The History of Oakwood Village University Woods: A Legacy of Senior Living in Madison, Wisconsin
Oakwood Village University Woods, a distinguished assisted living community in Madison, Wisconsin, has a rich history rooted in a commitment to serving seniors. This article explores the origins and evolution of Oakwood Village University Woods, its connection to the Oakwood Foundation, and its impact on the lives of its residents.
The Genesis of Oakwood Village and the Oakwood Foundation
The story begins with the establishment of the first Oakwood Village facility in 1948. Recognizing the need for comprehensive support for seniors, Oakwood Lutheran Senior Ministries sponsored the development of these assisted living communities. Over time, the organization grew, leading to the formation of the Oakwood Foundation in 1981.
The Oakwood Foundation is a charitable nonprofit that supports Oakwood Village. The Oakwood Village Foundation raises funds in order to support Oakwood’s two campuses, those we serve, and those who provide service. As the official fundraising arm of Oakwood Lutheran Senior Ministries, the Oakwood Foundation plays a vital role in ensuring the financial stability and continued excellence of Oakwood Village. Donations to Oakwood Village are processed through the Oakwood Foundation.
Oakwood Village University Woods: A Hub of Senior Living
The Oakwood Foundation supports two main campuses in Madison, Wisconsin, called Oakwood Village Prairie Ridge and Oakwood Village University Woods, which themselves are further subdivided based on the type of living arrangement offered, including homes and apartments. Oakwood Village University Woods, one of the two main campuses supported by the Oakwood Foundation, has become a thriving hub of senior living in Madison.
Ask residents of Oakwood Village University Woods what they appreciate most about their community, and you’ll hear some common themes - The continuum of care and services. It’s location and longevity in Madison. The well-known Center for Arts and Education.
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The Oakwood Foundation financially supports organizations such as Oakwood Village University Woods Homes and Oakwood Village University Woods Apartments.
The Oakwood Foundation's Mission and Impact
The Oakwood Foundation says it exists to provide better service to seniors living in its assisted living communities than would be possible through resident fees alone, including by supporting staff training, adopting new technology for care delivery, and enhancing community spaces. The Oakwood Foundation raises funds in order to support Oakwood’s two campuses, those we serve, and those who provide service.
According to tax filings, in 2022, the Oakwood Foundation provided $5,150,336 to support the general operations of Oakwood Village University Woods Homes, $72,411 to support Oakwood Village University Woods Apartments, and $644,016 to support Oakwood Village Prairie Ridge Homes. The Oakwood Foundation says it exists to provide better service to seniors living in its assisted living communities than would be possible through resident fees alone, including by supporting staff training, adopting new technology for care delivery, and enhancing community spaces.
In 2022, the Oakwood Foundation reported $1,672,682 in revenue, $6,327,106 in expenses, and $21,507,552 in assets. Of its expenses, $5,990,994 was spent in direct support of the assisted living community for aged adults, including support for elderly who cannot pay the full cost of their care, funding for capital programs, and funding to support independence among the elderly within the assisted living communities. Of its revenue, the Oakwood Foundation received $1,211,797 in 2022 from gifts, grants, contributions, and membership fees.
Leadership and Community Partnerships
According to tax filings, the president and chief executive officer of the Oakwood Foundation as of 2022 was Reginald Hislop III. Hislop was previously the CEO of Larkfield Place Retirement Communities in Wichita, Kansas, and as of November 2024, was the co-founder and managing partner of H2 Healthcare. According to tax filings, in 2022 the executive director of the Oakwood Foundation was Christine O’Donnell. Previously, O’Donnell was the director of finance at River’s End Trading Company and a senior manager of finance at American Girl.
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The Oakwood Foundation publicly lists community partners that offer financial support to Oakwood Villages. In 2024, these partners included Vogel Bros.
Expansion and Adaptation: Meeting the Evolving Needs of Seniors
Looking to have the entire continuum of care on its campus, Oakwood Village added a state-of-the-art, short-term rehabilitation center with a hospice unit. The community offers five households, with each wing comprising 12 private resident rooms, a den, a kitchen, and living and dining rooms. Shared amenities for the residents include a grab-and-go bistro, community room, library, meditation chapel and roof terraces. The wellness wing offers an extensive physical, occupational and speech therapy area, salon and spa. The lower level includes the service floor with central storage and receiving and a new main production kitchen for the entire University Woods campus. Back-of-house support areas for food services, trash and laundry are hidden behind two adjacent household units.
