Independent Living Communities in Worcester, MA

"Mother is in Wingate. She’s very happy there. The rooms are very nice, and the food is very good. "

"I visited Colony Retirement. It has a very good reputation. The place is very peaceful, clean, and very homey. There is no high rise. There are nice trees there and it's landscaped but not like a hotel. The units are spread out. The people are friendly. People come here and they stay long-term. "

"There is no designated parking for elderly in Coes Pond so that they wouldn't have to walk too far. It was actually more like a hotel for me. However, the place was lovely and clean. "

"We liked everything about Goddard House. Everything is centrally located for my mom to get to and there are a lot of options for her. She likes the whole atmosphere of it. One of the residents let us go in and see her apartment and it was nice and pretty much exactly what she's looking for. Plus, it was the cheapest one we found. It's got a small stove top as well as a microwave, and a small refrigerator. It's like having a little kitchenette. The staff was very nice, very informative, and very accommodating. Everything was explained completely. The lady who gave us a tour was able to get a wheelchair for mom. The whole place was kept up very nicely. I had clients over there, so I know what the rest of the place looks like and I had no problems going in there, to begin with. I liked it and I thought it would be a good place for my mom."

"We visited The Willows at Worcester for my parents. The place was very clean and very up-to-date. The other facility had all levels of care right on the same campus, as opposed to The Willows that did not, and so for my parents who were moving from New York, if they needed another level of care, it would be another facility again, and that would be traumatic for them. They have a pool, a gym, and a library. I think they have all kinds of activities, but they did not have vehicles that take your parents around the campus."

"My grandmother has been a resident of the Briarwood Community for over ten years. When she first moved to Briarwood, she lived in an independent cottage. The cottage was beautiful and spacious, with two bedrooms and a screened in porch and a garage. Briarwood offered many amenities to its residents, including a restaurant, a beautician, weekly outings, a computer lab and crafts and games. My grandmother recently gave up her cottage and has moved into an assisted living apartment in the same facility. My family and I have been very impressed with the quality of both the housing and the staff at Briarwood. The staff, especially the social worker, have been extremely helpful with helping my grandmother transition to her new home. It was a very difficult and stressful decision for her to leave her home and accept more help, but in the end, she was quite happy with her decision. Her new apartment, while smaller than her cottage, is very nice, and she has everything that she needs there. There is always a staff member available to her if she needs help dressing or bathing and she can still take part in all of the amenities that were available to her in the cottage. "

"The above facility does not offer food, however it is specifically designed to provide a wholesome environment for active seniors. Amenities are very good and provide a meaningful resource for active seniors in a beautiful setting. Most occupants are capable of making meals and seem to be fully occupied with things to do. These accommodations are in the $1200.00/mo. range. I'd be there now if it weren't for a waiting list. I'd be at Overlook hands down if you were to meet the price point. Remember seniors are healthier and live longer today. Maybe it's time to reach out to a more active senior population. "

"I've been to The Willows, and they're very upscale and very attractive. They had three levels of care, independent living, assisted living, and nursing, and they have a dementia unit as well. The rooms were very nice and very luxurious. They had two bedrooms and two baths. They had a lot of activities like crafts and painting. They had a lovely computer room, a library, a TV room, a pool room, and a theater. They had concerts during the summer, and they had people come in for theater. It was a great facility with great people. I wouldn't mind being there myself. "

"This is a life care community, most of which was built 6 yrs ago. It sits on 450 acres of land. It has a 4ft heated pool along with a large physical fitness program. There are many things to occupy one. The apartments are various sies with full kitchens in the independent living units. There is a Bank and store on site, as well as a barber and beauty shop. "

"I did a tour of Artisan at Hudson. They have a beautiful, huge dining room. It's very well-designed, and the surroundings were beautiful. Their studio apartments were very large and very nice. The person who gave us the tour, was very helpful, explained everything, and she had two beautiful booklets to look at. Also, the director of the facility came and spoke with us, which did not happen in the other places. His name's Charles and he was very helpful and very good. They offer three meals a day. It's a beautiful facility, it was very nice. They didn't have a pool, but they had beautiful outdoor patios, several of them."

"I liked the style of Linwood Mills Apartments. They have a loft type of apartment. It's an old mill, which is rustic and pretty. It's in a nice rural area. The staff there were very nice. We were looking for a cheaper place and the price was great. I'd definitely recommend this facility to others. "

"My friend has moved into New Horizons at Marlborough. I know that they're an older facility, so they don't have the new technology, but I know that there's a lot of activities there. She's done very well and is taken care of there. The food has been great, but I know the calling system has been a challenge. It's like an actual landline where she can call to get aides to come see her. The size of the room is a little bit of a challenge, but overall she's been taken care of very well there. I liked the layout, and it doesn't feel like an assisted living facility. It feels like a community. The staff is pretty great. Maybe there's staff turnover, but they are all very nice and accommodating. They address issues when they arise, so I think that's all positive. She doesn't really engage in the activities because of her mobility issues, but she goes to the exercise class. The food normally is very good. Throughout the winter, I don't know what changed. There were some meals that came a little bit cold, but they were still good. She doesn't really complain about the food. She says it's good. It's just very expensive."

"My mother-in-law is in Shillman House. The people are caring, and the facility is nice and clean. They have activities. She loves the food. Everything is pretty good so far. My wife said the food is very good. It's very new and kept up very well. They're just starting to open up due to Covid, but they have activities every day. It's good value for the money. We checked other places that were charging more, and this is absolutely very good for the price."

"Camellia Gardens Maynard has all of the details and specifics that we're looking for, so it made it very, very easy with the pricing and the different kinds of protocols. Mostly, the best impression that we had was the capacity of the individuals, or the teams that were looking at supporting us, really came through. So that was the main thing. In terms of the physical look of the complex, it is one of the better ones that I have seen, and I have toured many locations in Virginia, Florida, New York, and Montana, and also now in Massachusetts. The grounds are absolutely impeccable compared to pretty much every other location I have been in. Not only that, they have the grounds. However, now it is a new community. And as of yesterday, I believe they had three locations left in it, as they were doing the initial filling up of the location, so when my brother signed up he got the last one-bedroom in the location, and there were some two-bedrooms and studios left, but I believe they were also taken up. I think they may be maxed out at this point. So obviously there will now be a waiting list as people leave, and so on for the next group of people that want to come in. The staff who assisted me during my visit was amazing. The food is good, and part of the process when we looked up this one was the menu. Some places I have seen in the past start out with a menu, and then they go to a fixed meal. This is a full menu and they have three meals. And again, typical of most retirement communities, they have the heavier or main dinner at lunch, and then usually a lighter meal in the evening, so that's pretty much typical of them. They have a fair amount of activities going on. In terms of amenities, everything at least matches or exceeds any of the other communities that I have been involved with, which are quite a few. So I took a look at things ahead of time and tried to do as much evaluation as I could. So the amenities either match or exceed beyond what I have found in other locations. The staff who assisted us was excellent and very personal. They got to know us and my brother immediately, and remembered their names too. They were quite busy, but they were very good. The gardens were excellent. There's enough rest areas like little libraries, little game rooms, and they're very well-appointed."