Mowing and mulching, planting and pruning have been keeping Kendal’s Grounds crew busy this spring. But don’t let the season fool you.
“Every single season is on, there is no down time,” says Rachel Duncan, who joined the Facility Services department five years ago and was recently promoted to Grounds Manager.Rachel oversees a 5-person team and they are responsible for maintaining the 110-acre campus, which includes ponds, woods, gardens and 1-mile paved trail for walking and biking.
Rachel works closely with the residents’ John Bartram Arboretum Committee, contributing as an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist and most recently worked with the committee to apply and receive a coveted Level II rating from ArbNet for the Arboretum. The Arboretum is also accredited as a Tree Campus Healthcare facility.
Along with the day-to-day tasks, which range from shoveling snow to cleaning equipment to helping new residents establish garden beds, the team has several long-term projects on the books.
This summer they are working on a new landscape for the front entrance, which includes planting 15 trees and removal of invasive plants. In the next year or so they plan to redo the median strips and plant new trees.
Kendal residents and staff recently formed an American Chestnut Tree Interest Group to help bring attention to the challenges of restoring this once prolific hardwood tree. Kendal recently planted three saplings on the grounds, which includes six chestnuts.
“And we are always looking at ways to convert lawns to more ecological landscapes, such as meadows,” Rachel says. Not only will less grass mean less maintenance, but it will reduce noise and air pollution. “This time of year on a nice day we have one to four people mowing,” she says.
Rachel’s love of nature and the outdoors goes deep. She grew up on a family farm in nearby Wellington, and moved west to work as a horticulturist at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, where she met her husband Zachary, also a horticulturist. In 2019 the couple decided to move to Ohio, and the family farm. They have two children, and the oldest, 3-year-old Archer, attends the Kendal Early Learning Center.
Two other Grounds employees were also recently promoted.
Other Grounds Team members are Will Thompson, Judy Smith and Gabe Jackson.
Mowing and maintaining the campus grounds is just one of many diverse careers and jobs at Kendal. Along with medical-related jobs, the 240-employee force includes cooks and housekeepers, early education teachers and fitness staff.
Kendal’s benefits package is competitive and includes:
A Guide to Oberlin, Ohio- Dining, Shopping, and Attractions
About Kendal at Oberlin: Kendal is a nonprofit life plan community serving older adults in northeast Ohio. Located about one mile from Oberlin College and Conservatory, and about a 40 minute drive from downtown Cleveland, Kendal offers a vibrant resident-led lifestyle with access to music, art and lifelong learning.