“Living to serve.” That phrase is part of the FFA motto taught to high school agricultural students. It has been taken to heart by a rural Kansan who has applied his service to developing the best possible residential living and care for senior citizens in his community.
Rick Aberle is executive director of the Apostolic Christian Retirement Village in Sabetha. He grew up on a farm where he was active in FFA near the rural community of Morrill, population 218 people. Now, that’s rural.
Aberle earned a degree in biological and agricultural engineering from Kansas State University and then a Masters in Business Administration. He worked for Wenger Manufacturing and later as a consultant.
In 2013, he felt called to join the mission field in Haiti. When he went to work in that impoverished country, a crucial need was health care. He ended up serving as administrator of a surgical hospital there.
After eight years in Haiti, he returned home to Brown County. The board of the Apostolic Christian Retirement Village approached him about becoming the retirement home’s executive director, which he did in 2023.
The Apostolic Christian Retirement Village, also known as Apostolic Christian Home, was founded in Sabetha in 1958. It is owned by the midwest region of Apostolic Christian Churches in Kansas and Missouri. In addition to Sabetha, this includes churches in communities such as Bern, Kiowa and Lamont,
The non-profit Apostolic Christian Retirement Village began as a nursing home with the mission to serve the needs of the elderly. It now offers independent living, assisted living, and nursing home care.
The Apostolic Christian Retirement Village has grown significantly through the years. In 1961 it opened as a 20-bed nursing facility. Now it has grown to 108 beds.
Independent living began with 20 units and is now at 87. The 12 unit assisted living facility is now 24. Lakeside Terrace was added as a 12-resident facility for the intellectually and developmentally disabled.
“We are a continuing care retirement community,” Aberle said. “As our seniors advance in need, they can transition through the stages within our own facility. It makes that transition much better for them.”
“Our board has a vision to meet the changing needs of our population. We are looking at how to change and grow and evolve to meet these needs.”
Apostolic Christian Retirement Village is now working on fundraising to replace and repurpose the nursing home.
“We want a redesign that would offer care in a more home-like setting,” Aberle said. “We also want to move our facility for the disabled into our complex. Currently that is a few blocks away.”
A second phase of the master plan would add child care, a community center, and a health and wellness space in the facility. Imagine senior citizens and children within the same facility where those who choose could engage in interaction.
“Research shows that the benefits of intergenerational care are clear,” Aberle said. “There are benefits for both the youth and elderly, and that’s a direction we intend to go.”
The availability of child care as well as a place for aging parents and grandparents are certainly important in a town with a large manufacturing base such as Sabetha. “This can help our workforce,” Aberle said.
“I see us as a key cog in the makeup of our town. Apostolic Christian Home is critical to the community.”
“Ultimately, our mission is to offer care to those in need,” Aberle said. “It goes back to my roots in ag and FFA, with a desire to serve. Serving others is a way that enriches their lives and our own. We’re directed by our Christian faith to serve others.”
For more information about Apostolic Christian Retirement Village, see www.apostolicsabetha.org.
“Living to serve.” That phrase from the FFA motto provides a value which this rural Kansan is applying in his everyday life.
We commend Rick Aberle and all those involved with the Apostolic Christian Retirement Village for making a difference by providing quality care for our elderly. That’s an important service.
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