Why we started our senior care community
When I was younger, instead of going to a babysitter when my mom had to work, I went with her to the senior community, where she worked as the Admissions Coordinator. As I finished my senior year of college, I learned that my mom’s company had sold, and the new ownership immediately raised rents on residents. It was heartbreaking to hear of the negative effect this had on residents and how upsetting the situation was for my mom. I decided then that I would build my mom a community where people could live longer, healthier, and happier lives. I spent every free moment focused on making this dream come true. Six years later, we closed on our first senior community, Cornerstone.
Family owned and operated for ten years, and we have been offering our services to the senior community. Calson began with family, and I am proud to say that it is still the core of our business today. With over 30 years of experience, my mom Alana brings a lot of love to her role as our Regional Administrator. My aunts Shelly Reyes and Jolene Barnett, bring over 60 years of combined expertise to our communities as Regional Assistant Administrator and Regional Care Coordinator, respectively. My wife Chantel Reyes fell in love with the family business and now works as our Regional Community Relations Director.
More agile and receptive to resident and family member needs, we pride ourselves on making real-time decisions that help both family and residents. We aren’t just sitting in an office making decisions, we are hands-on and part of our communities, spending time with our seniors day-in and day-out. Being a part of daily life allows us to create positive change in our communities, including utilizing leading-edge technology to understand our residents needs. Using an application specifically built for our communities, we continually find new ways to improve the community experience.
Ultimately, my favorite thing about owning a senior community is meeting the unique people and positively impacting their lives and their families. Often residents come to us at a stressful time when family members feel their quality of life is slipping away. Only to later hear these same family members express how amazing it is to see their parents happy, meeting new friends, and finding a new purpose. It’s a huge deal for us to meet our residents and be part of their journey and getting to know these special people that you never forget.
Senior care is changing. Thankfully, with more amenities in the market, it’s no longer a tiny room with bad food and no social interaction. Senior living communities have larger rooms, luxurious amenities, new engaging experiences, better technology, and higher quality service, which has become the new standard of senior living.
I look forward to seeing where the senior care goes next!
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