Retirement communities often offer a “spectrum of care” model, meaning that residents receive as much or as little care and assistance as they want or is required. A popular model for retirement homes is to offer different neighborhoods designed to allow maximum freedom and independence based on a resident’s particular needs and options within those neighborhoods. One retirement center may contain duplexes and apartments for highly-independent retirees, assisted-living for those in need of occasional assistance or medical care, skilled-care for those in need of nursing care, and memory care for those with cognitive difficulties — residents can transfer between neighborhoods as their needs demand, all while staying within the community. All of these services can be conveniently offered by the same campus, which itself is centralized around an administrative or social center. In fact, most retirement homes are now more like community centers, offering services, amenities, and a social, active atmosphere to enrich your post-retirement life. The options for neighborhoods and services are more diverse than ever — that is why we offer the Senior Living Tour each year, to help you learn and investigate your options for post-retirement living, and have some fun while you’re at it.
Retirement comes with the perk of freedom. Time to take up old or new hobbies, time to spend with family, or time to travel. This freedom, however, can be imposed upon by the changes of aging. Sometimes, this means heightened medical concerns, but other times it is a simple as maintenance that becomes increasingly difficult, and in some cases, as troublesome as persistent, unwanted chores. Of course, it would be great to be somewhere where you could be close to friends and family and not have to worry about the niggling demands of homeownership, where you could luxuriate in your well-earned retirement. Retirement facilities are built with the concerns of aging in mind, so most apartments and duplexes are already fitted to accommodate those with mobility concerns. This means that you can circumvent the expenses and trouble of retrofitting your current home, all while enjoying access to the other amenities on campus and leaving maintenance to the staff. With a variety of housing options available across many levels of care, there is sure to be housing to meet your needs and help you downsize to a comfortable new living quarters.
For five dollars, the Senior Living Tour takes you aboard a charter coach to visit area retirement centers in your choice of Illinois or Iowa. Homes roll out a sampling of their food, entertainment, and activities at each stop, letting you sample their amenities and socialize with members of their community and staff while you learn about what their facility offers. It’s a great, low-pressure way to investigate retirement living options, and have some fun with others in your age group considering a similar transition. The Senior Living Tour isn’t just a day out for fun; at each stop the home will offer access to their reference materials and their staff to help you make an informed decision about the next chapter in your life. For those with loved ones who are in need of a retirement home’s services, but are reluctant or even afraid of retirement centers, the Senior Living Tour offers a non-invasive way to introduce the topic and disarm fears. Family and friends are welcomed on the tour, too; they can assist your decision, have their concerns for your care addressed, and see firsthand how you might be spending your retirement. This is not an open-house event, each year homes prepare to roll out the red carpet exclusively to showcase their facilities to Senior Living Tour participants.
Even if you’re not planning on making the transition this year, the Senior Living Tour can be a great way to get a jump on your planning and arm you with the information you need to help you consider further options for your future. Sign up early as the tour is limited to 50 participants for each tour and make sure you receive the exclusive Senior Living Tour goody-bag filled with gifts from the homes we will visit as well as from other area merchants.
The cost to attend is only five dollars per person. To reserve your spot on one of this year’s
Senior Living Tours, mail your check payable to Healthy Cells along with your name, address,
phone number and preferred tour to: Rhonda Halterman, 2414 18th St., Bettendorf, IA 52722.