Communities in Gainesville, GA

"I would give Towne Club Windermere a five all the way around. That was my favorite place, but it is set up more like an apartment building. It's a tower and you had to get on an elevator, and Mom wasn't comfortable with that, but the rooms were fantastic. They were like regular-size apartments. They have a beautiful pool, a garden area, a movie room, a hair salon, and tour buses that would take you to the grocery stores and stuff. Any amenity that you could think of they had there. They did social hour; you come down in the main room and have appetizers and things like that. They go from independent living all the way to memory care. The staff during the tour was very, very attentive. She showed us several different sized rooms and she gave us the pricing. She made sure that we had all the meals. She let us taste the meals, which were very, very good. She took us around. She was very patient with Mom and Dad. We actually sat down around the pool with some of the people there, and we were able to talk to the residents there, ones that were in wheelchair and ones that were a little bit more independent. My concern then at that point in time was finding a place for both my Mom and Pop and Pop to be more active. The staff introduced Pop to some of the guys there that still play golf and things like that, so he really felt comfortable there. It was Mom that was not at the time, that's why we didn't do so. We actually were there three times and we signed a contract with them twice. Mom just didn't think she could do that elevator. She didn't feel comfortable with it."

"Heartis Suwanee was lovely. We liked it very much, but it was very large and overwhelming for my brother. The rooms were very nice and very upscale. It's a very modern and new place. They can take a lot of residents there. They have two buildings, one for couples that just want to retire and be independent, and another building for those that need care, memory care, and hospice. It's a huge building and my brother is very small and quiet; he would not have fit in. They had all types of activities, and they had a beautiful outdoor place where they could all meet up. They could even have pets if they could handle them on their own. They also have a bus if they are able to go for activities. We were very impressed, but my brother would be lost there. The staff was very nice and informative."

"I love Celebration Village Forsyth. We have eaten there twice and the food is stunning. Their service and employees are stunning. It is mostly young people. Our visit was good. We like the size of their apartment. The amenities and the meals are the biggest things to us. Right now, we couldn't afford to move into the independent, but I loved them when we walked in the door. We just felt at home. They have the chef cook our meals."

"Linwood Estates was very beautiful. It's very good and very accommodating. That's the place I would want to be at. The staff was very polite and courteous and tried to please you in every way. The food was great. The rooms were big enough. It's very spacious. They have the laundry rooms and housekeeping. The maintenance was great. It was like going to a five-star hotel."

"They have a chef and residents can order off a menu. The day I visited, I ordered salmon and a baked potato with everything, and it was perfectly wonderful. One meal a day comes with the cost of the room, and they charge a couple hundred dollars more if you want three meals. They have several different styles of room, like one big room with a bath and a little kitchenette that they call a studio. They have an Alzheimer’s wing, too. They have everything for activities. It is almost unbelievable. They have a laundry room on each wing. They have a great room with conversation nook and stone fireplace. They have a library with videos and books, audio tapes, and a computer. This is where I’m going if I ever can’t drive. I would recommend it highly for anybody that’s looking for a place for a parent. "

"My brother is at Ashwood Meadows Gracious Retirement Living. It's a wonderful place. The staff is very gracious, and the community area is amazing. I love their dining room and I love that they have activities. I love that they have an area there that families can come in and prepare meals and if somebody wanted to come in and have a Sunday meal, they certainly could. There's an area that can be rented out for that. They also have guest quarters, so, a family that's coming and caregivers that's coming in from out of town can rent a room there and stay on-site with their family members. He's been there about four or five years now. It's a retirement community, but they have sister agencies that can continue the care. You can go from retirement community living to assisted living and then onto memory care and then to palliative care. The staff is wonderful. They're compassionate, they check on the residents, and they make themselves available at all times. They do weekly trips; they have a bus, and they go on different outings. He's able to go to church. He's also able to go out and do shopping and outings, and then they'll usually stop and get something to eat. There's a little small in-house theater in there, too, with a lot of seating and they play older movies that are geared towards the older community. The place is fantastic."

