ICHS new senior care center named in honor of community leader Ron Chew
ICHS CEO Kelli Nomura and community leader Ron Chew stand in front of the construction site of ICHS’ Ron Chew Healthy Aging and Wellness Center on June 3, 2024. ICHS plans to open the center in late 2025.
In honor of community leader Ron Chew, International Community Health Services (ICHS), a leading nonprofit healthcare provider in King County with over 50 years of service to the community, has announced it will name its new state-of-the-art senior care facility the Ron Chew Healthy Aging and Wellness Center.
Throughout his life, Chew has been a dedicated advocate for Asian Pacific American issues as a journalist, editor, museum curator, nonprofit leader, fundraiser, and author. Chew has also been a longtime mentor for journalists and other nonprofit and community leaders.
The Ron Chew Healthy Aging and Wellness Center is named for community leader and former ICHS Foundation executive director Ron Chew.
Chew first rose to prominence in the community as a reporter and editor of the International Examiner newspaper in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District (CID) in the late 1970s and throughout the ’80s. He also served as executive director of the CID-based Wing Luke Museum for 17 years, earning the museum national recognition and leading in the community-based model of museum exhibit development.
Chew also worked as ICHS Foundation’s executive director from 2010 to 2020, raising funds during a critical growth period for ICHS, which saw the opening of two new clinics in Bellevue and Shoreline in 2014.
As ICHS Foundation executive director, Chew led the start of a capital campaign (formerly called the AiPACE Reimagine Aging Capital Campaign) to expand senior services in King County with a new Healthy Aging and Wellness Center, to serve hundreds more low-income seniors. This center will build and expand on the success of the innovative ICHS PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) Center launched in 2019 at ICHS’ Legacy House location in the Chinatown-International District. A revolutionary aging-in-place model of care, PACE is designed to empower seniors to stay active, stay connected, and stay rooted in their own homes and communities.
Concept rendering of the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority’s Beacon Pacific Village project (rendered by Weber Thompson for SCIDpda). International Community Health Service’s PACE center and clinic will be located on the ground floor of the project location.
The new center will deliver comprehensive, affordable wraparound services, maximize quality of life for families, and keep our community elders healthy by meeting individual patients' healthcare needs in one place.
Chew has been a long-time advocate for caring for our community's elders and creating a pathway for them to live independently and with their families, while receiving the care they need in a way that is culturally competent.
“It’s really about allowing older adults, during their fragile years, to continue to live at home rather than having to be cloistered away inside an institution,” Chew said. “PACE provides the services to make that possible. The community benefits because elders — the living links to history — remain in the neighborhood, and working-age family members get support with daily care.”
Chew retired as ICHS Foundation executive director in 2020.
The Ron Chew Healthy Aging and Wellness Center offers a 25,000-square-foot space to provide services to the community. It will be located at 1200 12th Avenue South in Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority’s (SCIDpda) Beacon Pacific Village at the foot of the Pacific Medical Center in Seattle's Beacon Hill neighborhood.
Construction of the Beacon Pacific Village is planned to finish by the end of summer 2024. ICHS plans to open the Ron Chew Healthy Aging and Wellness Center in late 2025. When completed, the center will quadruple the number of vulnerable older adults served, demonstrating the need for elder services in our area.
“The funding effort behind the Ron Chew Healthy Aging and Wellness Center has been at the forefront of ICHS’ efforts to address community needs,” said ICHS CEO Kelli Nomura. “This new state-of-the-art senior care facility will give families across our community peace of mind knowing every day that their loved one is supported by an integrated team that truly cares. This effort represents a commitment to our elders in a way that honors Ron Chew’s legacy in remembering and caring for those who paved the way for us.”
The capital campaign project is halfway to its $25 million funding goal thanks to significant support from public as well as private partners. Public funding has come from federal appropriations, State of Washington, City of Seattle, and King County. Private partners include Inatai Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Sheng-Yen Lu Foundation, Ark and Winifred Chin Foundation, Arcora Foundation, Satterberg Foundation, and many generous individuals.