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Buildings and Amenities
Cummings Properties, LLC of Woburn, Massachusetts opened New Horizons Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in 1994. The former campus of a residential girls school was completely renovated and substantially enlarged, adding many special features and amenities to foster convenience, comfort, and aesthetic appeal. Also known briefly as "Country Living," the campus was greatly expanded with two brand new four-story buildings with 130 oversized units for fully independent seniors in 2002. Unlike most similar size buildings, which tend to be wood-framed construction, "The Meadows" buildings are both steel-framed, with all poured-concrete floors. Most of the two-story New Horizons building has completely fireproof poured-concrete construction throughout, including its roof. All buildings have extensive fire protection sprinkler systems as well.
All New Horizons and Meadows buildings
are easy to get around, using any of eight conveniently
located elevators. Because of New Horizons' unique hexagonal shape,
residents have access to an elegant indoor walking path, with plenty of
handrails and sitting areas. Five times around the "hex" is one mile!
Additional building features include a hair salon, outdoor patios, nurses'
stations, resident services office, pharmacy/sundry shop, large-screen
theater and game room, as well as a heated indoor swimming pool, and three
elegant dining rooms in the central building alone.
Campus Amenities "Home" means casual comfort and allowing everyone to be themselves, yet it also implies "old school" respect. Knock before entering a resident's suite. Serve home cooked meals. Seek out and apply resident opinions. Often, a critical issue faced by a new resident is a sense of lost familiarity and independence -- and uncertainty about whether these vital aspects of living will ever be regained.
With that in mind, we built a home for all residents. Personal decor and family photos are strongly encouraged. No two apartments are identical - a "cookie cutter" approach would have lessened that individuality. Indeed, a real start-up marketing challenge was obliging the visitor who asked to see "all the different types of apartments available." There are just so many! Country Communities does not advertise extravagant furnishings or an overly formal or exclusive image. Yes, this is a beautiful, well-adapted community with comprehensive amenities, but people are paramount. We focus on each resident's happiness and comfort, in ways they remember from their own unique pasts.
A full-time activities coordinator tailors programs for residents' enjoyment. Activities include fashion shows on user friendly clothing, off-site spectator trips, resident art displays, regular fitness and watercise classes, and regular on-site Jewish, Protestant and Catholic religious services. There are things like baking contests in the Country Kitchen, waist-high indoor and outdoor gardening, and neighborhood "block" parties. Just as residents were a vital part of their communities in years past, that same opportunity exists here. With daily living made easier here, seniors focus on what they can do and like to do, preserving (and even increasing) their independence.
New Horizons' "core" philosophy begins
with the TLC Program, introducing the multidisciplinary staff to
a new resident in his or her own apartment to help acclimate the resident
to his or her new community. This allows an easier orientation for
the resident, and permits staff to facilitate friendships between residents.
While personal care assistants are actually employed by an outside Medicare certified agency, they are very much a part of New Horizons' winning team, and are included in all training, staff activities and events. In fact, our 1998 Most Valuable Employee was a home health aide, who won a family trip to Disney World because of the difference she makes in our community. Weekend operations on the entire campus are very much the same as weekday routines. In addition to round-the-clock health aides, New Horizons schedules a registered nurse on-duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All managers work staggered weekend schedules to ensure operations run smoothly at all times. Virtually the same level of staffing and care exists any and every day of the week.
Several community organizations
regularly meet at New Horizons, and many residents participate. Our local
elementary school's "Reading is Fundamental" program has been another
popular activity for many residents. Since May 1997, Cummings Foundation
has awarded more than one million dollars in direct scholarship aid, primarily
in Woburn, Beverly, Marlborough and other communities where the organization
has significant interests.
New Horizons is characterized by its overwhelming
charm...much like that found in a cozy New England country inn.
Set on 40 gorgeous acres, the entire community is infused with a pleasant
calm and friendliness. For many of our residents, New Horizons is not
just a new home; it is a new way of life. Three delicious home cooked
meals are served daily, and weekly housekeeping and linen services help
make life here worry-free. Most residents of The Meadows units select
one meal a day — either breakfast or dinner.
To aid in providing a quick response in the event of an emergency, a receptionist is at our front desk 24 hours a day, and there is an operations manager on-site seven days a week. There are also certified home health aides and a Licensed Nurse scheduled on campus, round the clock, every day.
Our activity department is first rate - enjoy everything from poetry readings to live big-band music. "Town Center," our two-story atrium at the center of "the hex," is the focal point of many social activities, hosting daily news chats as well as weekly cocktail parties. Often times, just sitting and enjoying the day is the activity of choice. Residents are often encouraged to join regular group activities, but their personal choices are always their own. No one should ever be coerced in any way. Residents with a fondness for the outdoors often assist our greenhouse coordinator with the harvest - strawberries and tomatoes - planted in our raised garden beds. Residents are also welcome to cultivate their own plants in the large resident greenhouse, where the Greenhouse Coordinator will provide some TLC for any plant in need.
Aside from myriad social and recreational
activities, New Horizons offers an extensive wellness program. Daily
exercise classes are a great opportunity for residents to start their
day out right, and watercise classes in our large 3'6" deep heated indoor
swimming pool are very therapeutic. Care Solutions provides a variety
of wellness clinics and monthly blood pressure screenings. A number
of knowledgeable speakers also host wellness seminars to discuss issues
pertinent to senior health.
There are also a number of on-site services, such as a unisex hair salon, physical therapy department, visiting physician's office, and small apothecary. New Horizons also features on-site banking, through long-established Marlborough Savings Bank. Residents find it extremely convenient to have these services available to them inside their own home.
For seniors wishing to spend some time on the town, our 14-passenger minibus makes daily scheduled trips throughout the Marlborough / Sudbury area. New Horizons has "errand" runs (to local shopping areas and nearby Solomon Pond Mall) as well as "fun" runs - to museums, performances, sporting events, candy stores, and many other places. During the winter, we schedule special trips to enjoy the breathtaking holiday lights throughout the community. Even when the heart of winter comes around, and many other people might feel "stuck" at home, New Horizons' residents rarely feel such limitations. There is always something to do, whether it be an activity, or a mug of hot cocoa with a new friend. As one resident's daughter so aptly put it, "Every month I have to get my own copy of the activity calendar- otherwise I never know where to find my mom!"
For more information on The Meadows apartments go to www.MeadowsEstates.com For New Horizons or Cummings Properties go to www.Cummings.com |
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