Steve and Mary Davis enjoying life at Aberdeen Village

If your taste buds ever start watering from the sweet scent of cooking banana bread, there’s a good chance it’s coming from Mary Davis’ kitchen.

“She makes great banana bread,” Steve said.

“And I always have some on hand,” added Mary.

Since moving into Aberdeen Village in October of last year, Mary and Steve Davis have kept themselves busy with a number of activities and routines.

“I’m a walker,” says Steve. “I’ll be 82 in July, but I wanted to keep in shape. I play pickleball, and I use my Fitbit to keep my steps. I average 37 miles a week. When you walk the halls, you meet a lot of people.”

Making friends at Aberdeen Village has been great, and the good conversation can sometimes make a meal last longer.

“We have just one meal a day in the dining area, and usually that meal we sit with other people,” Steve said. “Dinner takes longer than it does at home because you’re talking - but we really enjoy the fellowship.”

Mary loves to knit, and hopes to round up a few fellow knitters to join her. In the meantime, she’s found a number of fun activities on campus.

“We have a bible study, exercise classes, and we swim and eat,” Mary said. “People here are all great to be around.”

Both Mary and Steve originally hail from Iowa, but Mary’s work with Deluxe Checks brought them to Kansas. They lived in the Olathe area for 25 years, before making the move to Aberdeen Village.

For the last 12 years of his career, Steve drove tractor-trailers throughout the region, delivering meat from packing plants in Emporia. He spent most of his career, however, as a claims adjuster - where he picked up his love of photography.

“Thank goodness for digital storage,” Steve said. “Sunsets are my main thing. Then people, and landscaping. There’s a pond here, with some geese on it occasionally. I have a picture of the goslings, before they disappeared.”

Mary and Steve each lost their previous spouses, and they came together with two children each. Now, they’ve been married 26 years, and enjoy escaping the hot weather in Kansas by taking summer trips to Minnesota.

But the Minnesota winters are part of what drove the couple to Kansas.

“Deluxe closed the Des Moines, Iowa operation and Mary had a choice between Minnesota or Kansas,” Steve said.

“We experienced a big snowstorm, and I left work at 2 p.m., telling work I wouldn’t get home if I didn’t leave now,” Mary said. “I had to floor it to get in the driveway. When I opened the hood, everything was packed with snow. We thought Kansas would be nicer.”

If you see Mary or Steve exploring the grounds or walking the halls, be sure to say hi and welcome them to Aberdeen Village.