Reviews & Awards
At Independence Village of Brighton Valley

Mom lived in the same home for almost 50 years. After my father passed away, she chose to move to IVBV. It was a difficult time and we weren’t without trepidation regarding such a complete change in living arrangements. That was four years ago. From our first introduction to staff in 2017 to today, they have been nothing but kind, caring, thoughtful and genuine. Mom has flourished in the enriched environment. Socialization with residents and staff is so important and there are many activities and points of contact to ensure engagement and connection. The layout of her apartment provides all the amenities of home and more. No stairs for laundry, the dinner meal served restaurant style, housekeeping every two weeks (they are wonderful not only in keeping apartments clean, but also play a key role in social connections and interactions), sheets and towels laundered weekly, very attentive maintenance staff (who go above and beyond) and top notch life enrichment team (planning more social, educational and fun events than she could ever attend). There are also formal forums, allowing voices to be heard, creation of norms and empowering residents to effect change in how they would like to live in their community. They’ve also taken time to meet with me personally to hear my feedback and have acted upon on it. Also, they invest time and money to maintain the personal and public living spaces. I so appreciate this. They maintain the grounds outside, painting, planting seasonal flowers, putting up holiday decorations and more. As we all know, this past year has been a challenge with the pandemic and I really appreciated all the steps taken to ensure the safety of the residents and staff. Administration did a good job communicating with residents and family regarding status updates and changes in policy. They were creative in finding ways to keep residents engaged through those isolating times. I trusted them wholeheartedly. As for areas of improvement, food is at the top of the list. I appreciate how hard it is to cook for so many, all with differing needs and tastes. For example, some want vegetables soft and some with a crunch. Not sure how this can be rectified. The menu offers many choices, although some dishes are hit or miss. They work hard to find good people to manage the kitchen in a profession that has rapid turnover (making it difficult to have consistency.) I do appreciate that they listen to residents and make changes when they can. For instance, they now offer brewed ice tea when they didn’t before. In the past, they’ve featured a resident recipe and that was a huge hit. Gives the residents a little taste of home and comfort of fond memories. Not sure how many meals are made from scratch vs. prepared foods. Looking back, the decision to move to IVBV was a very good one and would make it again and again. The safety, security, amenities, love and care allow me to sleep peacefully at night knowing my mom has the best support available while allowing her to maintain independence, dignity and respect.

My family has been very happy with Independance Village. We felt it was a friendly, active, clean environment. The culture of the staff is warm from the housekeepers to the director. My father was extremely reluctant to leave his home but soon realized he had a nice new place to call home. He loved the food and we were impressed by the variety and choices. The activities were creative- he especially loved the on site car show and “field trips”. Our only regret was that he didn’t move there sooner.

“My family moved our 95 year old father into Independence Village 3 months ago. Our main observation and experience is that the entire staff- administration, front desk, activities, dining, maintenance, housekeeping/laundry- has one main goal. And that goal is to provide a caring, supportive, and respectful living environment for their residents. They also are available and responsive to any concerns and questions we have as family members. My dad had a difficult few months leading up to his move to IV, and the staff has taken the time to understand his needs and interests; they have already added an activity to the calendar that they know he enjoys. Although IV is a good-sized facility, staff members are genuinely caring and take a personal interest in the well-being of their residents. I'm amazed when I walk through and different staff members either remember me by name or as "Ron's daughter" and might offer a helpful insight into how he is adjusting/settling in. Staff members never seem rushed when they are interacting with my dad. Having the dining room opened up with the easing of COVID restrictions has been great for his socialization, and my dad is very happy with the quality and variety of the meals. My family is grateful for the compassion shown our dad. Independence Village provides a wonderful balance of providing a quality and caring living environment while being respectful of their residents' independence.”

Independence Village has provided my parents with an environment that makes them feel safe and loved. They go the extra mile to give personal attention to the residents, allowing their families to be at peace, especially during times of isolation like we’ve had this past year. The Executive Director has been a God send to our family. My mom has now been alone for the past several months and the staff has done their best to help her adjust, by giving her extra visits, checking to see what she needs and communicating with us, her family about any changes or concerns. The facility, in general, is beautiful, very clean, warmly decorated and offers many creative activities, to engage the residents. Having my parents at Independence Village has been the best decision the family could have made to keep them safe, comfortable and happy. Thank you, to all the staff whose been there for our parents and family.

A service industry can buy printed and broadcast advertising; however, trust, reputation, and goodwill cannot be purchased, they must be earned. In my opinion, this community has richly earned and deserves recognition for those attributes which we value so highly.