I really enjoyed the Tribute at Melford. It's a beautiful facility. I thought I was in a hotel when I got there. My mother is most likely in need of memory care and they're just out of my league. It's somewhere around $8,500 a month and we can't afford that. The folks were nice. I thought the facility had many options for the residents. They got a hair salon there and a couple of gyms with folks working in each of those places. I thought it was a really, really attractive place and it would be nice if we were able to afford to keep my mother there, but I don't think that's the case. I don't have a problem with it. I think the facility may be three years old, but it's extremely well put together. I was very impressed with everything and the help that I got from the staff as far as looking through and then explaining what's going on. If I came in with some money, very quickly, I'd probably send my mother over there. I actually went through both assisted living and memory care. They were explaining that their medical staff would review my mother's case and they would do an exam of her. They're more apt to make the decision about which care the person is getting. I know she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's last year. I didn't see anyone eating, but I did go past the dining facility and it's very nice, kind of a restaurant menu style facility. I did meet the cook. They looked like they've got everything in order. All of the staff was top grade. Everybody was kinder than you would expect. They have (I think) a white sheep and a black sheep out front. They're using the residents to try to find names for them. I just mentioned on the way out, "How about Ebony and Ivory?" and the girl's eyes lit up. I thought it was kind of cute that that's what they're doing with the residents, keeping them involved. It's a pretty nice way to interact with the folks.

Tribute at Melford is a beautiful community. My mom lives there now. It's only three years old. They have invested a lot in their staff to make sure that they're trained and educated on interacting with residents who have cognitive challenges. They have great cognitive plans that involve a lot of variety of things to strengthen the brain and to keep the residents engaged with one another. It is beautifully decorated, and the rooms are fantastic. It's got a lot of modern day conveniences. You literally do not even feel like you're stepping into a memory care community, but you're stepping into a posh hotel/boutique instead. It's really, really nice. Everything is digitized. I also love the fact that it is small. There's only 17 residents, which is what I really like. The family members not only just check on their loved one, but they check on others. While my mom is going through transition, I've had other family members sending me pictures and texting me with any updates about how my mom's adjusting. The food is fantastic. They cater to her. I like that there are lots of age ranges from younger seniors, too. Memory care residents can take advantage of what's happening in assisted living. They got a beautiful home theater, a beautiful gym, fireplaces, café lounges, live entertainment, happy hour on Fridays, and all this stuff on the main part of the building. Memory care had a fireplace set up too, but it was like a faux fireplace. It gave the same illusion. They have their own big screen TVs for movies, but they can go down to the theater room. I love the fact that the staff addresses every single challenge we have with memory prescriptions that may have not been updated from the health care provider. So, they work with us on that. My mom just lit up like the sun. She's laughing, smiling, and making friends now. They want to get to know each other, and she wants to get to know them. She's in good hands. Lastly, they were the only one that had a fixed rate for memory care. They do an initial assessment, but it doesn't change the fixed rate.

My mother-in-law has moved into Tribute at Melford. It reminds me of a resort. The grounds are well-manicured. The services are efficient. They're very attentive to her needs. Even the administrative staff is very open. They have an open-door policy, call at any time during the work hours. It's nice. They have a whole lot of activities; word games, circle games, where they're almost playing volleyball, and a lot of music theater. They have a movie theater room, and they have day trips. It's optional. It's endless.