Masonic Village at Sewickley Celebrates New Nursing Center with Datestone Ceremony
The Masonic Village at Sewickley held a datestone ceremony by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania for the village's brand new nursing center on Thursday, Nov. 3. At the event, residents, staff and donors gathered to celebrate the naming of the nursing center, including the 64,000 square foot addition - the Sturgeon Health Care Community.
The residents' new home will be laid out in eight 16-bed units, called "neighborhoods." It will include 88 private rooms and 20 shared private suites with showers in each bathroom. Each neighborhood will have its own dining area and family room. The Staunton Support Wing, a special care area specifically designed to serve residents with Alzheimer's disease and other related dementias, will expand from 20 beds to two 16-bed dementia neighborhoods to accommodate 32 residents.
Construction on the new building began mid-September 2010. As work has begun on the interior of the building, Masonic Village residents and staff voted on names for the eight neighborhoods. They agreed on a theme featuring the different species of trees found on campus (there are more than 60), and the final selections were: Magnolia Court, Hawthorne Court (short-term rehab), Dogwood Court (memory support), Redwood Court (memory support), Birch Place, Maple Place, Oak Place and Willow Place.
"We are transforming the nursing home from a hospital model to a neighborhood model which will dramatically enhance the quality of life for our residents," Eric Gross, executive director, said. "All Residents will enjoy much improved privacy in their rooms, larger community living areas, and they will be part of neighborhoods that feel more like home."
The datestone ceremony is an ancient and symbolic ceremony performed by Freemasons during the construction of a building. The ceremony has remained the same since President George Washington, a prominent Freemason, laid the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 18, 1793.
On Thursday, Raymond T. Dietz (of Pittsburgh, Pa.), Junior Grand Warden, and Robert J. Bateman (of Clifton Heights, Pa.), Senior Grand Warden, assisted Jay W. Smith (of Mount Joy, Pa.), Deputy Grand Master, in determining that the datestone was plumb, level, square and ready to be ceremonially laid by Thomas K. Sturgeon (of Imperial, Pa.), Grand Master. After the list of contents found in the datestone box, which is to be placed in the wall of the new building, was read, the Grand Master spread cement on the stone as a symbolic gesture of spreading brotherly love. This was doubly symbolic as it represented the spreading of the Mission of Love provided by the Masonic Villages.
The Sturgeon Health Care Community was erected in honor of Sturgeon, who supported the construction of the building during his two-year term as Grand Master in 2010 and 2011. James L. Ernette, Grand Master from 1998 - 1999, also was recognized with a plaque for the vision he helped establish in Sewickley. During his term as Grand Master, he helped establish the Masonic Village at Sewickley on June 1, 1999.
The two new wings of the nursing center are expected to be completed by the end of March 2012, after which renovations to the pre-existing 43,000 square foot building will begin. The final project will cost approximately $20 million.
The campus also offers 228 retirement living apartments, 43 retirement living villas and 60 personal care residences. The Masonic Villages' Mission of Love provided more than $21 million in charitable care and services in 2010.
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