In a heartfelt ceremony, the Assumption Community of Cold Spring was officially welcomed into the Benedictine organization. The event, marked by a sense of unity and respect for tradition, took place on March 5, presided over by Father Tom Knoblach, vicar of clergy and health care ethics for the Diocese of St. Cloud.

Jerry Carley, President and CEO of Benedictine, took this opportunity to honor the legacy of Assumption Community, a cornerstone of care in the Cold Spring area. The ceremony symbolized a new era of stewardship, with Father Leroy Scheierl passing the mantle of leadership to Benedictine in a poignant moment where two candles were lit from a single flame, signifying the merging of missions between St. Boniface's healthcare ministry and Benedictine.

Timeline of the transfer

• In August 2023, Benedictine reached an agreement with the Church of St. Boniface and the Diocese of St. Cloud to transfer membership in Assumption Community to Benedictine and the Catholic sponsorship to Duluth Benedictine Ministries.
• In January 2024, the Minnesota Department of Health issued its approval of the transfer of licenses for Assumption Home, Assumption Court, Asher Haus, Assumption Home Care and Assumption Health Services.
• On Feb. 22, 2024, the Department of Housing and Urban Development issued their approval for the transfer of ownership of John Paul Apartments. The John Paul Apartments, as a HUD dwelling, required additional approval from HUD.

About the community

Assumption Community, located at 715 First Street N, includes Assumption Home, a 76-bed skilled nursing facility; Assumption Court, a 59-unit assisted living campus; Asher Haus, a 28-unit assisted living memory care building; John Paul Apartments, a 61-unit subsidized senior apartment building; and Assumption Community Services, a Medicare-certified home health agency. The campus currently employs 153 people.

Assumption Community will now be known as Benedictine Living Community-Cold Spring. Each of the individual buildings will retain their current names with a Benedictine identity. Individually, they will be known as Benedictine Assumption Home, Benedictine Assumption Court, Benedictine Asher Haus, Benedictine John Paul Apartments, Benedictine Home Health-Cold Spring, and Benedictine Health Services-Cold Spring.

A new website is now available at www.BenedictineColdSpring.org.

About Benedictine

Benedictine is a nationally recognized, Catholic, nonprofit senior care organization offering a full spectrum of health and housing services to aging adults. Benedictine now has 34 campuses in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Illinois and Missouri and includes more than 2,100 skilled nursing units and over 2,500 assisted living or independent units.

The transfer brings together a rich Benedictine history of both organizations and a shared mission of caring for seniors. Assumption Home was founded in 1963 by the Church of Saint Boniface, while Benedictine was founded in 1985 by the Benedictine Sisters of Saint Scholastica Monastery, Duluth.

We celebrate this new chapter for Assumption and Benedictine.