Madison’s Urban Design Commission is set to review a proposal from Oakwood Village Senior Living at its Wednesday meeting. Oakwood is seeking an amendment to a land use permit in order to build a 77-unit, four-story senior living facility at its complex on the west side.The proposal is to remove an existing recreational building and construct the new living facility that will include a rain garden and a partial green roof. AgeBetter is ultimately behind the proposed development that would be built on the Oakwood Village site but then sold to AgeBetter, if approved. Ultimately, the AgeBetter project would integrate residency at the new facility with membership in Sharing Active Independent Lives (SAIL), which includes access to resources, services and programs, along with existing programs run by Oakwood Village and Attic Angel. The SAIL program has more than 500 members, aged 55 or older. It was launched in 2005 to help older adults with wellness and education programs, technology tutoring and support; medication reviews by a pharmacist; aging workshops; and transportation assistance.
“Both Oakwood and Attic are committed to meeting the needs of seniors in the greater Madison area,” Oakwood Foundation executive director Keith VanLanduyt said. “AgeBetter, through its SAIL program and affordable housing initiatives, provides us with an opportunity to collaborate to serve seniors of various economic backgrounds.”“We do believe there is a demand for quality affordable housing for older adults in Dane County,” he said.
The COVID-19 pandemic has hit senior living communities especially hard. The first reports of the virus in the United States were reported in nursing homes in Washington. Oakwood Village has maintained diligent protocols regarding COVID-19. But the economic fallout of COVID-19 has also created a demand for affordable housing for seniors. With money tighter across the board in most communities, families are needing to explore price-based options with an eye on safety.
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“I believe the pandemic has raised the awareness of many seniors - and their families - about the value of being part of a community, having access to services and a network of people to connect with and provide support following months of isolation at home,” VanLanduyt said. “We do have people reaching out to us indicating they’d refer not to spend winter alone in their house.”
A couple of Oakwood residents have expressed concerns about the project in letters to the Urban Design Commission. One resident said that she is a resident of Oakwood Village-University Woods and is opposed because of the physical appearance differing from the current design of adjacent senior living spaces. She also pointed out that having one entity owned by AgeBetter while another is owned by Oakwood Village could lead to arguing by the two entities sharing a driveway. Another resident also worried about the cosmetic appearance as well as the traffic from having additional underground parking. The Madison Plan Commission is scheduled to review the proposal’s zoning amendment on Oct. 19 and the City Council is slated to take it up at its Oct.
The Oakwood Nature Preserve: A Unique Amenity
But one aspect of the campus that truly makes University Woods unique is the Oakwood Nature Preserve. The lushly-wooded nine-acre Nature Preserve is located on the west side of the campus between The Oaks building and Otto’s Restaurant. Although the Oakwood community was established in 1948, records of the land go back to 1835. At that time the area was mostly native prairie, punctuated by the occasional oak tree. This ecosystem was maintained by the fires that periodically swept through the area, killing all the tree seedlings except those of the fire-resistant oaks. After the area was farmed and the local fires suppressed, the area became home to a wide variety of trees. It is home to many birds, mammals and amphibians, and has been made more accessible to residents and the public with the addition of walking paths throughout.
Bob Greenler, a resident of The Oaks since 2002, has been involved with the Nature Preserve since moving to Oakwood. He believes strongly that the preserve sets Oakwood apart. He says that one of the earliest parts of a management plan for the Preserve was to deal with the presence of a dense stand of invasive trees in the northwest corner of the preserve that was brought to this country from northern Europe. The Norway maple is widely planted along city streets, but when it moved into the Nature preserve it formed a heavy shade that was slowly crowding out all of the native trees and plants. The decision was made to cut down a few of the trees each year, and as the cut-down area received enough sunlight, to restore some of the area to the prairie that had once been there.
A number of prairie plants that were planted in the cleared land were quickly engulfed by the chest-high mixture of non-native plants that moved into the sunlit space. It was very difficult for volunteers to identify the small prairie plants amongst the tall overgrowth and many of the prairie plants were lost. Four years ago, Bob came up with a new plan to help grow the prairie. He recruited a number of people who formed a group called the Prairie Caretakers. They cleared the land of all brush and plants and divided it up into smaller plots. Each volunteer picked a plot for which they would be responsible. A total of 400 plants comprising 41 different species of prairie plants were ordered for a spring planting. Each volunteer was given a scale drawing of the plot showing the location for each plant, and was instructed to mark the plant by a stake on one side and a label identifying the plant on the other. The volunteers’ job for the coming year was to remove any plant that was not marked by a stake and a label. The volunteers may not have started out being able to identify prairie plants from others, but by the end of the season they were learning. The Prairie Caretakers continued honing their skills over the next few years by sharing their answers to the “is this a prairie plant or weed?” question with the others. In the following years new plots were cleared and new caretakers recruited. Bob says that they’ve now reached the planned extent of the restored prairie, and the Prairie Caretakers continue to plant, weed, label, and learn together.
