SERVICE TO SENIORS BRINGS AWARD

When a resident of Westminster-Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay donates an item to the community's Flotsam & Jetsam, or F&J, Sale, it’s a win-win situation all around. Items collected are resold as an extraordinary value to eager buyers.  The proceeds go into the WC Foundation Fellowship Fund, which assures that no resident should have to leave for financial reasons. Now, one more win can be added to F&J’s 28 year history of  giving. F&J has won the 2012 Virginia Beach Mayor’s Commission on Aging Award for Exemplary Service to Senior Citizens.

A huge annual sale takes place in
August at Cox High 's Cafeteria

Each year this special group of dedicated volunteers gathers thousands of items—clothing, appliances, china, glassware, decorative pieces, books, arts, & more—donated by the residents for resale, all for the purpose of helping seniors in need. Over 200 residents volunteered 5,000 plus hours last year to empower and help seniors.

F&J chair Betsy Via congratulated her team, saying, “This year we expect to donate close to $75,000 of which $35,000 was the net amount from our Super Sale to the public this August.”

President and CEO Ben Unkle, expressed the pleasure of the residents and employees at Westminster-Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay for the recognition granted by Mayor Will Sessoms and the City of Virginia Beach, noting, “The amount of work performed, the money raised, and the cause for which it is raised are all simply awesome.”

"ALL CREATURES, GREAT AND SMALL"

On October 20, 2012, led by Rev. Richard Keever, the assembly of congregants, both two- and four-footed, welcomed fall and celebrated this ancient ritual that goes back to Francis of Assisi.  To the prayers and the friendship shared, all in attendance at Westminster-Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay said a happy "Amen" (or "Arf").

HERE'S TO YOUR HEALTH!

ACTIVE AGING WEEK
SEPTEMBER 24-28, 2012

As a leader among Virginia’s Retirement Communities, we look forward to joining this nationwide celebration of healthy lifestyles. For our residents, as well as guests from other area retirement communities, it promises to be a week-long menu of games, exercise programs, garden walks, oceanfront strolls at the Neptune Festival, good food and fun! 

Monday 9/24: Emphasis: Spiritual 

10am Forum, “Sea Level Rise” by environmentlist Clay Bernick. 

1-2:30pm Tours of the Meditation Garden, our residents' gardens and the Tuttle Courtyard.

1:30pm Tortoise and Hare Race, Entertainment & refreshments 

Tuesday 9/25: Emphasis: Physical

10am Excursion to Eastern Shore National Wildlife Refuge

1-2:30pm West Tower Pool Fun—walking laps, volleyball & Aqua Zumba 

6pm Martial Arts demo 

Wednesday 9/26: Emphasis: Social/Emotional

1-3pm Atlantic Shores/Harbor’s Edge residents visit for outdoor fun—bocce, croquet and corn hole

3-5pm Entertainment, beverages & snacks!

Thursday 9/27: Emphasis: Vocational

Noon-1:30 Volunteer Fair - explore outreach opportunities at Westminster Canterbury and within the community

7:30pm Choral entertainment by Regent University

Friday 9/28: Emphasis: Intellectual

10am Excursion to Neptune Festival Boardwalk Events 

10am-noon Brain games - fun ways to test thinking, memory 

1-3pm Fitness Center Wii games - virtual bowling, tennis, more! 

Best news of all? These active aging options, programs and events go on at Westminster Canterbury on the Bay 52 weeks a year.  We don't just retire. We refresh! Revive! Renew! Rejoice! Rediscover! Consider joining us. And discover a whole new age in active aging! 

http://www.facebook.com/WestminsterCanterbury

September Song

“Life on the Chesapeake Bay is sweet in September. The weather is still warm, still  offering a friendly invitation for a walk, especially when the air is laced with a gentle breeze. At your feet, the water laps lazily, holding summer’s warmth long into fall.  Come walk and meditate on the beauty of coastal Virginia. Watch fishing boats skim past seagoing titans from ports far and wide.   Overhead, seagulls and pelicans dip and soar.  Every now and then, a duet of dolphins will put on a show.  

