Wood Ridge Assisted Living Community

Its a shame that only one review is entered on this site so I am offering an additional observation. I am a family member with a senior who is a guess at the facility. From day one all who we came in contact with made every effort and show respect and real concern for the care of our family member, with a focus on allowing as much individual freedom to do for themself as much can to retain self respect, while trusting that the staff are more than willing to help in any way needed. Their point of veiw to providing care is on target. Changing the possiblity for some to believe that there is a reson to live longer, and continue to grow. So is Wood Ridge perfect no, but my family is very pleased with what we see and feel about the place.

As part of my bachelor's degree program at Bethel College, our professor took us to Woodridge Assisted Living. At that time, I was taking a class called Aging in America and visiting Woodridge was part of my degree requirements. Prior to that, I had never been to an assisted living facility. According to my professor, Woodridge is one of the better facilities in this area. In my opinion, I found the place to be downright depressing. The facility itself was nice. It was clean, and the staff that was on-site was friendly and seemed concerned about their residents. As we walked the halls getting a closer look at the place, I saw that they had a very nice eating area and the family lounge areas were well appointed. At the time that we visited, our tour guide explained how the residents were housed and she called them guests . I thought that was a nice touch. There were apartment like rooms where the guests could have privacy and take care of themselves if they so chose. There was also the option of going to have every meal in the banquet rooms. Our tour guide let us know of the various activities that Woodridge provided which kept the residents busy and engaged. She further explained the requirements that needed to be met, before someone could live there.What I found depressing was that although it looked clean and inviting, it had a horrible smell that seemed to permeate the halls. I also felt such a nagging sense of sadness because in many of the rooms there were no photos or pictures on the wall and our guide explained that for many of the residents they had no one that came on a regular basis to visit. It was extremely sad to think that these people had come to the end of their lives and they were alone. Throughout the tour, we also found the opposite. For those residents who lived there but took care of themselves, their rooms were filled with photos of grandchildren and children. They were smiling and seemed quite happy to be there. These folks were also in better health than some of the others.Upon leaving the facility I remember thinking that God willing, I would never wind up in a place like this. I also hope that like many of the elderly members of my family, I will end my days at home, still taking care of myself and not being a burden to anyone.