Living in Harmony

Residents say they wouldn't liveanywhere else.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
COLUMBIANA -- "If there is any place to be this side of heaven, this is it," said Verna Neil of Harmony Village, her home since 1985.
"Verna's our hugger," said Cheryl Luli, Harmony's project administrator. "She also loves to cook and makes great homemade noodles."
Neil, 85, said she can't imagine living anywhere else other than Harmony Village at this stage of her life.
Harmony Village staff and residents are celebrating their 20th anniversary today with a reception open to the public from 2 to 5 p.m.
The HUD-subsidized complex at 903 S. Main St. is for independent, low-income adults 62 or older, or those who need handicap-accessible living space.
Luli said Harmony Village was started by the Midway, Leetonia and North Lima Mennonite churches. The people had a vision for a senior housing complex that would be a safe haven and a community, she said.
Ron Bower, 64, has lived at Harmony Village for two years. He owned the Leetonia Dairy Queen -- his wife is now in a nursing home.
Bower applied to move to Harmony Village as soon as he was eligible. He picked up an application on his 62nd birthday.
When he's not visiting his wife, Bower helps Dick Simpson, maintenance supervisor, with some of the residents' simple maintenance needs.
"I can push the restart button on a hot water heater," Bower said, laughing.
"I wanted to come here because it is such a nice setting," he said. "It's a dead-end street. It's quiet here, and there are a lot of nice people around."
Bower said he learned to cook when his wife became ill. Now he enjoys cooking and looks forward to the monthly potluck dinners at Harmony Village.
He said there is something special planned each month in the common room. In June, it was the strawberry festival, and in August there will be a corn roast.
Activities
Next month the residents will plan a cookout to honor Columbiana's police, firefighters and emergency medical services personnel. Luli said the residents "pull out all the stops with tons of food."
"They just want to show their appreciation for how well the police, firefighters and medics take care of them," she said.
Lois Moore, 78, and Theresa Goleno, 88, came to Harmony Village soon after it opened. Both have health problems now that limit their activity, but they said in the early years they participated in most of the activities planned by the staff.
Goleno's birthday is next month, so she gets to choose the restaurant where residents will go for the monthly birthday breakfast. Luli said they will accommodate all requests within reason.
"We've gone to West Virginia for breakfast before," she said. "They like the local restaurants here. We go to Dutch Haus and Heck's a lot."
Luli said the Harmony Village bus has traveled to Marietta, New Castle and Cook Forest, to name a few of the tour stops. They have traveled to Pittsburgh to ride the Gateway Clipper on the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers through the downtown area.
Newest residents
Oscar and Marty Young, both 76, are Harmony Village's newest residents. They moved in two weeks ago. They applied to move to Harmony Village because health problems made it difficult for them to continue to live in their mobile home.
"This place has everything we need, anything anyone needs at this stage of their lives," Oscar said. "When I leave here it will be in a box."
"That won't be anytime soon," Marty said quickly.
The couple have been married 12 years, and they are already making plans for their 25th wedding anniversary.
Oscar joked that Marty was hitchhiking when they first met. He said she was walking along the road and pulled the hem of her dress up to show a bit of her leg.
"She did that, and I was sold," Oscar said, chuckling heartily.
Marty just shook her head and laughed. "We've known each other for a long time," she said. "I worked with his daughter."
Oscar said they both enjoy cooking and are looking forward to trying out new recipes for the next potluck.
"We like to experiment," she said.
Marty said they also enjoy tending flower beds and vegetable gardens. Many Harmony residents enjoy gardening, evidenced by a thriving plot of tomatoes and many well-tended flower beds.
Oscar and Marty are already planning to buy some flowers to plant and thinking of what they will plant next year.
Marty lamented leaving the mobile home, but only because she had to leave her rose bushes behind.
"They're in full bloom now and really beautiful," she said.
"We'll have to get some roses here," Oscar said, patting her knee.
tullis@vindy.com