“The old song says, “The days grow short when you reach September.”  Perhaps, but here, lingering in the soft watercolor scenes that change from sunrise to sunset, another thought occurs. Robert Frost said it. ‘Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length.’ “

Reflections of a resident. 

AUGUST IS FAMILY FUN MONTH!

The answer to that? Westminster Canterbury is the only game in town with the lower Chesapeake Bay as a setting for backyard parties! 

Any weekend, you’ll see the sons, daughters, grandchildren and family friends of our community arriving here to visit, enjoy the food, stretch out in the sunshine, build sand castles and wade, float or swim.  It’s absolutely the best of Virginia Beach resort life, with more nature, fewer crowds, and a kinder, gentler surf! Since it’s National Family Fun Month, we’re in the midst of an ongoing celebration that begins on the beach and flows into the  lounges,  gardens, and dining rooms.  All of us are thrilled to welcome the families that flock to Westminster Canterbury in August. It’s simply the best place for a backyard party before the grandchildren all pack their book bags and college trunks to head back to school!  

Style, Value, Fun for All - August 16-17-18!

Westminster Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay is a beehive of activity, as a spirited corps of workers prepare for the 28th Annual Super Summer Sale. Listed below are some of the amazing values on a range of unique items. All funds go to the Westminster-Canterbury Fellowship Fund, which provides opportunity for residency to all qualified individuals and ensures that no resident should ever have to leave for financial reasons.  Any unsold merchandise is given to local area charities and outreach organizations in our community.  Come, bring friends, and find unbelievable bargains at this much-awaited summer sale! 

 Cox High School Cafeteria - Virginia Beach 

Thurs. & Fri. Aug. 16 & 17, 10 to 6

 Sat. Aug. 18, 9 to Noon 

Each sale day, a new supply of fresh,
never-seen-before items goes on sale! 

Women's fashions by Bill Blass, Bob Mackie,
St. John, Liz Claiborne, Talbot and more...

Come discover silver, fine china, vintage 

linens,  quilts, heirloom decorative items. 

Appliances, Books; China; Games; DVDs & Tapes; Furs; Glassware; Jewelry - hundreds of pieces; Kitchenware; Ladies & Men's Clothing & Shoes - many designer styles; Linens; Mirrors; Lamps; Home Office Supplies; Pictures: Vintage Linens, Quilts & Collectibles; Sewing Items & Sewing Machine; Silver; Crystal; Fine China; High End Decorative pieces;  Back to College Needs;  Many more one-of-a-kind items and unique bargains - too many to mention!

http://www.facebook.com/WestminsterCanterbury

Red Sails in the Sunset

"Sunsets on the Chesapeake Bay are a bonus that comes with living at Westminster Canterbury. 

You can watch them from the dining room, the sea wall, your apartment window or balcony and you can't beat the panoramic view of a sunset from the Penthouse Lounge.

No two sunsets are alike.  Poet, artists, photographers all strive to capture the pyrotechnics of the sun when it is setting.  And they all realize the limitations of their chosen medium.

Mother Nature does sunsets best and she doesn't need any help from us.  But, just once, I'd like to see what Bing Crosby was singing about Red Sails in the Sunset.  I'd like to see a boat with bright red sails, come into the bay just as the sun drops below the Bay Bridge.  I don't think Mother Nature would be insulted."

--- Reflections of a Resident

Osprey Wisdom

“Most mornings by 7 a.m. my husband and I are down on the seawall with our binoculars and a bird book.

We can always count on finding gulls, sandpipers and ducks.  But this morning – was special, an osprey plunged feet-first into the bay and surfaced with a fish as big as himself.  What followed was an awesome tussle.  Even the gulls looked up from their breakfast to watch. 

Every year the ospreys return to their nesting place around the corner in Lynnhaven Bay.  Those birds are world travelers, but they’ve picked Virginia Beach as the best place to build a home and raise a family.  And, judging from the way they hang around here, they’ve picked Westminster Canterbury as the best place to spend their retirement years, too.” --- Reflections of a Resident

http://www.facebook.com/WestminsterCanterbury

OH, SAY, CAN YOU SEE. . . ?

We went to bed in the 21st century and woke up in the 1800s! 

