The CPCH Board brings a strong combination of community and professional experience to the project. Directors’ backgrounds include senior housing management, medical and health care services, community initiatives, and construction.
Kirsten Schreiber, Chair
Kirsten was licensed in Germany as a Psychotherapist. While there, she also trained as a nurse’s aid and home caregiver, as well as working in hospice. She has always had a deep passion for the elderly and has observed first hand both the beneficial as well as the dysfunctional aspects of nursing home conditions.
Kirsten has been a key caregiver in the Crestone community for years. In addition, her work in the field of Non-Violent-Communication (NVC) makes her an invaluable member of the Board. Kirsten is a talented designer-builder with her husband, and owns and operates Schiki Pulse Warmers & Other Good Ideas, a local cottage industry.
Julia Voss RN, Vice-Chair
Julia has been a resident of Crestone since 2006. She initially came to Crestone to participate in intense spiritual practice and stayed because of the mountains, hiking opportunities, and the rich community of friends and neighbors.
Julia is a founding member of CEOLP (Crestone End of Life Project) and served as a vice president of CEOLP and IFC (Informed Final Choices) for 10 years. She also served as secretary/treasure of Friends of the Library. Her health care career encompassed administration of community health, mental health and elder care programs.
Serving on the CPCH Board with the purpose of securing moderately priced housing allows Julia to contribute to the well being of our elder community and return the love and caring she has received from numerous Crestone residents.
Denise Peine, Secretary
Denise worked in advertising and marketing. Since moving to Crestone, she has felt a strong call to community involvement, volunteering for a non-profit thrift shop and serving as food bank manager for many years. Her food bank service gave her an understanding of, and compassion for, community members, many of them seniors, living on limited incomes. She is registrar and board member for CEOLP (Crestone End of Life Project). Denise is the representative from Little Shepherd Episcopal Church to the board of its parent church in Salida. Her love of animals inspired her to work with the Town of Crestone to create a pet cemetery, Cielo Azul.
John Alfano, Treasurer
John officially became a member of the Crestone community upon completion of his new home early 2020. He has been visiting the area since 2007; but when he fell in love with the place and the people he decided to stay and pursue his photographic art and his spiritual practice.
He lived in Silicon Valley for over 30 years upon completing his philosophy and biology degrees from Boston College. He is a mostly retired tech /marketing executive now, having worked for large (including Apple, SGI, Alcatel) and a number of start-ups. He has managed product, marketing and PR teams, and has been a co-founder/board member of various start-ups. Recently he cared for his now 95 year old mother for 2 winters in New England, where she still lives alone. This has given him insight into the needs of the elderly who are able to mostly manage their lives in the face of increasing limitations.
Richard Sanderson, MA, Consultant
Richard is a practicing psychotherapist. He has extensive experience in human services as a clinician, program developer, administrator for community-based counseling organizations and advocate for patient rights. Since 2010, Richard has worked as a consultant on projects to improve access to mental health services into primary care settings and increase collaboration among healthcare professionals providing services to the same person. He is a national consultant for the US Department of Aging, providing technical assistance to states focused on eliminating premature or unnecessary admissions to nursing facilities and unwarranted retention of residents. This experience affords Richard opportunities to advance the need for alternative approaches to aging, especially as it relates to affordable housing and comprehensive community-based services. He is encouraged by the proliferation of “aging in place” initiatives that may delay or eliminate an individual’s need for institutional care and enhance opportunities for elders to age in communities of choice.
Barbara Hoeppner, LWV Founding Visionary
In memory of our dear visionary and heart holder of this project, we want to respectfully share a little of what former board member Barbara Hoeppner contributed to our community. Barbara passed away in March 2022.
Barbara lived in Crestone for over 20 years and was the visionary of Living Wisdom Village, Elders Creating Community. She was instrumental in establishing the core philosophy of the LWV project, and we remember her as our ‘Keeper of the Vision.’
Her career included serving as an Activity Director in nursing homes. She also was Recreational Director and Property Manager of a multi-million-dollar retirement community for many years in Florida; this gave her insight into how aging is a valuable part of our lives, and how feeling meaningful to the very end is a gift to ourselves and everyone around us.
Her ongoing engagement in community and artistic projects included helping to create the Crestone Music Festival, the Odyssey Children and Youth Program, and the Crestone/Baca (C/B) Village; projects that connected young and old.
Barbara was hoping to be the first resident at this affordable housing community.