Perry Lutheran Homes Dedicates Karen Menz Discovery Room

The morning of September 3, the day of the Karen Menz Discovery Room dedication, began with two generations moving side by side. Residents and children exercised together, each encouraging the other with smiles and laughter. After exercise, Bistro Hour filled the Eden Acres Campus with children, Christian music, conversation and the aroma of coffee. What followed was a special surprise dedication that brought tears of joy.

In the middle of it all was Dave Menz, singing, smiling and surrounded by children and older adults enjoying life together. It was a fitting beginning to a day that would honor his late wife, Karen, and the intergenerational vision they shared.

Moments later, surrounded by residents, children, staff, friends and supporters of that vision, Dave learned that Perry Lutheran Homes was dedicating the Karen Menz Discovery Room in his wife’s memory. The activity and learning space was created for the children of Acorns & Oaks Intergenerational Christian Academy. Filled with opportunities to create, explore and learn, the room is designed to bring residents and children together.

During the dedication, Rev. Max Phillips shared the story of Acorns & Oaks. The ministry began in 2017 by bringing children and older adults together in a Christian community through child care. It expanded to include preschool in 2023 and welcomed its first kindergarten-through-second-grade elementary class in August 2026.

Karen was a longtime Perry educator who taught elementary school for 31 years. A devoted member of Christ Lutheran Church, she also served on the Perry Lutheran Homes Board of Directors, volunteered alongside Dave, and helped lead the creation of Acorns & Oaks.

The couple were discoverers at heart, exploring God’s creation from the timber near their Perry home to destinations around the world. Karen also cultivated a sprawling flower garden, photographed the beauty she encountered, and pursued her dream of writing children’s books.

Karen passed away in March 2022, but the vision she helped nurture continues to grow. Dave remains an active volunteer and supporter of the ministry, still finding joy in the moments Karen treasured: children and older adults singing, learning, laughing and reminding one another that they are loved.

The Karen Menz Discovery Room now carries Karen’s spirit of faith, curiosity and discovery forward. Yet perhaps her legacy could already be seen before the sign was ever unveiled, in the smiles exchanged between the youngest and oldest people in the room.