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Changes are definitely underfoot at Rappahannock Westminster-Canterbury—literally. And many of those will be met with bare feet!
May 4 marked the dedication of RWC’s newest flagship building on campus — the Life Enrichment Center, where residents can dip their toes into a new swimming pool, try their hand at yoga, Tai Chi and many more fitness classes, art classes and activities.
Ground-breaking and construction officially kicked off on the 18,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility in 2015. The center includes an aquatics area, exercise classrooms, fitness equipment and locker rooms. The Life Enrichment Center also houses multipurpose space to support a wide variety of resident interests.
Life Enrichment Center programs will initially be open to RWC residents, clients, and current Wellness program participants. Additional membership programs are being developed for non-residents.
“Our Wellness Program has been in full force since 2003,” said RWC President Stuart Bunting. “It began with new equipment in a small room and a set of classes scheduled in every available room or hallway we could find.”
Since that time, more and more residents have become active and now more than 80 percent of residents participate in some form of the Wellness Program, which offers more than 20 classes per week.
RWC is known nationally for its high wellness participation rate among residents and has been recognized by theInternational Council on Active Aging for its Mind & Muscle speaker series.
“We have a program for those with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers to help mitigate the effects of this neuromotor disease,” Bunting said. “We also have a variety of programs for other aspects of life from arts and crafts to education and music.”
RWC resident Milena Van Sant is a major cheerleader for the enrichment center and touts the benefits of staying active. “When I first became active here, yoga sounded less like exercise than the other offerings, but I’ve become so flexible!” Van Sant said. “I can do positions now that I wouldn’t have even attempted in my 40s, and I’m off my blood pressure medicine.”
GuernseyTingle of Williamsburg led the design/build team for the project, Bay Design Group handled the site design and civil engineering, and Connemara Corporation was thegeneral contractor. The $4.5 million center is next to the Chesapeake Center on the RWC campus at 132 Lancaster Drive.
While RWC made a substantial investment in the building, and construction financing was provided by Chesapeake Bank, the Life Enrichment Center came to fruition in part due to the generosity of a number of benefactors including former and current residents, RWC Foundation andCorporate board members, RWC staff members, corporate sponsors and other friends.
Go to rw-c.org to learn more about Rappahannock Westminster-Canterbury.
RWC’s Fitness Team led by Fitness Coordinator Jonathan Smith will staff the Life Enrichment Center. This team includes Fitness Technicians Wyatt Portz and William Somers and Senior Resident Life Coordinator Amy Lewis.
Senior Resident Life Coordinators Maria Ferrand and Amy Lewis will lead non-fitness related programming, including arts and crafts and other activities and special events.
Fitness Team Credentials:
Jonathan Smith – Exercise Science degree; certifications in water fitness and Tai Chi
William Somers – Exercise Science degree
Wyatt Portz – Certified in yoga and Tai Chi
Amy Lewis – Certified in yoga and water fitness