"The Ashton Hall is nice and clean, but their eating area needed some updating. My mother had been to a hospital and was not able to get back to where she was, so I was kind of in a bind of finding a place fairly quick. Ashton Hall had been very accommodating. They didn't mind at all the time it took to get the finances straight, about how much and when. They just said "bring her on and we'll just get all that taken care of." That was very helpful during a stressful time when I needed to find a place for her immediately. "

"The rooms at Parc at Duluth were very nice, and Katelyn, the young lady that helped us was extremely knowledgeable, courteous, and concerned about my problem. The dining area was also very nice, clean, and the food was really good. It's a really nice community; I'd like to go there."

"We're in the independent living level of Village Park, and we have our own freestanding house. The place looks very attractive, and the staff was very professional. But the whole key for us coming here is that it's very unusual to have an individual homes which this place has. There are activities, a salon, pool, and everything you can imagine. Our home here has 2 bedrooms, a living room, dining room, kitchen, office and 2 baths. It was everything I expected, and I would give them a very nigh rating. We think that the service is well worth their price."

"Beautiful facility. Very clean. "

"We have chosen Legacy at Walton Summit for my mother-in-law because they were very friendly. The place was very clean, and the most important thing is that it's senior living (not really assisted living). To me, it was different than a lot of the senior living places that I have gone to because they had such a closeness between the residents. The amount of activities that they do with each other would have made it perfect for my mother-in-law; she may be 80 years old, but she really is still very sharp. They even had a quilting group, and she does quilt. They have everything that she would need in a place; it does not feel like she had just been stuck somewhere alone in an apartment. They were very clean, very friendly, and attentive. It was a very good experience. There was a guy at the front desk that welcomes you as you come in, and he was wonderful. He and the actual director of the place gave us the tour. The director knew everybody by name. She knew everybody's stories, and they knew who she was. She called people by name, and she was called by name (and she's the director of the place). It was very personable. She truly cares about them. They do not have meals. All the units have a full kitchen, so they do not offer any food. They do not have a cafeteria, which was OK because my mother-in-law cooks herself. As far as the food, that was not an issue and that didn't make or break the deal for me at all. The facility was so clean and so nice. It's very light and airy. They got different rooms set up. There's a place where they can play cards; a place where they can eat ice cream, and a place with table and chairs. The staff said a lot of people that live there still drive. They can go get food or call food in and bring it; they eat together. Otherise, they all prepare their meals and eat together in one room. It's very clean and very well decorated."

"we have been residents for over 4 years. The staff is helpful and always friendly. The other residents are friendly, caring and welcoming. The buildings are well maintained with a range of houses and apartments to choose from. And of course they have nursing home, assisted living and memory care units. There is a nurse practitioner and a rehabilitation medical department on campus. There are numerous activities and outings sponsored by staff as well as residents. We are so glad we found Lanier Village Estates"

"We have my mother at Manor Lake Dawsonville. After coming to a mutual agreement about her care, she's doing wonderfully. And it's a beautiful place. I would recommend them, and it's brand-new. We toured it at length before we placed her there and she's been there for a year and a half now. The food is wonderful, she hasn't complained about it and every time I've gone, it looked really good. The help is wonderful and the cleanliness is beautiful. We visit her every day. The staff is wonderful. When we go there, she's making flowers and doing other activities. She had fallen so many times, and the more research we did for other places, there isn't any higher level of care. So we came to an arrangement where they would check on her more often, and they're giving us daily reports, and we see her every day. So I'm sure they're staying true to form."

"The Phoenix at Braselton seemed very nice. It seemed like it was busy, not in a bad way, but just busy. They had nurses and attendants. The residents seemed to be happy and upbeat. They seemed to enjoy it. They have a bar, and they have a physical therapy center for the people. I think they have other things, too."