Tender Reflections finds new home in Elkhorn
By Kellen Olshefski
Editor
After a lot of hard work, elbow grease and months of anticipation, Elkhorn’s newest assisted living community, Tender Reflections, began welcoming residents a couple of weeks ago, officially clipping the ribbon last week Wednesday.
Tender Reflections of Elkhorn Administrator Carly Hull said while she wasn’t involved in the decision, the owners of Tender Reflections, which have a location in Weston and two more opening in Germantown and Manitowoc next summer, wanted to build in smaller communities and found Elkhorn to be a perfect fit.
Hull said a major part of what sets Tender Reflections apart from other assisted living communities is its specialization in the care of residents with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia. Hull said Tender Reflection’s chief operating officer is a certified Alzheimer’s and dementia educator and designed the training program for staff at Tender Reflections.
“So, it’s really giving our staff that extra education and knowledge to work with residents with dementia,” she said.
Additionally, she said the layout of the building itself, from the furniture to the windows, was designed to maximize independence for residents so they’re able to remain mobile and active. The furniture is an important part of the setting as it can relax people and make them feel comfortable when they are in the building, form items such as leather lounges and suites to tables and chairs, people want to feel like this is an inclusive area that they can be a part of.
The building features large open areas with large windows to let in a lot of natural light, carpeted walkways with handrails all of the way around the building and two smaller “neighborhoods,” as Hull called them, branching off from the facility’s main common room and featuring a smaller living room at the end of each.
“So, people have a lot of open space to do programming activities, to spend time with their family,” she said. “But we also have the smaller, quieter areas for residents that maybe don’t like so much stimuli.”
In the center of the facility’s main common area facing the main entrance, a water feature stands tall over the room, providing residents and family members with a calming, soothing feeling.
“It goes along with our whole reflections theme,” she said. “It’s nice and relaxing, it’s a great thing for residents and family to see when they first walk into the building.”
Hull said the assisted living community offers a large amount of therapeutic programming for its residents, keeping them moving throughout the day.
“So, keeping people busy from the time they wake up to the time they go to bed, keeping them engaged and active so they’re still able to find meaning later in life,” she said.
“I know other facilities offer activities and things like that, but I do think we go above and beyond with it. We have a lot to offer and different tools that other facilities don’t have.”
As for the future, Hull said the facility was designed to expand in the future. If the need arises, she said there is the potential to add two new “neighborhoods” off the back of the building.
“If the building fills up quick and there’s a lot more people needing care, then we would expand our services to be able to serve those people as well,” she said.
So far, Hull said the several residents that have already moved in seem to be enjoying life at the new facility and for having just opened, interest is high.
“I think for just opening up, we have a lot of people who already know who we are and are interested,” she said. “We have people calling quite frequently and stopping in to do walk-in tours.”
For more information about Tender Reflections, visit tenderreflectionsal.com.
