Once a month, Richard F. hosts 20+ people for breakfast. His cozy apartment won't hold them all, but the community room at Warner Creek Senior Housing in Novato does the job.
"I wanted to see if I could do it,” says Richard, more often called “Dick,” who named the monthly event after his dog. “I just liked the idea of bringing people together."
He charges $2.00 per person to help defray the cost of eggs, sausage, potatoes, toast, fruit and coffee, but happily acts as chef and server for free.
Dick arrived at Warner Creek shortly after it opened in February and says he feels like he’s living in a family-run hotel. “It’s like great three-star living,” he says of the site developed by Eden Housing for 60 low-income seniors.
His wife, who died almost three years ago, was an excellent cook, Dick says. He thinks of her while he’s preparing breakfast for his friends.
“I was a stockbroker for many years but things went south and I had a cancer scare,” he says. “This is a great community for me.”
His breakfast project is just one of the ways that residents support each other. “Some of us get around better than others, so we work it out,” Dick says, explaining that he treks to the nearby 7-Eleven every day to fetch a newspaper, reads it, then folds it and delivers to a neighbor who has more trouble with walking. They split the cost.
While he doesn't have a green thumb, he's thrilled to find fresh tomatoes outside his door when tenders of the Warner Creek garden boxes share their excess. "A lot of people have things to share," he says.
Beretta’s Breakfast has become a fixture on Warner Creek's monthly calendar, which includes hikes, trips to museums, yoga classes and bingo. Such events are publicized with help from Veronica Bowers, a Homeward Bound employee contracted to coordinate support services for residents.
"It's just an example of the great community that's developed here at Warner Creek," she says. "Dick starts everyone off to a good day."
