Housing, Help and Hope for Older Adults | | |
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Christy's Corner
Resident Life
Volunteer Profile
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Resident Profile
Staff Update
65th Anniversary Spotlight
| | Join our Mission - the Work isn't Done! | | |
Over the last year, Fellowship Square built on its mission of providing safe, affordable housing and vibrant communities for low-income seniors. Through strong leadership and deep collaboration, the organization saw both programmatic and community milestones that reinforced its legacy and vision.
With over 835 residents across four properties—Hunters Woods, Lake Anne House, Lake Ridge, and Largo Landing—Fellowship Square continued to meet the growing need for affordable housing, with 95 percent of residents living on annual incomes below $20,000.
The Resident Services Department played a vital role in supporting older adults, offering personalized services and developing 189 wellness programs across intellectual, social, physical and spiritual dimensions. The Fellowship Fresh initiative made a significant impact by distributing more than 58,000 pounds of food and engaging 50 volunteers to fight food insecurity.
As we move forward, our work isn't done! Your financial support is vital:
Help us continue serving our seniors with a contribution today!
As we celebrate our 65th anniversary, we will continue a path of growth, innovation, and compassion—driving housing forward for the region’s most vulnerable seniors.
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Americans are living longer than ever, but American men still aren’t living as long as American women. The average life expectancy for men in the U.S. is 75 years; for women, it’s more than 80. Health In Aging published several tips for men to keep in mind as they age:
- Monitor prostate health, which can be an underlying cause of incontinence.
- Monitor heart health to combat rising hypertension.
- Schedule regular health screenings, including for osteoporosis.
- Focus on overall well-being, including by living a healthy lifestyle through exercise and nutrition.
At Fellowship Square, 32 percent of our residents are men. In June, we prioritized programs and activities to draw attention to what men can do to stay healthy as they age. Each of our properties brought in healthcare specialists to talk about the symptoms, treatment and prevention of prostate cancer. We also organized car shows, Father’s Day cook-outs and other celebrations that included all residents with a focus on men’s health.
We greatly appreciate all the community partners, donors and volunteers who helped us deliver informative programs and fun Father’s Day celebrations. Looking forward, I encourage you to make a donation in support of our work – or sign-up to volunteer – and help us serve the seniors in our community who need help.
In gratitude,
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Hunters Woods Residents Share Unique Cultures through
Performance and Dance
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In June, we celebrated the diverse cultures of our residents at Hunters Woods Fellowship House in Reston, Virginia, with residents showing off their talents and customary dress while teaching fellow community members about their cultural heritages. Special thanks to Photographer Janiyah Bowe, a recent graduate of Potomac Falls High School, for capturing these beautiful images of the event.
Pictured above, the “Dragon Team” demonstrates Chinese martial arts, with residents Liangying G., Guanghong J., Huayi L., Xiuzhen Q., Qinfang S., Siushan S., Jinmei W., Longmei Y., Meixian Z., and Xueli Z. performing.
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Yunhua H., Milan L., Yingyi P., Guoquin P., Qun Q., Ying T., Lingzhen W., Yueying Z., and Yulan Y. perform for the crowd on Culture Day.
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Resident Susanna K. at the piano.
| | | Residents Mohammed M. and Deljan O. wear customary Iranian attire. | | | Make An Impact: Volunteer! | | Trowel Garden Club Brings Joy to Lake Ridge Residents | |
The Trowel Garden Club is the oldest gardening club in the area, and in 2021, the Club’s president and Fellowship Square’s board members collaborated to bring a volunteer-run “garden therapy” curriculum to Lake Ridge Fellowship House as a service to the community. One such volunteer is Bonnie Little, who has been involved since the Trowel Club’s start at Fellowship House. She especially appreciates the program’s ease of involvement and the mutual benefit both volunteers and residents reap from gardening together.
“We supply the flowers and containers, so all we need is resident participation. And, the time spent with residents has been such a joy for those of us who participate,” she said. “It is fun to watch them create their arrangements after a brief lesson on the day’s design.
“The smiles on residents’ faces give us an incentive to come back month after month,” she added, “and it’s heartwarming to give back and have fun at the same time. For me, this is time well spent, and I look forward to continuing to be a part of this program.”
