Bonnylodge is a “senior citizen,” having just celebrated its 65th birthday. But thanks to upgrades and additions in recent years, the facility is a modern, comfortable home for its 126 residents.
Residents, staff, board members, and several dignitaries attended the 65th anniversary celebration on November 7.
Bonnylodge’s recreation coordinator Tammy White has worked at Bonnylodge for 38 of those 65 years. She has seen the place change, and has also seen changes in the successive generations of older adults living there.
“The old-school seniors, they worked hard and they saved their money, and they kind of didn’t do a lot because they were saving it for their kids,” she remembers. “The newer seniors we have do everything. They love to do anything and everything.”
Whereas residents from years ago might have been content to visit with each other and play bingo, White says, the current residents relish their independence. They are often the ones initiating ideas for recreational activities.
Bonnylodge is an independent living facility, which means “basically we cook, clean, and do the yard work and stuff for our residents,” White said. “And otherwise they can still drive, they’re fully functioning, they can come and go as they please.”
But having a built-in community is important for many residents. Isolation, loneliness, and depression can be detrimental and even deadly as people age. People living alone on rural properties or who have lost a spouse might struggle with feeling alone.
White says the social support provided by lodge staff and fellow residents can make a big difference.
“We have a wonderful staff,” she said. “If you walk in and there’s staff, you’re going to hear them laughing and joking, and visiting with the residents. And that’s what makes it feel more like a home.
“Everybody gets along, and for the most part the residents all get along as well. They’re friendly, they help each other out.”
There are residents with no family nearby, and their friends and staff at the lodge keep them from being lonely. “If they have no family or the family doesn’t live here they see them maybe a couple times a year. We become family to them to an extent, because they see us five days a week,” White said.
Still, residents are free to engage socially as much or as little as they like. “Not everybody is social,” White says, “you have the choice.”
There is an age range of about 40 years from the youngest residents to the oldest, so there is naturally a diversity of interests. White says that range contributes to the overall community among residents and staff.
“Some people are coming in younger and that’s a good thing because they’re still very active and they can do all kinds of stuff. And we’ve had one fellow move in who was already 100,” she said.
“We’ve always had a really good group, actually. And as we go along, the staff are getting younger, and they’re happy.”
