The Orchard Ridgeland, MS

The Orchard is the only private full service continuing care retirement community in the Jackson area that has rental units (rather than having to purchase or pay a big move-in fee). They offer large Independent Living apartments with high ceilings and large closets. Many units have balconies or patios. The Assisted Living units are also spacious and can suit singles or doubles. The Skilled Nursing wing is very clean and well staffed. The Memory Care is expanding to accommodate the wait list and to offer services to men (currently they only take women in Memory Care. It is a very sweet and nurturing environment. The facilities are a little dated but they are kept spick-and-span. It feels like a home for older residents rather than some newer places that are decorated more like modern hotels. The residents are very sophisticated and are dressed in lovely outfits with jewelry and lipstick. They are engaged and love to chat! The staff is professional and caring. The Director is a busy woman but she knows everyone's name and story. She capably arranges for a large variety of activities and church services. The chef is very talented; but the residents seem to request meals that aren't particularly contemporary. They seem to like things that are more traditional. The wait service is gracious and the meals are served on white table cloth. The desserts are homemade and I think there is always a variety of ice-creams as an option.

The food here is awful. Many don't like the food but are afraid to complain.

We did go to The Orchard for my mother. We found it to be not pleasing. It seemed old to us. It seemed like it hadn’t been maintained in a while. I only talked to the people in the office and they seemed to be very nice. They’re very accommodating. I like the staff. We like the location; it was close to everything.

My friends are in The Orchard. One has one-bedroom apartments. The dining room is attractive. Their breakfast is buffet and their evening meal is a large buffet. The meal at noontime is a seated luncheon; that's what I am told. I think they probably have activities, but it has not come up in our conversation.

My wife has a friend that lives at The Orchard, that's how I've come across it. Also, it is a pretty well-known assisted living and independent living facility in the area, which is close to where we live. They showed me a really nice apartment arrangement with two bedrooms, two baths, a living room and a dining room. They have different facilities depending on your personal needs. The facility was very clean; it looked nice. The access to meals was very close. The staff took us on a nice tour and showed us menus. We just kind of like the whole atmosphere. They were very cooperative. Also, food looked very tasty. The dining room was excellent. Overall, I like the convenience of the dining room to the rooms, I like the size of the rooms, and I like the location. Also, they have plenty of opportunities for participation, i.e., bridge, exercise facilities and all that. They have pretty much anything you want to do. In terms of living environment, the grounds were well kept and their courtyard was really nice.

I have in-laws in both the independent living and total care areas. I would recomend the facilities.