Every day about 8,000 baby boomers turn 55, and according to Raymond Goodman, Jr., winner of this year’s Alumni Association Award for Excellence in Public Service, “a lot of them will not accept the way our society has taken care of elders in the past.”

People nearing retirement today are healthy, active, and not looking for a “rest,” notes Goodman, chair of the hospitality management department at the Whittemore School of Business and Economics. “They want to continue learning and contributing to their communities. Above all they do not want to be a burden to their children.” A new kind of active, well-rounded retirement experience is needed.

Of such visionary stuff was RiverWoods born—the New Hampshire Seacoast’s only Lifecare Community offering a continuum of independent living, supported residential, assisted living, and skilled nursing care. Fifteen years ago, MaryAnna Hatch and Rosemary Coffin of Durham, artists and partners of UNH faculty, dreamed of creating a retirement community they would actually look forward to retiring in. They wanted an intellectually stimulating, intergenerational place, able to accommodate life partners with different physical needs.

RiverWoods of Exeter is all this and more, thanks in part to Goodman’s skill at practical matters and dedication to the original idea. On the board since 1990 and chair since 1998, he won this year’s public service award for “encouraging leadership” that allows managers “the latitude to accomplish a variety of outreach activities.” Many enrich ties with younger generations— there is a playground, a new teen center, a program matching RiverWoods residents with first-time college students, and another to support troubled youth.

The community offers 201 independent living apartments plus a 60-bed resident health care center. In an industry where failure is common, RiverWoods is financially healthy and active in philanthropy. “Too often, boards and directors have the best of intentions but not the basic business skills to keep their facilities financially viable,” says Goodman. “It’s heartbreaking to residents and families when they fail. Worse, it’s unnecessary.”

The author of numerous articles and a book on retirement facilities planning, Goodman, by insisting that RiverWoods run according to sound hospitality management and business principles, has helped put it on a granite-solid foundation. He and RiverWoods CEO Frank Crane recently were invited to give “best practices” advice to policy makers on behalf of the American Association for Homes and Services for the Aging in Washington, D.C.

RiverWoods has proved to be one of the most gratifying projects of Goodman’s career. “We’re doing a lot more than taking care of older people,” he says with satisfaction. A Laredo, Texas, native who credits his civic-minded father with modeling public service, Goodman is delighted that “at the end of the day, we can feel good that we have been part of providing an environment that enlightened someone’s life.” He is a nationally recognized expert on continuing care retirement communities and enhancing older adults’ quality of life.

The RiverWoods approach has roots in some religious groups’ focus on helping elders stay active in their communities. People gave their estates to the church in exchange for care. It’s similar at RiverWoods—couples may sell their home to pay an endowment fee, 90 percent of which is refundable to their estate. Then, for a monthly cost, they are guaranteed care for life.

“With the knowledge I gain from being involved in RiverWoods, I teach,” says Goodman. “I want to convert some of our young people at the Whittemore School to finding a career in retirement living and management. The industry is facing some challenges, and with a surge of 76 million baby boomers coming, the need is apparent.”

—Janet Lathrop,
UNH News Bureau