The Best Independent Living Communities in Thurston County, WA

"I have waited till a year had passed to rate this facility. I will go in the order listed above. Food: The food is of quality that ranges from Good to Excellent. However as it is more of the latter than the former so I give it a Excellent rating. A good selection of familiar meal items are offered in the established daily menu, so I am sure you can always find something to select. Variety is added with a eclectic offering of daily specials outside the established menu items. I have tried everything on the menu, including the vegetarian offerings. Food has always been hot and arranged nicely on the plate. Steaks and burgers are done to your desire. Vegetables are always fresh. Deserts such as pie and ice-cream are available to finish off a meal with a little something extra. The staff is always receptive to having diners ask for food prepared in a certain manner as long as it is within reason for a normal kitchen. Vegetarian meals are not something I am not very familiar with. But those served here are actually quite tasty and when included in the specials seem to offer a good variety. From a outsiders perspective I found the items to be surprisingly satisfying. The portions are within standards for a average individual. I find the portion sizes to be a normal affair but may seem small to the average person used to the extravagance of the usual American restaurant. My perspective is based on my dining experiences in local restaurants through out the world. Beverages from soft drinks to wine and beer is on hand. Coffee, tea and hot chocolate is also available. Genuine Starbucks Drip Coffee is offered complimentary and specialty coffees may be ordered. There is a Beverage Station in the foyer that has complimentary coffee, iced water and naturally flavored ice water. Staff: I could write volumes on how great the staff is but will try and keep it simple. They have a genuine friendliness that makes you feel comfortable. Not the corporate "be polite to the residents" policy. I can honestly say they have a genuine interest in your concerns and are always approachable when you have a issue or question. They are not the "enigma sitting in the office" type but people who actually get out among the community, attend parties and functions to see how things are going. They are more like neighbors than management and staff. Facilities: It is about a four year old facility and is very well maintained. Kind of a modern style to things that makes it look very nice. Electronic pass key needed to enter the facility from any door other than the entrance which is monitored by a concierge. So security is done quite well. I have a one bedroom, single washroom apartment. It is spacious enough to accommodate two people and the usual furniture. The small kitchen has all the usual appliances to include a dishwasher and in-sink disposal. A big plus in features is a economy space washer and dryer. Those under and over models that just about every European home has. They surprisingly do a decent load. I have a small walk-in closet, a hall closet and decent cupboard space. Air conditioning and heating is from a large wall unit under the window in the living room. Once again like most apartments abroad. I feel very comfortable and right at home. They even let me screen in my ground floor patio so I can let my cats outside without worrying about them wandering off. For the dog owners there is common walk area on the backside by the woods and a actual enclosed dog park so the furry kids can run off that extra energy. There is a small library with a computer you can use. A game room, and a pool table area. A real nice outdoor dinning area and a covered area with a fireplace. A crafts room. Plus a small very comfortable movie theater. The Social Club is where most folks have breakfast and lunch. It is also very popular on Fridays at 2:00pm for Happy Hour! Value: I will not go into detail on cost. But I can honestly say you are definitely getting your moneys worth. What is offered and monthly cost is better than most places I looked at. The thing you can't put a price on is your happiness. Everyplace offers basically the same things for about the same price. What makes the difference is the residents and the community they build together. Since day one I have felt welcome and have quickly made friends here. There is a great bunch of folks here at Revel and you will surely find someone you can relate with. Activities: Oh geez, another area I could write volumes on. Our Activities Director actually enjoys her job and it shows. If you are willing to get out of your apartment there is always something going on either here on the premises or via the Facility Bus. They even have organized shopping trips to area business. The Halloween and Holidays parties have always been fun as well."

"Patriots Landing was really expensive. Great place, but it was not affordable. The staff was great, but the rooms were small. Great chef -- was really friendly -- and the meal was great. They showed us the calendar and let us see what kind of things they had for them and what they could choose from. I would recommend, but you just need to have the right finances. "

"We thought Prestige Senior Living was very nice. The building was clean, and it gave us a feeling of comfort. There was no lingering old people smell. They showed us three rooms that we could choose from. We ate in their dining room. The food was nutritional; however, because we arrived late, I think that it had been sitting out. We said hello to some of the residents and we saw the craft activity area. We met with the events director and they talked about the type of activities. The residents seemed happy. You could tell they were very comfortable in their surroundings."

"I liked Cogir at the Narrows as far as the progression from independent living to assisted living all in one location. They seemed to offer a lot of activities for the seniors. They had different locations where the seniors could go sit and socialize. They offer meal options for my mom and I was impressed with that. When I showed my dad the monthly menu, he seemed very impressed with the options, too. If I had to choose, I would have to put my parents in there. I was impressed with their facility. They also have off-site activities once a month, movie nights, and a library (my mom's an avid reader so that was a plus). I liked how they had a dining facility. They had a beautiful setting. They had a garden and a little place outside that the seniors could go sit in. It was in a really pretty setting to feel homey."

"I toured Aspire Care Adult Family Home. I like the idea that there's a person there to resolve issues as opposed to a waiting list. They have a good ratio. It's a family neighborhood. It's not a huge building. It's just a single-family home. They have wheelchair-size doorways that can handle wheelchairs and wheelchair-accessible showers. I looked at their menu. It seemed OK."

