It all started over 30 years ago…
My brother Richard and I built a small elderly care community with a few simple rules…
Let’s give the most comprehensive & compassionate care to our residents.
Let’s have good food, music and a touch of Irish humor.
Let’s make it a place our mother will be proud of.
Since then…
We’ve grown to five locations across the Milwaukee area, always remaining independently owned and operated. We’ve partnered with siblings Geralyn, John and Mark. We’ve renamed our business after our mother, Elizabeth. We’ve met and cared for so many amazing, interesting and beautiful souls. Both our parents, Elizabeth and Richard, stayed with us till they passed, along with so many family members and friends.
Over our 30 year history, many things have changed, but one thing that’s never wavered is our commitment to excellent and compassionate care, good food & good Irish humor. A place our whole family is proud of.
Sincerely,
JoAnne Swanson, cofounder of Elizabeth Residence
Meet our Family
Elizabeth & Richard Coury
The matriarch and patriarch of the Coury family. Elizabeth and Richard married in 1947 and went on to have eight children. They passed the values of faith, hard work and family onto each of their children. Five of those children went on to own and operate the Elizabeth Residence. Both Elizabeth and Richard stayed at the Elizabeth Residence in Bayside till they passed away peacefully in their sleep. They are succeeded by their 8 children, 30 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren.
JoAnne Swanson
JoAnne is one of the cofounders of the Elizabeth Residence communities. In 1988, she combined her passion for nursing and love of real estate to start the first home in Cudahy, along with brother Richard. JoAnne stops at nothing to make sure the residents receive the best possible care and pioneered the programing that closely involves the resident’s families that continues today. She also believes that residents should not only reside in a community, they should be an active participant. From the beginning, she would go out of her way to make connections within the Milwaukee community and bring residents to shows, ballgames and other events.
You’ll often find her helping out at the Bayside and Franklin locations. It was her idea to have dogs on the property as a form of therapy before animal therapy existed, so you’ll often see dogs being cuddled by our residents.
Richard Coury
Richard cofounded the first Elizabeth Residence and has gone on to help grow each location. He’s passionate about advocating for his residents and employees.
He began his assisted living career in an all male home in West Virginia. When he moved to Wisconsin, he suggested to his sister JoAnne that they try and start a home of their own. While he is a Jack of all trades, his absolute favorite part of working in this business is getting to interact with residents and their families. A student of history, he loves to learn from others’ experiences.
You’ll find him hopping between Franklin, New Berlin, Oak Creek and Racine. He can fix a furnace with nothing but a flashlight and a screwdriver in the middle of the night, and often has.
Geralyn Charapata
Geralyn is the third Coury sister and also a registered nurse and certified gerontological nurse. She began her nursing career in the United States Army and served for several years as an emergency nurse. She joined the business in 1992 when JoAnne and Richard broke ground the second Elizabeth Residence location. She has been instrumental in the continuing education programming for our nurses and caregivers to ensure our residents receive the very best care.
She helped found the iconic Bayside community in 2005, and remains an owner, operator and nurse of that location.
John Coury
John is the youngest of the Coury clan and joined the business in 1995. He played college football at University of New Haven, CT then went on to get his BSN and Masters of Nursing from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He joined the business in 1995.
If you’re ever at the Franklin, Racine, New Berlin or Oak Creek communities, you may hear him from a mile away. If you ask, he’ll probably sponsor your son or daughters baseball team…if he can add an Elizabeth Residence logo to the uniforms, of course.