“A flamboyant sunrise broke over the bay on Friday, June 8. And there they were. Full-masted tall ships from all over the world. They sailed right past our back door, filling the horizon with  excitement. We got out binoculars.  We grabbed cameras. We congregated on the shore.  We saluted the American flag whenever it sailed by in the 30-mile-long Parade of Tall Ships.  And, oh, did we celebrate. With an eagle’s eye view from the  Penthouse’s panoramic glass windows.  From bayside pavilions and tents at the water’s edge.  And from our seawall, where we sat tapping our feet to the beat of a steel drum band. What a spectacular experience this OpSail 2012 was, with its patriotic themes based on our national anthem.  It was truly a day to remember, from dawn’s early light to twilight’s last gleaming.”    -- A resident's reflection

Granddaughter Rates Westminster Canterbury “really cool”

Reflections of a Resident

                “Our granddaughter, Shelby, loves to visit us at Westminster Canterbury.  She tells her friends that her grandparents live in a really cool place, a big resort hotel on the beach with two swimming pools. 

                Shelby’s visits keep us hopping.  We build sand castles with towers and turrets.  We scour the beach for bits of sea glass (blue is the coveted color).  We water my garden and pick some daises for her mother or a friend in healthcare. 

                Generally we eat lunch at Julia’s Café.  It’s her favorite place because they never run out of pizza and everyone makes a big fuss over her.  Shelby’s visit is not complete without a swim in the pool.

                On the nights when she sleeps over we have a special bedtime routine.  Once she’s in her PJ’s and her teeth are brushed, her Grandpa and I join her on the balcony where she blows bubbles and watches them float, like rainbows, to the gardens below.  Then she says goodnight to the moon and is ready for bed.”

http://www.facebook.com/WestminsterCanterbury

"All I Need is a Tall Ship and a Star . . . "

  

On Thursday, June 7th, 2012, the international fleet of visiting tall ships will anchor in Lynnhaven Road, just north of the Lesner Bridge in Virginia Beach! The entire region will be celebrating!  And in typical fashion, Westminster-Canterbury folks will do it up right. Our seawall will come alive with a steel drum band, rum punch and outdoor dining for residents the evening of the 7th. More festivities will follow, right up until the ships leave our neighboring waters on June 12. All this excitement arrives here barely ten days after our amazing outdoor Memorial Day picnic, replete with a barbecue feast and stirring Sousa marches by a live - and lively - brass band! This is the best place in the world to retire, we grant you.  But if you’re not quite ready to  slip into a retirement routine, you’ll find plenty to do, see, try, and enjoy. Life here is an adventure. A chance to sail into new waters - with never a hint of the doldrums! Come aboard! 
Want more on this event? http://www.opsail2012virginia.com/



http://www.facebook.com/WestminsterCanterbury

A Toast to Good Taste

Dining here offers so many settings, so many choices! Will you crave the informal fun of pizzas, nachos or fish and chips in Julia’s Cafe? Or will you treat yourself and guests to a multi-course feast and wine in Center Stage? Perhaps you’ll sometimes choose to dine in your own private space, watching the sunset dapple the bay waters. And you’ll appreciate that there’s a daily, delicious 600 calorie combo plate - for  nutritional wellness in a wholesome, tasty way. Food is one more reason to congratulate yourself on choosing the good life at Westminster-Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay. 

Mmm. Some of Our Menu Choices in May 

Entrees: Baked Haddock Almondine [] Glazed Ham [] Beef Stroganoff [] Sliced Tenderloin [] Honey Bourbon Pork Loin [] Fried Chicken [] Crabmeat Stuffed Flounder [] Beef Pot Pie 

Homemade Soups: Sweet Potato Bisque [] British Chowder [] Tomato Basil [] Crab Bisque [] Vegetable Beef [] Roasted Onion 

Salads:  Create-Your-Own Salad Bars [] Grilled Chicken with Blue Cheese and Walnuts [] Seafood Pasta [] Chicken, Egg, Tuna Trio 

Veggies Galore: Grilled Asparagus [] Baked Sweet Potatoes [] Ratatouille [] Roasted Tomatoes [] Zucchini, Yellow Squash and Red Onion [] Baby Carrots [] Corn Pudding [] Rice Pilaf 

Desserts:  Cherry Pie [] Carrot Cake [] Fresh Fruit [] Gingerbread with Lemon Sauce [] Black Forest Cheese Cake [] Daily Lite Dessert Choices 

Summer is just around the corner!

