“A Taste of Luther Crest” was recently presented to a group of attendees at Luther Crest, a Diakon Lutheran Senior Living Community, 800 Hausman Road, South Whitehall Township.

The event was promoted as “a live cooking demonstration by our executive chef to learn about our brand-new Greenwood apartments, which will break ground next year,” Matt Petrauskas, corporate director of sales training and support said.

Chef Sean prepared Crab Risotto to give a sample of the new dining experiences to the existing facility.

Petrauskas gave a presentation on the new Greenwood apartments prior to the cooking presentation.

The new building will contain 72 apartments.

Petrauskas asked the attendees about their goals for this time in their lives.

I heard responses such as, “Stay active,” “Be Healthy” and “Continue to make friends.”

He was pleased with the responses.

He suggested seniors think about “goals for this time in life” and the consideration to “…stay in our house.

“Diakon actually comes from an old Greek word Daya Konos, which translates to service or serve,” Petraukas said.

“… Most people come to Luther Crest because they want to be around people,” he said. “ ... They want to live an active thriving lifestyle because they don’t want to have to cook dinner every night. They don’t want to have to worry about home maintenance. And people come here to live and thrive and really have a good time and enjoy themselves.

“But people also take comfort knowing that we have additional levels of care being continuing care right here on our campus.

“So most people come here because they want to take part in independent living, but should something happen, we have ways that we can get assistance and help into your apartment or cottage here at Luther Crest.

“But we also have assisted living, or what we call personal care. And we have nursing care right here on campus at Luther Crest.”

During the cooking presentation, Chef Sean talked about the nutritional value of citrus.

He said they like to feature citrus in January.

The aroma of the Crab Risotto permeated the room.

Chris Musselman, senior dining services director presented images of the new dining areas with a cooking display area in the main dining room.

There will be a wine/bar room and a cafe offering coffee, lattes, cappuccinos and breakfast pastries and sandwiches.

The Bistro will be a casual dining room.

The new space will have the flexibility to host large events like holiday events and brunches including a teaching kitchen.

In 2015, residents had Luther Crest accredited as an Arboretum.

“What that means is we have a lot of trees…and they have to be labeled with their common name …” Petraukas said.

There has to be a walking path and a map. So this is how the name Greenwood for the new building was derived. This is really a special amenity for the senior residents of South Whitehall Township and worth checking out.

Other Diakon communities are in Topton, Carlyle and Lewisburg.