The Denali Center in Fairbanks, AK renewed their Eden Registry status on March 13, 2012. This is home to about 81 Elders and is divided into four neighborhoods with a large central mall area that really helps to bring the community together. In the Spruce Court Mall area you may find children from the day care center playing in the playhouse or Elders putting together jigsaw puzzles for their annual auction to raise money for the Heart Walk and Relay for Life. The Mall has unique furniture carved out of trees. There are heavy chairs and tables that look rustic and the room is made up in the outline of a cabin. There are display cases with some native art. You may even find yourself strolling through an art show put on by those who live, work and support the Denali Center. Every Thursday is Native Culture Day where foods specific to the different cultures represented by the Elders in the home are served, some using the Elder's time tested recipes. Each neighborhood has a sun room where people eat breakfast and there is a refrigerator with treats. They have created a shared decision making structure which is built on the Lead Nursing Assistant care partners who are involved in many of the shared decision making teams such as Practice, Education, Eden, Pets, Dream Team, Hospice and Behavior/Pain. The neighborhoods have formed book clubs where they read books, articles and share conference highlights in weekly meetings to help each other to grow. Leadership succession planning is an important practice they have adopted. Each formal leader does a write up about their job and what their life experience was that led them to that role. Other care partners can read about the role and if they are interested, job shadow the person. If they want to grow into that role, the organization then works with them on a growth plan. A fun mitzvah they do is to wash care partners cars. The Elders are supporting a local elementary school by making mittens for them because the children tend to lose them during the winter. The team at Denali Center continues to push themselves to move closer and closer to home and family in how they experience life every day. We cannot wait to see what new idea they come up with next!