Summer is just around the corner and the grounds here at Westminster Canterbury are in full bloom with a wide array of colorful flowers and landscaping which residents can admire right in our own backyard! It is nice to enjoy a garden without all of the strenuous work involved.  We do not have to worry about trips to the hardware store to buy mulch, potting soil and flowers.  The best part of living at Westminster Canterbury is you can do as much or as little as you like.  Some residents simply wish to sit out with a great novel on our terrace and take in the beautiful scenery of our grounds and the Chesapeake Bay.  Others prefer to get “their hands dirty” and have joined our resident-based buildings and grounds committee where they help maintain our gardens or simply take pride in growing their own vegetables.  Ivan Cook, who has lived here for 8 years, takes an active part in our landscaping. Earlier this week he was spotted sharing his green thumb out on the terrace.

 

Was Saturday's Derby Day Fun? You Bet!

Hundreds of Westminster-Canterbury residents and guests gathered to watch the Kentucky Derby on a movie-size screen in the Anderson Bayview Room. Fans cheered their favorites, sipped Mint Juleps, snacked, and applauded the many Parade of Derby Day hats worn for the occasion  - quite a few of them fashioned by “milliners extraordinaire” in our Creative Corner.  Lots of laughter!  And the only "nags" were the ones onscreen! 

Mornings on the Bay

In the spring, all of nature seems designed to get you outdoors. Westminster-Canterbury residents respond in dozens of different ways.  Whether you stroll, stride, jog or simply grab a beach chair and watch the sandpipers do their crazy surf-defying dance, it’s the best of spring tonics. In a mile’s bayside walk from Lynnhaven Pier to the Chesapeake  Bay Bridge-Tunnel, you’ll be in the company of seagulls, pelicans, fishing boats and other friendly neighborhood people, out for some sun-dappled exercise or relaxation. You’ll love the experience. It’s only natural! 

Come try your wings.

A sentiment heard again and again from new residents at Westminster-Canterbury on the Bay is  “I had no idea!”  There’s amazement at all there is to see, do, share and explore here.  Book clubs. National affairs forums. Painting classes. Poker and billiards tournaments with nearby retirement community players. Morning sessions of Tai Chi. Evening songfests in the living room.  Spirituality supper groups. A baker’s dozen or more programs of fitness, exercise and strength training.  Take a word from the birds that greet you at our front door, the David Turner seagulls.  Come explore. Find your interests. And prepare to take flight! 

Take a walk on the sunny side

At Westminster Canterbury on the Bay, the warm weather brings a dozen different picture postcard views of seaside gardens. At every turn, there are strolling paths and bench seats from which to savor the colors and fragrances. And if you like to keep track of your walking, there are lists that tell you how the mileage adds up on various paths and shoreline strolls. Come see how blooming beautiful spring and summer can be here on Virginia’s sunny side! 

More Miles, More Smiles -A resident’s reflection

"Before moving here, I hadn't

realized how narrowed-down life

alone had become. I was going out

less: too much trouble, easier to

just stay home and call or email.

Here, everything is at hand -

accessible by a sprightly walk out

into our community. For mail. For a

sandwich at lunch. To an art class.

To the Saturday night movie. To a

stroll by the bay. Exercise is built

right into life here, in do-able

doses! At every step, I collect 

smiles and hello's. It's hard to 

feel down when you're smiling. 

Not just hard. Impossible! 

LOOK WHAT THE TIDE BROUGHT IN!

One of the best parts of living at Westminster Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay is the changing seascape that greets you from windows and balconies. What an adventure it is to get yourself some binoculars and check out the passing parade of naval vessels, tankers, cargo ships, cruise liners, tugs, fishing vessels and pleasure craft. It gets even better if you go online and look up www.marinetraffic.com. 
You'll see a map, which shows our coastline with icons representing all the different types of vessels. Click on one, and up comes a picture of the vessel, where it's bound, and its nation of origin. Try it! Take a look at what amounts to a view that changes by the month, the day, the hour! www.marinetraffic.com