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Senior Wins Experience of a Lifetime; Takes First Skydive Ever at Age 84

NASHVILLE, Tenn. , June 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Described as a "sweet, gentle, smiling woman," no one expected that Jean Pettit's wish would be jumping from a plane - then actually going through with it.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090625/NY38465 )

Pettit, an 84-year-old resident of Freedom Plaza Peoria, a Brookdale Senior Living continuing care retirement community in Peoria, won the fulfillment of her Experience of a Lifetime - to skydive.

In her winning essay, Pettit said, "This would be further proof that an older person can still dream and do many things."

On Thursday, June 11, Pettit jumped from 13,000 feet in a tandem skydive with a skydiving instructor. The two were in freefall for about 53 seconds before pulling the parachute's cord and floating downward for four minutes.

"This was one of the most amazing experiences of my life so far," said Pettit. "The only thing to top the skydive would be to take a trip to the moon."

Nearly 40 family, friends, residents, and staff of Freedom Plaza, cheered her on as they watched Pettit land.

"This brought our community together as we celebrated with Jean on her achievement," said Julia Harvey, resident of Freedom Plaza.

Pettit won this opportunity through Brookdale's Experiences of a Lifetime program, in which residents at selected Brookdale Senior Living communities nationwide are invited to share and submit their wishes as part of the program. To request her Experience of a Lifetime, Pettit completed a survey form explaining an experience she would like to have fulfilled, and how that experience relates to one or more dimensions of the company's Optimum Life(R) concept. The six dimensions of Optimum Life are emotional, social, physical, intellectual, spiritual and purposeful.

Brookdale's Optimum Life(R) concept is geared toward cultivating whole-person wellness through fulfillment in the six key dimensions. The company's Experiences of a Lifetime program provides a helping hand in making some of the dreams of the residents come true.

Brookdale Senior Living Inc. is the leading owner and operator of senior living communities throughoutthe United States. For more information, visit http://www.brookdaleliving.com.

SOURCE Brookdale Senior Living Inc.