Camellia Walk · Senior Lifestyle
At Camellia Walk, some of the warmest welcomes come from the residents who know the community best and are proud to call it home.
They are the neighbors who remember your name, invite you to join a table, share a favorite activity or offer reassurance when everything feels new. As Resident Ambassadors, they help prospective residents and new neighbors experience Camellia Walk through the most authentic lens possible.
For Edmee “Meme” Comella, Patty Taylor, Betty Coleman, Jim Dowailby and Cathy Dolan, being a Resident Ambassador is more than a title. It is an opportunity to share what they have found at Camellia Walk: friendship, acceptance, safety and a true sense of belonging.
We sat down with each of them to hear their stories and learn what makes them such natural ambassadors for the community they love.
Edmee “Meme” Comella
Painter. Dog mom. Sourdough devotee.
Edmee, known to everyone as Meme, found something at Camellia Walk she did not know she was missing. “I met Patty, and she’s become my best friend. Then I met Betty, and she’s my best friend too. The three musketeers!” she says with a laugh.
She describes the community simply: “Amazing. Everyone is friendly. Team members, people who give medicine, dining. Everyone makes me feel welcome.”
That sense of welcome is exactly what Meme offers to others. As a Resident Ambassador, she brings warmth, humor and an openness that can help someone new feel comfortable right away. She attends ambassador meetings and also spends time brainstorming ideas with Patty and Betty, finding ways to make the community feel even more connected.
When she is not thinking of ways to support the community, Meme can often be found painting, coloring or walking her toy poodle. She loves music, has a soft spot for butterflies and carries with her a lifelong love of baking.
Her passion for sourdough bread goes back to her years living in Germany. She once brought her sourdough starter home on a plane and convinced a flight attendant to keep it in the refrigerator. She was pregnant at the time and, as she remembers it, the flight attendant looked at her like she had lost her mind.
That spirit – resourceful, funny, fearless and full of life – is exactly what Meme brings to Camellia Walk.
“I met Patty, and she’s become my best friend. Then I met Betty, and she’s my best friend too. The three musketeers!”
– Edmee “Meme” Comella, Resident Ambassador
Patty Taylor
World traveler. Journaler. Camellia Walk convert.
Patty Taylor has lived in seven states and traveled the world. Thailand was her favorite destination. Ireland was a close second. She has seen enough places to know when one feels right.
“Just get me to Camellia Walk and I’ll be fine,” she says.
Her days have a rhythm she loves. Breakfast in the dining room, a check-in with the team, lunch, more conversation and then dinner. “We’re never at odds for something to do,” she says.
Dinner has become one of her favorite parts of the day because it feels familiar and social. “We’re so friendly in our dining room. We know who everyone is and where they sit.”
As a Resident Ambassador, Patty understands how meaningful those everyday moments can be. She knows that a prospective resident may not only be asking what there is to do, but wondering whether they will feel safe, included and at ease. Patty can answer that question from experience.
She is a journaler and scrapbooker, someone who pays attention to what matters and knows the value of feeling settled. When asked to describe Camellia Walk, she comes back to one word:
safety.
After a life well traveled, that peace of mind means everything.
“I’m at Camellia Walk and I’m safe.”
– Patty Taylor, Resident Ambassador
Betty Coleman
Air Force family. Storyteller. Self-described yapper.
Betty Coleman will be the first to tell you she loves to talk. “You’ll get my story in bundles, darling!” She married her high school sweetheart, an Air Force navigator who took her around the world. Japan was her favorite stop. She brings that same curiosity and openness to life at Camellia Walk.
Betty is up by 7 a.m. every day, clothes already set out from the night before. She likes to walk, and there are always friends nearby and stories to share. “The people here are just like sisters and brothers,” she says.
That is what makes Betty such a natural Resident Ambassador. She does not need a formal script to make people feel welcome. She knows how to start a conversation, share a story and help someone feel like there is already a place for them.
The front porch has become a favorite gathering place, where residents sit together, talk and let one story lead to the next. For Betty, that is part of what makes Camellia Walk feel like family.
“The people here are just like sisters and brothers.”
– Betty Coleman, Resident Ambassador
Jim Dowailby
Opera singer. Army veteran. Camellia Walk’s longest resident.
Jim Dowailby’s life reads like a novel. A University of New Hampshire graduate, Jim was drafted into the military, won an all-Army singing contest and was sent to Germany, where he served as a medic and worked in entertainment at Frankfurt Division Headquarters. After his time in the Army, he moved to New York City to sing professionally in churches and off-Broadway before eventually settling in Virginia, where he performed with the Virginia Opera Company and in dinner theater.
He is now Camellia Walk’s longest-tenured resident and takes his role as ambassador seriously. “I consider everyone here my friend and I am pleased to be here,” he says.
As a Resident Ambassador, Jim helps prospective residents understand the community through lived experience. He has seen the friendships, routines and connections that make Camellia Walk feel like home over time.
What he enjoys most about welcoming prospective residents is simple: “Meeting new people and hoping to give them a good impression.” Given his story, he likely does.
“I consider everyone here my friend and I am pleased to be here.”
– Jim Dowailby, Resident Ambassador
Cathy Dolan
First-grade teacher. Global adventurer. Community connector.
Cathy Dolan grew up dreaming of seeing the world. As a first-grade teacher, she followed her husband, an airline pilot, to Air Force bases in Africa and Japan. Japan left the deepest impression. She took flower-arranging classes, learned to make dolls and clothing, and soaked up as much culture as she could.
Traveling the world had been her dream, and she made it happen. At Camellia Walk, Cathy has found something just as meaningful close to home. “It’s homey. I feel at ease,” she says. She exercises in the morning and loves walking after dinner. She has even encouraged a few neighbors to join her. “I got some other people to walk, which made me feel really good.”
That instinct to bring people along, include them and help them feel comfortable is part of who Cathy is. It also makes her a natural ambassador. She knows that sometimes the smallest invitation can help someone feel more connected.
When asked to describe Camellia Walk, she chooses one word: acceptance.
“They accept you the way you are.”
“I like people. I’m friendly and I make the best of every situation.”
– Cathy Dolan, Resident Ambassador
An Authentic Look at Community Life
Resident Ambassador programs help set Senior Lifestyle communities apart because they are rooted in something no brochure can fully capture: real resident experience.
Across Senior Lifestyle communities, Resident Ambassadors play an important role in welcoming new neighbors, sharing firsthand perspectives and helping prospective residents and families better understand what community life can feel like. At Camellia Walk, that role is brought to life by Meme, Patty, Betty, Jim and Cathy.
Their stories show that community life is not one-size-fits-all. Some residents love music and painting. Some love journaling, walking or sharing stories on the front porch. Some bring memories of travel, teaching, military life, theater, family, baking or friendship.
What connects them is the way Camellia Walk gives those stories room to continue.
That is the heart of your life, your style – a community where residents are known as individuals, supported in their daily lives and encouraged to keep discovering what makes each day meaningful.