Dave and Gretchen Pearson, who became involved as Prairie Caretakers before moving in to Oakwood earlier this year, were excited to be a part of the project. “We fell in love with Oakwood before we even decided to live here,” shares Gretchen. “The best part about living here is the preserve and all the beautiful plantings throughout the campus.” Marv Beatty, Oakwood resident since 2015 and a Prairie Caretaker, says “One of the things that I enjoy about this project is the opportunity to learn how to identify more prairie flowers.” After his retirement from UW-Madison as a Professor of Soil Science, Marv began volunteering with the Dane County Parks department. He was involved with planting prairies, removing invasive weeds, periodic prairie burning, and collecting and processing the seeds so the process could be repeated. “These small prairie plots gave me a chance to continue my involvement, but I was able to scale down to a more manageable piece of land relative to what I used to be part of,” said Marv.
Although the Caretakers are learning through their involvement with the Oakwood Nature Preserve, some caretakers - like Marv - had some background in working with planting or restoring prairies. Glenn Chambliss and Diane Derouen moved to Oakwood in 2018, but still own property where they are working to restore nearly 50 acres of prairie. As a nature photographer, Glenn takes a special interest in the outdoors in general, but especially the wildlife that uses the preserve and the prairie as their habitat. The Prairie Caretakers try to get together once a week in summertime for an “unofficial” working event and for the past two years they have hosted an annual “Open House on the Prairie” event to celebrate their work and show off the prairie to residents and staff. The prairie continues to become more beautiful each year. The Nature Preserve has been evolving for generations. While each Prairie Caretaker has a different background and involvement with the preserve, all agree the Nature Preserve is a treasure.
A Look Back at Oakwood's Historical Roots in Dayton
In 1804, Colonel Robert Patterson purchased uninhabited land along the Miami River south of the city of Dayton. In 1822, there were 10 taxpayers owning land in present day Oakwood. orchards and vineyards. He also grew expansive flower gardens for visitors to stroll and enjoy. Large farms appeared on the east side of present-day Oakwood. The terrain was rocky, but relatively flat. west side of Oakwood was unsuitable for farming, so land owners opened stone and gravel quarries. family owned a quarry behind their home (the present-day historical society).
In 1872, Haas, Mitchell, Dixon and Harman established the settlement of Oakwood, platting lots for 94 homes. In the 1880s, families began to build summer and a few permanent homes on Oakwood Ave. Oakwood that were used for raising horses or to provide privacy for large wealthy families. John H. Dayton and his company (National Cash Register) on the site of the present-day Lutheran Church of Our Savior at Thruston Blvd and Woods Rd. was largely influential in the physical and governmental development of Oakwood. an entrance off Far Hills at Peach Orchard Rd. He subsidized and published the first Oakwood newspaper, "The Oakwood Village Record," which ran monthly.
Generally, this began at the north end of Oakwood, north of Five Points (Far Hills, Oakwood and Thruston). was electrified in 1895 as far as Five Points. still be able to travel downtown for employment, shopping, and entertainment. Oakwood incorporated as a village in 1908 with 67 homes. moved to a new home at the corner of Harman and Park Avenues.
Oakwood had begun to grow when the 1913 Dayton Flood destroyed much of the low lying parts of Dayton. further growth in Oakwood, as home developers tout the height of Oakwood above Third and Main in their advertisements. condition of Far Hills Ave/Lebanon Pike, and the associated difficulties with getting horses up and down the hill. Oakwood's population boomed during the 1920s and 1930s. Automobiles were becoming more popular, available, and affordable. materials and could construct quality modern homes at a faster and less expensive rate. By 1931, the Village of Oakwood became the City of Oakwood. under one command, with officers (originally called "wardens") performing both roles.
Oakwood saw very little growth during the depression and lead up to World War II. and grocery stores to sustain their families through the hardest years. the University of Dayton. Some residents lost their homes to bank foreclosures. World War II created a manufacturing and engineering boom in Dayton and at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. spurred new homes and growth in Oakwood. Between 1912 and 1954, Oakwood's footprint grew by annexing adjacent lands. borders of what is today the City of Oakwood (except for several properties traded between Oakwood and Kettering in the 1970s) were finally defined. continued to be subdivided and platted for new home construction.
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