Thank you to Ecumen colleague Anna Cole-Kost at Ecumen’s Parmly LifePointes community who contributed this reflection on the gift of growing old. It was sent to her from a friend who has discovered new things in old age:Old Age, I decided, is a gift.I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometimes despair over my body, the…

St. Paul Pioneer Press reporter Jeremy Olson has launched a new blog called

Ecumen is very pleased to welcome Brian Nelson as executive director of The Ecumen Foundation and vice president of philanthropy. His role is integral to our values of service, people, innovation, spirituality, wellness, collaboration and stewardship.'We’re so pleased to have Brian joining the Ecumen team,' said Kathryn Roberts, Ecumen CEO and president. 'Brian’s leadership and…

Sometimes you have to step outside of your comfort zone to forge new paths. And what a rush it can be.We want to share with you a new Successful Aging profile from someone who knows about trying something new - Jean Marino, an Ecumen customer in Duluth, Minn. Discover through Jean’s own words below how she forged a new path in soaring (literally) towards her dreams:Since I was a child…

Take our U.S. Senate poll for Minnesota. You can also vote for the Presidential candidate whom you think will do the best job of changing aging in America (we’ve been running this poll for a couple of weeks). To read more about the various candidates ideas, positions on changing aging, go to our