Change Looms For Restorium

BONNERS FERRY – The old-fangled name is deceptive: The Boundary County Community Restorium is not a place where elderly residents while away the days gazing out windows at the Selkirk Mountains. They gather for group exercises, visit the county fair, surf the Web and have barbecues in an outdoor pavilion. Some drive their own cars or zip downtown on electric mobility scooters. Evelyn Holmes brought her piano when she moved in. “I go out and wake them up once in a while,” she said with a laugh. And just outside, Ray Olson’s garden is in full bloom with tomatoes and rhubarb, dahlias and sunflowers. It may sound like a rest home, but it’s as active as you could expect for an assisted-living center where the average age is 90. Owned and managed by Boundary County, the Restorium has been an affordable home to seniors for about 60 years. But big change looms/ Scott Maben , SR. More here . (Kathy Plonka SR photo: “I’ve been here for two years,” Terry Paulus says as she makes her way back to her room at Community Restorium in Bonners Ferry on Wednesday)

Question: Are your parents in an assisted-living home?