"Brookdale Allenmore was very, very nice. We liked it. We were treated very nicely when we got there. The young lady that showed us around was very knowledgeable, straightforward, and told us everything we needed to know. The room we saw was kind of small, but that's to be expected. Plus it's well-equipped and it's got a nice kitchen. So, it would be adequate for our needs. They have everything anybody would need there, from nurses to exercises and we were very pleased with that. The facilities were very nice and well-kept."

"We went to the Peninsula and Mom really liked it. It was beautiful, and the people were super friendly. We had lunch, the lunch was really good, the chef came out to meet us, and she really liked it. The one we looked at was a studio. She will have to downsize significantly, and I think we could make it work. It's a very nice and very clean facility."

"I've already chosen Life Manor Independent Living, but I just haven't moved in yet. They're great, it looks great to move into, and it is exactly kind of what I'm looking for. It's in between three hospitals and walking distance to Wal-Mart and Target. The staff was very, very good, her name is Holly, and she was wonderful. The room was small, but they also have three meals a day there. I don't need a big kitchen; I just need enough for me and my dogs. It's big enough for us. I'm in a secure area and a secure building. I feel safe there and I feel very comfortable. I didn't pay much attention to any of the activities right now because I just want to get settled in first and then I'll start looking for activities and stuff. From what I understand, there's a lot of fun and there's a church right there. So, I'm looking for that too. It is part of a church and a Christian school, so it's great. The perfect location. They have a laundromat out of a community room, a TV room, and there's other stuff that they do that they have. It's right next to a park as well, perfect for my little dog. It's perfect for my budget, too, because I am on disability."

"Our mother moved to Sound Vista at the end of January. She was made to feel very welcomed and people there really care. We would highly recommend Sound Vista in Gig Harbor to others! "

"Solstice Senior Living at Point Defiance was very nice and very large. The tour was excellent. The person that took us around was very thorough and very pleasant. The facility was beautiful. The atmosphere was very nice. The negative is that they only have one very small elevator for three floors of living. I know someone that moved in there and moved into a third floor apartment. She needed to use the elevator, and there is only one elevator for the entire facility. The elevator is small for two people in wheelchairs. Apparently, people got very irritated with her because she needed to take things up to the third floor and unload them, so she was monopolizing the elevator when trying to move in. That was a concern to me. They have lots of stairs, but my knees don't always like stairs. One of the bigger concerns was being confined to one elevator in the facility. The place was very pleasant, very clean, and very nice. The apartment that they had available was a third floor apartment, and I was concerned about the elevator. It was very organized. I just had a couple of things that I want that they didn't offer."

"We love everything about GenCare LifeStyle at Point Ruston. The staff is fantastic. They look out for my mom. The facility is beautiful and they do an excellent job. They have good activities. They try their very best to keep their minds active and going, and that's very difficult in memory care. If there's one thing that I didn't really care that much for, that's the food. I fully admit that part of that is that my mom is very, very particular about food and her old age. So, the food's been difficult a little bit, but they protect her, they love her, and they do everything they can for her. The staff listens to us and is very attentive to us as a family to respond to our suggestions and needs. They have an actual program that they use with them to help keep their memories going. They do trivia, armchair travels, and crossword puzzles. There is health care and they have people that come up and do exercises with them, almost probably four days a week. If Mom needed it they have a place downstairs for a personal trainer to implement physical therapy that she could go to. They have a movie theater and a craft room downstairs, too, but they pretty much do their crafting upstairs. They have a pool if they need to do pool exercises that the residents can use. They have music events that happen down there. They have festivals and activities. For instance, they had all the ladies decorate and make hats for the Kentucky Derby. They had little scratch tickets for betting and they watched the Derby together. They ate stadium type snacks and they watched all the festivities together. It was really wonderful. They have a Cinco de Mayo celebration there, so every month they have one or two celebrations that are really fun. My husband thinks it's overpriced, but we looked at a lot of places, and for what Mom is getting, I think it's a fair value. The other places we looked at were not as nice."

"My brother-in-law is at Silver Creek by Bonaventure. It has been very good. Everybody is friendly. They treat you well and make you feel welcome. There is no standoffishness of any type. They're out there upfront and very nice to you. The rooms and dining room are beautiful. My brother-in-law is very happy with their food. However, they could use to have more staff to wait on people faster. There is something going on all the time. My brother-in-law said that he could stay busy the whole day long if he wanted."

"Julian Estates Gracious Retirement Living was very friendly and very active. The grounds were nice. Everybody was active, and everybody called everybody by their name. I was very impressed with them. However, the rooms were smaller. The person who accommodated us was very nice, very helpful, and knowledgeable. She called everybody by name, and everybody talked to her. They were very active as far as activities were concerned. They had a movie theater, a full kitchen downstairs where you could use that, crafts that would come in, and little market things in the lobby that would happen once a week. It's very active."

"Woodland Village was a very nice place and everyone seemed very professional. We were overall very impressed with the facility. The dining area was very nice and the rooms looked very adequate for their purpose. We were provided with lots of information about fees and charges associated with the level of care that was required, so we felt well-informed."