Bill Urfer spent his career preparing and dispensing drugs as a pharmacist. Attention to detail was a must and he loved every minute of it. But when it came time to retire, The Fountains at Bronson Place resident knew he would no longer be able to hone his skills with pharmaceuticals. So, Urfer turned to his second passion—woodworking and stained-glass art—and he’s teaching other residents of the senior community these new skills.
“I’ve been doing stained glass ever since the 1970’s as a hobby,” Urfer says. “And I’ve been doing woodworking at my house where I added something like 2,000 square feet once I got married, so it’s not really something new. But I have never spent this much time on the different areas at once.”
Urfer was pleased to learn when he retired and moved to The Fountains that he was allowed to bring many of his creative arts tools with him. He set up a new space there for stained glass work and woodworking at the senior living facility. Along with working on his own projects, he soon began offering workshops for other residents.
“We’ve thrived here,” Urfer says. “I want to help others thrive and its’ great to be teaching again.”
As a pharmacist, it wasn’t uncommon for Urfer to teach the business to younger professionals. Teaching skills as a pharmacist and teaching creative skills, he says, are not so different.
“There’s nothing like seeing someone try something new, work at it, learn from you, and eventually go on to exceed even your own skill level,” he says. “I think you must have that, because that’s what stimulates your mental juices to continue doing things. Once you stop doing things, life becomes sort of tedious. That’s a dangerous thing for older people.”
Some of Urfer’s work, and that of his students, can be seen in and around The Fountains.
