend our promise that every older adult deserves to live with dignity, stability, and comfort. We are deeply grateful for their partnership and commitment.”

Refrigerator at The Parkvue Community in Sandusky, Ohio, after the service coordinator set up an on-site food pantry.

“At United Church Homes, we believe that community means showing up for one another—especially in times of uncertainty,” said Ken Young, President and CEO of United Church Homes. “Whether it’s a resident in need or a colleague facing a tough season, our people are stepping forward with compassion and generosity. That’s what makes this organization so special.”

Kim Yoder, Director of Engage, echoed this sentiment: “Across our communities and through our service coordinator network, we’re seeing extraordinary compassion and problem-solving. Our teams are stepping up in every possible way to make sure older adults—and each other—have what they need.”

In moments like these, United Church Homes becomes more than a housing provider—it becomes a lifeline, a community, and a source of hope. Despite the uncertainty, the season is being transformed into one of shared strength, kindness, and care.

The post United Church Homes Embraces a Season of Generosity and Care Amid SNAP Disruption appeared first on United Church Homes.

Our English class assignment was to write an essay suitable for the holiday season. There are lots of things I don’t remember from those days, but I do remember spending a lot of time wondering what I could write that would be different from the usual turkey banquet and jingle bells themes.

It took awhile before mental light bulbs clicked on. Finally, since the essay was due the Monday before Thanksgiving Day, I coined a play on the word and titled my assignment

“ThanksLiving.” I thought I was so clever.

I do not remember what I wrote. But I do remember how I felt when I discovered that the Oxford English Dictionary reported the first use of the noun occurred 75 years earlier, in the writings of Charles Spurgeon, Baptist preacher.

Being cocky and a sometimes-smart aleck, I justified my plagiarism by relying on the dictionary’s further note that there are “fewer than 0.01 occurrences per million words in modern written English.”

Which is to observe that given the nature of these times, as we move toward the holidays, we are well counseled to up the number of occurrences of “thanksliving”–in word and deed.

Author Julie Kierns has a prayer journal titled “Everyday Prayers for ThanksLiving.” She acknowledges that “When my focus is broad, looking at culture, elections, viruses, or educational choices, I don’t find much joy. In fact, it looks a lot like every ounce of joy has been sucked out of the world when I look at it from that level. But if I narrow my gaze a bit, and start looking a little closer to home …I can see much to be thankful for.

• Healthy children and glorious fall leaves
• Enough money to pay the bills
• Boys who still want to hug me at 13 and 15
• A husband who helps take care of our home
• An oldest boy who leads his baseball team in prayer before every game
• A youngest who reminds me to pray for him every night before bed
• Prescription sunglasses

• A rescued kitten we never thought we’d want
• A nephew who got his first college football offer last weekend.”

A quick scan on Google, offers many “recipes” for how to thanks-live in these days, and suggests what gratitude can do for–or to–us!

Even AI (Artificial Intelligence) gets into the act with this advice:

“Thanksliving is a lifestyle of gratitude that involves practicing gratitude every day, not just once a year. It’s a way of life that can help people be more resilient, happier, and less stressed. Here are some ideas for how to practice Thanksliving:

• Find joy in everyday moments: Look for joy in things like a cool breeze, a warm comforter, or a strong internet connection.
• Make gratitude a daily practice: Practice gratitude every day, not just around Thanksgiving.
• Find value in everyday experiences: Appreciate the value of every experience, no matter how ordinary.
• Find gratitude in routine: Find gratitude in the beauty of your daily routine and the quiet moments that bring you peace.

“Some say that thanksliving can help people navigate the complexities of modern life. It can also help people boost their resilience and make it easier to handle life’s challenges. “

Other word-explorers and commentators put it more simply as “thanksLIVING is a lifestyle of thanksgiving that goes beyond one month of the year to the everyday moments of life….”

Scott McKain advises that thanksliving “is more than just a …way of life that can help us navigate the complexities of our modern world…. (It can) open ourselves to a deeper appreciation of life’s simple pleasures, the resilience to face its challenges, and the ability to find joy and meaning in every moment.”

At the age when I thought I invented the word “thanksliving” I was growing up in a conservative evangelical church. While I am no longer a fan of such terms as “hath” and “thee” I remember the 1897 hymn “Count Your Blessings.” These snippets of the text by Johnson Oatman, Jr. underscore the themes for this Thanksgiving Day reflection:

“When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost …

amid the conflict, whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all…

Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done..”

Another writer who comments about this hymn, refers us to Philippians 4:6-7:

“ ⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds …”

On this 2024 Thanksgiving Day, as crudeness, rudeness, incivility and fears sweep around us and threaten to bury gratitude, we need to be diligent and deliberate in keeping alive the practice of giving thanks.

I have a personal mantra for these nervous times. Perhaps you, dear readers, might care to join me. Here it is:

THANKS-LIVING: make it great again!!

For Reflection (either individually or with a group)
Read the blog. Read it a second time, maybe reading it aloud or asking someone else to read it aloud so you can hear it with different intonation and emphases. Invite the Divine to open your heart to allow the light of new understanding to pierce the shadows of embedded assumptions, stereotypes, and ways of thinking so that you may live more abundantly. Then spend some time with the following questions together with anything or anyone who helps you reflect more deeply.

• If you were asked to define ThanksLiving. What would you say?
• What prevents you from practicing gratitude every day?
• What actions can you take—maybe even this year with others when gathering for Thanksgiving—to use the intentions of ThanksLiving to support others to have more resilience to face life’s daily challenges?

Download a pdf including the Reflection Questions to share and discuss with friends, family, or members of your faith community small group.

The post ThanksLiving appeared first on United Church Homes.