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Bonnie Little (pink sweater) is a longtime volunteer with Fellowship Square’s garden therapy program, and, like many service leaders, also volunteers with other organizations in the community. Most recently, she and Lake Ridge Fellowship House residents traveled to the kitchens of the Capital Area Food Bank in Washington, D.C., pictured here, where they took a cooking class focused on tasty yet healthy recipes.
| | Interested in giving back and getting involved? Volunteers play a central role in Fellowship Square’s mission to keep residents healthy and engaged, and whether you’re happiest arranging flowers, serving food, creating art, or making music, we have opportunities for you! Please contact Tiffany Bowe, our volunteer coordinator! | |
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Turn Challenges into
New Connections
Ever since our founding, our residents have hailed from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures, adding vibrancy to the fabric of those who call Fellowship Hall “home.”
Mei-Yueh Wu, a native of Taiwan, moved to the Hunters Woods Fellowship House in 2003, and it didn’t take long for her to settle in and create new connections, perhaps due to her life’s philosophy of making the best of any challenge.
“My childhood was spent in Taiwan, where I had a wonderful family growing up. I had eight siblings, and, being the middle child, my siblings and I liked to spend time together, go out to eat, and try on fancy clothing. When I was 27, I got married in Taiwan, and my husband and I came to America. At the beginning, I found it hard because of unfamiliar cultures, different food, and the language barrier.
When I am faced with a challenge, however, I do not let it get to me; I just accept it and make the most of it. I consider myself a problem solver, but if I have a bad day, I think, 'Tomorrow will be better.'
It took time to adjust, but as the years went on and my children grew up, it became easier. I am family-oriented, and some of my values are to be nice and friendly to others. ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’
I loved to swim and dance when I was younger, and I still love to listen to music – I attend the Tuesday Music Café event at Hunters Woods and go for walks as often as I can. I have a lot of friends here, and I’m grateful to be here.”
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Please join us in welcoming Quinn Flavin and Jiselle Floyd to Fellowship Square as our real estate management intern and resident services intern, respectively. We welcome the opportunity to help both advance in their studies and provide important insights into career opportunities in the nonprofit sector.
Quinn is a rising sophomore at Virginia Commonwealth University, majoring in urban and regional studies with minors in economics and sociology. Quinn enjoys research and data synthesis, which will be utilized in topics such as affordable senior housing location compilation, market report creation, and care center implementation, among other projects during the nine-week real estate management internship.
Jiselle is a rising senior at George Mason University, majoring in business with a concentration in marketing. Jiselle is also part of the Bachelor Accelerated Master's Program and is currently working to get her master's degree in business analytics. She is passionate about using data to find answers and identify trends. She will be working on our 2025 Resident Life Survey and helping Fellowship Square input and analyze the data from the survey to help identify the needs and wants of residents.
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65th Anniversary Spotlight
| | Fellowship Square Honors 65 Years of Innovation | |
On May 29, Fellowship Square staff, Board members, donors and supporters gathered at the Lake House to mark our 65th anniversary with a “Driving Housing Forward,” 1960s-themed party. With disco boots and flower power in full force, we were grateful for the opportunity to educate and spread awareness of our mission, thank those who have been so committed to helping us provide affordable housing and supportive services for seniors, and encourage further support in the coming years.
We also screened a new, inspirational anniversary video outlining the journey from our founding in 1960 to today’s award-winning properties and innovative programs.
Find out why affordable senior housing is more urgent than ever – and discover how YOU can help us meet this challenge and continue to ensure that every senior has a safe, dignified place to call home. Get involved or donate today!
Thank you to the following sponsors, who made our Driving Housing Forward party possible:
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Peterson Companies
Virginia Housing
Griffin Owens Insurance Group
S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co.
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Dominon Energy
John Marshall Bank
The Chadwick Law Firm, PLLC
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Photo to right:
Service Coordinator Jane Kung, CEO Christy Zeitz and Fellowship Square Board Member Tom Van Lierde (left to right) enjoy connecting and catching up at the Fellowship Square 65th Anniversary party on May 29.
Photo below:
Office Manager Vanessa McKay and Volunteer Coordinator Tiffany Bowe (left to right) embrace the 1960s theme!
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Annual Meetings Highlights Now Available on Video
On June 7, Fellowship Square hosted its 2025 “Driving Housing Forward” Annual Meeting, and we’ve developed this special-edition video to ensure our supporters don’t miss a thing! Catch a glimpse of the highlights of our annual meeting, including a quick tour of Lake Anne and the celebration of this important milestone in our 65th year.
Thank you to Sentara Health for their sponsorship and to Fairfax County Board of Supervisor Walter Alcorn for joining us at our event and presenting a special proclamation.
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