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Dozens of residents had already moved in Nov. 3 at the Lepokoti Seniors’ Assisted Living Residence at Finlandia Village, yet the excitement and bustle was still in full swing.
The $15-million, 82-unit residence for seniors opened officially Nov. 1, but on Saturday, moving vans were everywhere, trucks and cars navigated their way around the compound and staff fielded endless questions from family and residents alike, still getting their bearings in the new facility.
For Ilse Neuman, 91, moving into Lepokoti was a dream years in the making.
“Six years,” Neumann said, when asked how long she had waited for a spot. “My friend moved here six years ago, and I saw her apartment and was very enthusiastic about it – and about Finlandia in general.”
Neumann is a retired draftswoman who worked for General Motors and Armor Elevator, among others, in Southern Ontario. She came to Canada in 1956 from her native Germany, and moved to Elliot Lake 22 years ago, after reading an advertisement for the retirement community. She loved Elliot Lake, but maintaining a house by herself became increasingly difficult.
“It is a little a little hard to run a house when you’re 91,” she said, with a broad smile. “And so, I knew it was time to do something.”
So far, she’s loving life in her new home.
“Everything is so different and so wonderful and so practical!” she said. “And the people, of course, are wonderful … I am surprised at how new and how beautiful and effective it is. The food, the service, the staff – everything has been well planned.”
Neumann credits help from her daughter, Ina Bourke, for making the transition easy. For her part, Bourke said having a place like Lepokoti for her mother brings her family peace of mind.
“She’s so well looked after,” Bourke said. “The staff are amazing and the service is just far beyond what I expected to be.
“It was the nicest place she had seen. She looked at several places, but this was where she wanted to be ... They’re constantly here checking on her, making sure she’s OK, helping her to see if she needs anything. So I know I don’t have to worry about anything.”
Frances Battison, 89, didn’t have quite as far to move. Battison lived in a townhouse at Finlandia for 16 years before deciding she needed something smaller and easier to take care of.
“I’m older now,” Battison said, as she sat in her new living room. “I don’t have to cook my own meals, although I can cook whatever I want to. And I’ll have the company of other elderly people.”
The one-bedroom apartments Neumann and Battison are living in are bright and spacious with high ceilings and a big living room window. They have walk-in bathtubs and other amenities designed to allow older seniors to live as independently as possible.
Battison’s apartment looks out into the central courtyard, an area she’s looking forward to frequenting when the weather gets warm again. Her large family helped her move in – she has six kids of her own, along with 13 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
“Some have come, but not to visit,” she says, of her family. “I put them to work,” as she glanced over to her son-in-law, Reno Peloso, who was putting a clock on the wall for her, among several other odd jobs.
Battison’s daughter, Mary Ann Peloso, said services at Lepkoti offer people like her mother a perfect mix of independence and support.
“They do their wash for you once a week, and they come in once a week and clean your apartment,” Peloso said. “They even come at night just to check that you’re OK.”
She said her mother’s known in the family for making special food for everyone’s birthdays and at Christmas. Her new apartment will allow her to keep doing that, without the grind of having to make meals every day.
“She was tired of cooking her meals,” Peloso said. “And she wanted more people around on a regular basis.”
Battison loves bridge, and she plans to get a bridge group together just as soon as all the residents have moved in. With the kitchen right in the apartment, her mother can make tea and snacks for her friends, Peloso said.
“She wasn’t quite ready to give up being able to bake, but she was getting tired of cooking meals for herself,” she said.
Other services at the new residence means they don’t have to check up on their mother at regular intervals to make sure she’s OK. One of the features at the home is a tag system on the outside of each door. When residents get up in the morning, they’re supposed to flip over the tag, a signal to staff that they’re OK.
“If it’s not turned over in the morning, they’ll knock on the door and make sure she’s OK,” Peloso said.
Rents for one-bedroom units at the new facility are subsidized by the province and rent for $570 a month, cheap enough for any senior to be able to afford, if they’re able to get in.
