Nightly Dinners Bring Sisters Together

Joanne Tucker and her younger sister, Etta Legner, walk into the cafe in Blue Ridge Commons. As they sit, Etta gives an affectionate pat on big sister’s back.

“A lot of people say, ‘what is it like to have your sister around.’ It’s great, because we haven’t been together since we left home. We’ve never lived in the same place. It’s been nice reconnecting,” Joanne said.

Joanne, who lives in an apartment, and Etta, who has a new cottage, eat dinner together every night.

“A lot of people tell me they think it’s neat that I have a sister here and they frequently tell me they wish they had a sister here,” Etta said.

Both retired school teachers, the sisters attended Radford University and enjoyed teaching school.

They relocated to the Lynchburg area after retirement to be close to their mother.

It was Etta’s idea for the two sisters to join The Summit’s Advantage Club in 2018. Soon after, they began attending events, meeting residents and getting to know the team.

Etta later reserved one of the new Northside Cottages while it was still under construction. Joanne moved into an apartment, arriving at The Summit seven months ahead of her younger sister.

“I’ve enjoyed going to dinner at night, sitting down and being served and getting up and going back to my apartment with no dirty dishes,” Joanne said.

Growing up on a farm in rural Virginia, the sisters inherited green thumbs. Etta maintains a wide variety of plants and succulents inside her cottage.

The sisters praised team members for their caring and generous spirits.

“From the first day I moved in, everybody has called me ‘Mrs. Tucker,’” Joanne said. “I mean they remembered my name from the first day.”

Etta, who maintains a more active lifestyle off campus as a co-owner of Timberlake Tavern, relishes reconnecting with her big sister over dinner.“It’s like we’re a big family and it reminds me of being in college. The thing I’ve noticed here is that people seem so happy,” Etta said.