Jackie and Barb met in the 1980s while playing in a golf tournament at the country club they belonged to near San Francisco. During the round, they discovered a mutual appreciation for music. Barb grew up playing the piano and singing solos. Jackie was raised in a family of harmonizers.
“We began getting together to sing songs we grew up on, and would cry to favorites like, ‘Let There Be Peace on Earth,’” said Jackie.
In their 30s, the friends would joke about who was going to push whose wheelchair around.
“We never really thought that would happen,” Jackie laughed.
Nearly 30 years later, the women and their husbands live on opposite corners of the same floor at Vi at Silverstone.
Growing Friendships
As the ladies’ friendship blossomed, they decided to introduce their partners. Jackie’s husband, Fred Badger, was a Naval Academy graduate. Barb’s male friend at the time (and future husband), Ed Faber, had been in the U.S. Marine Corps. The two men easily bonded over their years in the service.
Over the years, each couple built lives and careers that moved them apart from one another to various places around the country — but the two couples always managed to stay in touch. In 1990, the Fabers decided to move to Arizona. Jackie and Fred soon followed, staying with the Fabers while they built a house in the mountains.
Moving to Vi
A few years ago the Fabers decided they were ready to move into a retirement community in Scottsdale.
“We knew that Vi at Silverstone was the best there is,” said Barb. “The residents and staff here are terrific, and the food is great,” said Ed. The Badgers soon followed, moving into the community in December 2015.
Now, the lifelong friends remain active making new memories at their home at Vi. Jackie and Barb participate in the Vi Tones, a resident choral group that perform shows twice per year. Ed takes their 14-year-old dog, Jasmine, to the care center every Wednesday morning to visit residents. Fred is part of the men’s golf club, and likes to join Jackie in making new friends at Vi.
Ultimately what’s made Vi at Silverstone feel like “home” for each couple: each other.
“It’s so comforting having close friends here at the community,” said Barb.t