Koelsch History
1958
2025
The Koelsch Communities story began in 1958. Discover the major milestones and events that have shaped who we are today.
1876

Frank Kern, a German immigrant arrives in America to farm land in Great Bend, Kansas.
1911

Frank offered a fellow immigrant, Emil Emmett Koelsch, room and board in exchange for work.
1919

Emil fell in love with and married Frank’s youngest daughter, Elizabeth.
1938

Emmett Koelsch, Emil’s second-born, decided to leave the farm at age 17 to head for Longview, Wa.
1940

Emmett Koelsch met, fell in love with, and married and Alice McCormick.
1943

Soon, after their marriage, Emmett was called into the service for World War II.
1946

After coming home from the war, Emmett and Alice’s family grew to 5 children.
1958

After 21 years as a manager with Reynolds Metals, Emmett and Alice scraped together what they could and bought and opened the old Monticello Hall Nursing Home.
1959

Over the course of time, Emmett and Alice’s partnership and business grew, and they expanded across Washington state.
1985

And when it came time to plan for their retirement, the couple sold all of the nursing homes to their 5 children.
1988

Aaron begins his own path in Koelsch by building the Sterling Inn in Southern California. Judy, Aaron’s wife, begins designing beautiful, classic interiors for Koelsch Communities.
1996

Aaron Koelsch solidifies the family properties into Koelsch Communities by incorporating the Koelsch Home Office and giving the communities further unified leadership and direction.
2006

Koelsch Communities expands into new regions, serving seniors in the Mountain States, Southwest, South, Central and Midwestern regions of the United States.
2021
