Erickson Retirement Communities Employee and Chinese Native Jaquelyn Kung Being

Begins Daily Blog of Her On-Site Experiences at Beijing Olympics

Chinese Cultural Subtleties and Aging Issues Complement Her Insight Into the Games

Jacquelyn Kung, an employee of Erickson Retirement Communities who was born in China, today began writing a daily blog of her on-site experiences/observations at the Beijing Olympic games. Her blog is found at: http://ericksonblog.com/blog/jacquelynkung/live-from-beijing-the-olympics/. It features photographs and is a behind-the-scenes look at the Chinese cultural subtleties that complement the games. Her blog is also geared toward her assessment of aging issues in China. Her blog will appear for the duration of the Olympic games.

A sampling from her first blog speaks to the nuances of Chinese culture that readers probably will not find elsewhere:

"Twenty years ago, I lived in Beijing. Back then, it was a city where you would ride your bicycle to the local produce market and pick up vegetables for dinner that night. Today, that "bicycle" is probably a motorized bicycle - or better yet, a brand new car. And the local produce market seems to have been replaced by an air-conditioned hypermart hawking electronic gadgets next to the vegetables, rice, and drinkable yogurt.

"In 2001, when Beijing was announced as the site of the 2008 Olympics, the city was transformed in lightening speed to one of modernity and pageantry. So I am not at all surprised by the grandeur unveiled this past week for the Olympics. But I must say that I am just as impressed by the show as much of the world seems to be.

"It begins with the welcome. Upon arrival at the brand new airport (apparently the largest airport in the world), you are greeted by one of the cute Olympic characters - Bei Bei, Jing Jing, Huan Huan, Ying Ying, or Ni Ni. Together, their names strung together - Beijing Huanying Ni - means Beijing Welcomes You. Here is a picture of my fiancé Clay and me being welcomed at the Beijing Airport by Huan Huan"

And her blog includes Kung's personal and, perhaps, unexpected assessment of United States Gold Medalist Michael Phelps: "Today I saw him win his third gold medal for the USA. The reports of him being a dolphin in the water are spot on: he is visibly much better than those who share the pool with him."

Kung was most recently the Associate Executive Director at Erickson's Greenspring Village in Springfield, VA, which is home to 2,000 residents. She previously served as the Senior Director of Strategy at Erickson's corporate headquarters. Kung completed a doctoral program at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and earned her B.A. and M.B.A. degrees at Harvard. She likes to knit and dance the cha-cha.

"We are fortunate to have Jacquelyn on site at the Beijing Olympics to share her unique perspective of the games and of the Chinese culture with the world," said Mel Tansill, Senior Director of Corporate Public Affairs for Erickson. "The games and the culture surrounding them are ageless. Jacquelyn's insightful blog proves this."

About Erickson Retirement Communities:

Erickson Retirement Communities <http://www.ericksoncommunities.com/> is one of the leading national developers of full-service retirement communities. Headquartered near Baltimore, Md., Erickson has built an innovative network of 21 communities that combine a maintenance-free active lifestyle with an ever-expanding host of amenities, social activities, and wellness and medical centers, proven to improve both physical and mental health. Erickson was named by FORTUNE as being one of the Top 100 "2008 Best Companies to Work For®." The Erickson enterprise also encompasses the Retirement Living TV <http://www.rl.tv/> network; NorthBay environmental education center; the Erickson Health <http://www.ericksonhealth.com/> system; Erickson Advantage <http://www.ericksonadvantage.com/> health plan; Renaissance Gardens assisted living, long-term nursing care, and short-term rehabilitation residences; The Erickson School <http://www.umbc.edu/erickson> at University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC); The Erickson Foundation <http://www.ericksoncommunities.com/foundation> ; and Point Lookout <http://www.pointlookout.com/> conference center.

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