ABOUT

Since they retired about 15 years ago, Debby and John have lived just south of Brevard NC in an area called Sherwood Forest. They have a black goldendoodle which gets a lot of loving attention. Prior to retirement Debby lived in Manhattan NYC, Davis and La Jolla CA, Boulder CO, Bloomington IN and Jerusalem, Israel. John lived most of his life in NYC but also spent time in La Jolla and the Caribbean island of Curacao.

Debby is a plant biochemist. She has been a professor at Michigan State University, The Hebrew University and University of California Davis, where she was Chair of Section of Plant Biology. To change things up, at age 60 she moved to Manhattan and became a program officer in food security for the Rockefeller Foundation. There she was responsible for grantmaking in the area of plant biotechnology, primarily for China and then Africa. Her late husband, Yoash Vaadia, was Israeli. Their daughter, Sarah, lives in Israel with her French husband and their fabulous little son, Oli.

Debby and John were grad students together getting their PhDs in biology at University of San Diego in La Jolla over 50 years ago! They reconnected, and got married, after Debby moved to NYC.

John did post-doctoral work in La Jolla, was an immunologist at Sloane-Kettering in NYC and then headed the flow cytometry facility at NYU medical school.

HOBBIES

Debby enjoys science-related activities including for the American Chestnut Foundation and other boards. While she loved tennis, her body now prefers the gentler Pickleball. Water aerobics, writing memoirs and travel are other primary interests.

John was also an avid tennis player and loved flying small airplanes and gliders. Now he likes spending time with their dog, working to complete all the NYTimes crossword puzzles and watching news on TV.

SURPRISED TO KNOW

Debby had to learn to speak Hebrew at age 40!

During grad school John flew Debby and 2 others in a small plane from La Jolla to NYC for a science meeting! Debby reports that it wasn’t at all scary.

WHY LEGACY?

Debby and John decided a CCRC would make the most sense for them as they age and won’t be as able to take care of their large home. Legacy’s excellent location, beautiful architecture, year-round pool and on-site medical care were all especially attractive features, enhanced by the optimal timing for them to move.

FUTURE AT LEGACY

With their extensive scientific backgrounds, Debby and John look forward to sharing some different perspectives.

FUTURE HOMEOWNERS OF

Village Home 62, Floor Plan Brantwood