PLUSH MILLS OPERATIONS

My friend doesn’t routinely answer his phone so I called the desk to check if he was in the building. When we arrived the friendly desk staff member (June) helped us find our friend’s apartment. Beautiful, well maintained, nicely decorated facility, friendly staff, surrounded by trees.

Performing my music for the wonderful folks at Plush Mills is always a great joy for me. Not only do they show great appreciation for what I do. But they also take the time to talk to me after the show, and share such positive comments about my choices of material, and my musical skills. I have performed here 17 times, and look forward to returning again and again.

I have been meaning to post a review of Plush Mills here but wondered when I would have enough time to do it justice. In short, the culture of kindness at Plush Mills, from the top management on down, is remarkable. My mother was at Plush Mills for more than 9 years, including the first 3 with my father in independent living. Both of my parents suffered from Parkinson's. From the beginning, the individual care they received from every aide, med tech, nurse, building engineer, cleaner, kitchen/cafe staff, concierge, driver or manager treated my parents with compassion, dignity and competence. Every person who ever visited my mother commented on how amazing Plush Mills was, in contrast to any other place that had been. And many of these friends has plenty of experience with various facilities. By the time she passed in April, my mother was completely dependent on staff to help her with everything, I can't express how comforting it was to know she was in good hands. Beyond that, the food was always great, Tony the Bartender remains the heartthrob of every female resident and probably a few of the men, and the activities and music were always fun and top-notch. I consider many of the workers at Plush Mills my friends for life, they were that good. I am grateful every day that we chose Plush Mills.

My disabled husband and I lived in a 2-BR independent living apartment in Plush Mills (PM) for one year and recently moved to be closer to our daughter. We moved to PM from NC when our house became inadequately handicapped-accessible. Overall, the move to PM was an excellent choice that made our lives easier and better. PROS: - No buy-in fee. Your money is not tied up in a buy-in investment that doesn't appreciate in value and that could take a year or more to return a portion of your investment to you or your heirs. - The staff and residents are wonderful. - PM has a full-time social worker (Janice), something a lot of senior facilities don't have. She is an excellent resource for information and assistance when you don't really know the best place to start. - The physical, speech, and occupational therapists from Move for Life are exceptional, and they come right to your apartment. The primary care physician (Dr. Feinberg) who holds weekly appointments at PM is also excellent. Other medical appointments and services are also offered on site. - On a few occasions, we took advantage of the home care options and were very satisfied. - Our 5th floor apartment was spacious and had a lovely view (as do many of the apartments) and huge master bedroom that easily accommodated a king-size bed, a large dresser, and my husband's scooter, wheelchair, walker, and a 2x4 ft table for supplies, with left over space for me. - PM has a nice variety of activities for the residents. My husband did the exercise classes in his wheelchair, and I loved the art classes, which the instructor (Michelle) runs to be enjoyable for all skill levels. - If you are NOT a vegetarian, there are many delicious dining options. My husband and I are vegetarians. To better accommodate us and other residents who are vegetarian, pescatarian, or just enjoy having non-meat options, they expanded the non-meat choices considerably and have assured me that this will remain a priority as the long-time chef (Frank) retires and they bring in someone new. - Dining flexibility: You can order your meals on-the-spot and don't have to pre-order the day before, as in some facilities. You can also sit with whomever you please, as there is no assigned seating. They have windows of time for dining, so you don't have to be there at a specific time. - If your decorating style is traditional and you enjoy the ambiance of a grand hotel, you will enjoy the look of PM. CONS: - PM is 16 years old. The apartments and many of their fixtures and appliances need to be updated. The maintenance crew is adept at repairing old appliances. Our too-small washer-dryer must have been serviced 8-10 times in the year we lived there. When they do replace appliances, it is with another of the same old model. - The dining room service needs improvement. The staff is nice and means well, but due to the high turnover rate and the flexibility in seating and ordering, mistakes are often made with your order. I'm not sure how much of this problem is due to the kitchen vs. the servers. The wait to be seated and served is also sometimes quite long. - Despite complaints from residents, some of the food continues to be over-salted. Hopefully, this serious, health-impacting concern will be addressed by the new chef. - If your decorating style is more contemporary, you should probably look for a place with a more contemporary vibe. FINAL WORD: I was just 65 and in good health when we arrived at Plush Mills. The average age of the residents is around 82, and almost all residents are elderly and/or disabled, unless they live there with a spouse who is elderly or disabled. Though I made some wonderful friends, I missed having people of all ages and health statuses around me. When my husband needed more care than I could provide him 24/7/365, we decided to move him to assisted living at a place closer to our daughter and for me to get a regular apartment across the street from him. This new arrangement is working out very well for us. If I could give Plush Mills half-stars, I would rate them a 4 1/2.

My parents have been at Plush Mills for many years. They arrived as younger residents and were/are able to enjoy many of the activities. My kids call it Plush “Meals” because they love going and eating with their grandparents in the dining room. I can’t imagine a better place for our parents to be living. Thanks, staff, for all you do to make this a wonderful place to live.