Harmony at Martinsburg

Terry

My brother will move into Harmony at Martinsburg on Saturday. We liked it very much. Everybody is very friendly and helpful. It has beautiful facilities. And we're looking forward to having our brother in this care. The rooms are very clean and very nicely put together. There's a handheld shower and safety bars and everything is new-ish and clean. It's unfurnished, so that was a bit of a shock. So, we had to sort of get all he needed. Everything has been great. They've been very forthcoming with all the information and very good about making sure that we know what is expected of us and very thorough. And I will say that the price was a bit of a sticker shock. The woman I talked to said she was even shocked about how much the price is going up, and it's a pretty long wait. We got into a bigger apartment to start getting ready, hopefully, to be getting into a studio. So, we're paying even more than we thought we would because it's a larger apartment. But we're happy to be getting this started, so that's good.

Cheryl

Harmony at Martinsburg was wonderful. What I like best is the atmosphere and all of the people. The people who live there that I met seemed very happy and relaxed. The place is beautifully furnished and very appealing. The apartments are nice-sized. It would be my choice for my brother if he does decide to move up here. However, the staff members were not as friendly as I would've wanted them to be. They kept me waiting quite a while. I think I was 20 minutes past my appointment time before someone came to me. They didn't show a lot of interest in being friendly. They showed me around. It just didn't have a vibe of friendliness like I was used to at the place where my brother was. There was a resident sitting in the lounge, and I was there, and we struck up a conversation. I told her that I had just spent the morning working with Meals on Wheels, and she said, "Oh, send us their chef." They did not have a chef. Their chef had left and that resident was not happy with the food. That was only because they didn't have a professional chef with them at the time. I saw the menu and it looked very nice. It is a beautiful place. They offer a lot for the clients. They had a salon barber shop. They have a bistro for the clients in the evenings to come and gather and have a drink and enjoy socializing. They have a place where they show movies. They have field trips. They also have a physical therapy room.

Wanda

Harmony at Martinsburg had a great presentation. When you walked in the front door, it looked very homey. They had a sitting area and people were actually gathered there talking and then there was a sign and table to the left, and you were greeted right away. They were expecting me because I had an appointment. We had to wait 5 minutes for the lady to show up. She's very respectful and very knowledgeable. She walked us through the memory unit. While we were there, they were getting ready to do the activity of drawing and some coloring while we were touring a room, and the facility, looking at the menu, and how they do things. So, it was very lovely. What stood out for me was all the residents looked happy. They were well-kept. The lady showed us a shared area. There were two bedrooms in it and they shared a bathroom. It was a nice-sized bedroom for what my parents would need. There's a bed in it, a built-in closet space, and drawers. It had a pleasant feel to it. It had a chair in there that they could sit on. There was somebody in the other room, and being a nurse, thinking about hospital bathrooms and stuff and having an unexpected tour, I thought the bathroom was really clean. I was surprised. It was well-maintained. I was very pleased with it. They have an area where they had a tent set up with a folding station in these different little stations. I thought it was neat. This is West Virginia, so a lot of people camp there and all. One of the residents had packed the camping stuff up and she probably did that a whole lot in her lifetime. They said that they can either go there by themselves or they can go there supervised, and there are usually people in the area. There was a lot of staff. They can do whatever activity they feel, like folding towels. I thought the tent was an amazing idea. It's something original. Their menu was amazing, too. The facility was all very aesthetic.

Larry

My mom moved in at Harmony at Martinsburg about a week ago. It is clean and friendly. Her room is a single room, but it's certainly adequate. And it seems clean and well organized. She seemed satisfied being there. Her room's location is convenient. She's close to the nurse's station and she's not too far from the front entrance.

