Joan Boileau

When Joan Boileau and her husband, Ray, started looking into retirement communities nine years ago, they searched for a place that would serve their range of needs, now and into future.

The Kenney filled the bill, and “it felt like home,” she says. Ray, who has Parkinson’s disease, receives the skilled nursing care he requires in The Kenney’s health center, while Joan has the freedom and peace of mind to live an active, fulfilling life in the independent living residences. Best of all, the couple can be together. Most every day, they have breakfast and a pre-dinner cocktail together.

Without the heavy burdens of homeownership and caregiving, Joan can pursue her interests, which include art, needlepoint, reading and entertaining family. They reserve The Kenney’s community rooms for gatherings.

Among the many advantages to life at The Kenney are “the never agains,” she says. “I never again have to mow the lawn, or fix anything, or get on a ladder.”

At the same time, she’s finds plenty of fun things to do… like paint fish. She and fellow resident Alma Penberthy created “Kinetic Aquarium,” a colorful array of paper fish and sea life that hangs in the central stairwell of the main building and a favorite in the monthly West Seattle Art Walk. More fish will be arriving soon.

“It’s a work in progress,” Joan says.