Covenant News

Grand Rapids Retirement Center to Celebrate Grand Opening

GRAND RAPIDS, MI (May 17, 2004) - Covenant Village of the Great Lakes will host a grand opening celebration of its residential retirement community on Saturday June 5. Activities will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Village Center Fellowship Hall, 2510 Lake Michigan Dr. N.W., Grand Rapids.

While residents have been moving into the 105-apartment community since December 2003, the event marks the official opening of the community's residential retirement apartments and its 34,000-square-foot community center.

"We wanted to hold our grand opening after we were comfortably settled and residents could celebrate their new home," says Covenant Village Campus Administrator Steve Karnes. "We welcome the Grand Rapids community to come and see just how much we have to celebrate."

Special guests include U.S. Rep. Vernon J. Ehlers, Covenant Retirement Communities President Rick K. Fisk and David A. Dwight, president of Covenant Ministries of Benevolence, Covenant Village's sponsoring organization. Guests will enjoy a buffet and tour of model apartments.

Village Center is the hub of campus activities, offering dining facilities, a game room, general store, creative arts center and library, as well as administrative offices and office space for residents' use. The lower level houses a chapel, bank, post office, pool, children's playroom, hair salon and several classrooms. Covenant Village's wellness program is housed there and provides a Jacuzzi, sauna, steam room, exercise room and health club café. Indoor facilities complement the community's many outdoor activities, including walking trails through the scenic 30-acre campus.

A series of residential wings are connected to the Village Center. Apartment homes range from 675-square-foot one-bedroom models to 1,305-square-foot two-bedroom two-bath deluxe residences. More than 70 percent of the residences are occupied or reserved.

The $16 million residential building expands Covenant Village's existing continuing care services, which include a 63-unit assisted living residence that provides both physical and memory-loss support. A 37-bed skilled nursing center is scheduled to open in late summer. The building is located on the south side of the campus, overlooking one of the last large stands of timber in northwest Grand Rapids. To blend with single-family residences in the neighborhood and offer residents attractive views, the building is stepped from two stories in front to three stories toward the timberland. The exterior facade is brick and siding.

Covenant Village of the Great Lakes is one of 14 retirement communities nationwide that are administered by Chicago-based Covenant Retirement Communities on behalf of the Board of Benevolence of the Evangelical Covenant Church.

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