Michael

My friend will be moving into Harmony at Martinsburg. It is a bright and very vibrant place. The dining facilities are well kept. It has a very elegant and accommodating dining facility. She'll have a whole new dimension to her life. She will be provided with meals and she will have other people to visit with, so she won't be as isolated as before. The residents all seemed very happy and active (and that was very important). We were able to visit an identical room or apartment that she was going to go into. It's well appointed. Although there are three meals served there, there's also a small kitchenette. You have a microwave and can have some quick little snacks, that kind of thing, so you're not dependent on communal dining. It preserves your independence in that regard. It has very good, walk-in, easily accessible, bathroom facilities. It's very critical for people to get in and get out. It's well-lighted. There's also what they call a bistro, which is a little area where they have a coffee bar that operates 24-7. So, if you want to go get a cup of coffee or a hot choco, you can do it. It also has additional seating, you can invite friends or a small group to have coffee, which is a nice plus. It gives you flexibility. There's also a provision if you want to have a guest come, as long as you let them know beforehand, you can share a meal with the residents. They have a library, an activity room, and a small exercise room. There's also a small theater so they can watch evening movies, even though most people have cable in their rooms. It's a nice social aspect of the process, I think that's awesome. It's a little theater that sits 30 people, so every evening there's a movie of some kind. The idea of getting up and going to a movie ties back to their old experiences, and they share it with other participants. There's a large activity room. My friend is an artist, and she's excited about sharing her art interest with others and continuing to do those kinds of things. There's also a very full social schedule published each day. It's well managed and has a lot of variety. When I was there for the second visit, they were bringing in ponies to let people have a pet, like a petting zoo; that's a good variety. Most of my generation's earlier experience was a nursing home, which is kind of like being warehoused; it's very dull. But this is very different, and there are a lot of people around active. Overall, it's not cheap, but it's certainly affordable. All of the options at that point where you have assisted care one way are going to be very costly. But I think, in this case, the alternative is to try to live in isolation. They are not trapped there; they can check in and out. I'll take my friend to the Sunday church, and if there are community activities, I can go take her back in. You can come and go, they're not restrictive in that sense at all. The staff was very bright. They followed up and were quick to ask questions. I think they're excellent. I know they're comparably new, this is the second or third year of their operation. The physical location is a plus, it's easy access off of I-81. Within a two-mile radius, there's quite an array of small shops and shopping centers, fast food, or other restaurant options. If you wanted to take them out for a meal outside the regular offering, that's certainly doable. The person who toured me around, she's very frank, her name's Amanda. She was very responsive, was good to follow up, and had a good answer to the question I had. I asked for a second round of handouts, and she gave me, very accommodating in that regard. It made a positive experience and there was no sales pressure. Earlier on, these options were primarily real estate deals where you had to sell your soul to buy into them. This is a strictly month-by-month rental arrangement because you don't know how long the person has or they may choose some other option, some circumstances change. So, it gives you financial flexibility, and that's important so far. I did look at what they were serving. I didn't get to see the kitchen, but I saw the service being delivered. I saw people were all chatting, relaxing, and enjoying the meal they have. They have two options for the menu, plus a la carte. My friend's a vegetarian, and they're not restricted. The courtesy of being served plates by the staff is kind of like eating out. The facility is bright, well laid out, and clean. We get to see several options, a one-bedroom, and a two-bedroom. The overall facility was well-kept. It's only a two-story, but it has very good elevator accommodations and facilities for them. They have their own mailbox. The lobby and the dining hall are large enough to accommodate them, so it won't be crowded. It was in very excellent condition.

Michael

We went to Harmony at Martinsburg. What I liked best was the community atmosphere. People knew each other and were involved with each other. They're not just residents there. The only negative that I could see for it would be it's further away for her (from the rest of the family) than she is now. The staff all seemed to be involved with the residents, caring, and well trained. They're in Martinsburg, so it's convenient for the residents to get places. They provide a shuttle for ongoing activities like haircare and church-related activities. It's not brand spanking new, but it's in good condition and it's well laid out for the residents. They have a porch that people sit on and watch the traffic go by, which is a popular thing for them to do. They have activity rooms, a dining room, and a PT area.