We moved into MorningStar Senior Living at Golden Ridge 4 months ago. When you marry independent living with assisted living and memory care, you lose a lot of the flexibility that you would like to have. The activities director has left, and they have not hired another person. My wife misses the activities. She likes to play cards. She likes to exercise and dance. The meals are included, but we only get one meal a day, plus a continental breakfast in the morning, and that's it. We either have lunch or dinner, but we don't get both. We just came back from lunch and the chef may be trying, but I don't think the food tasted very good today. We had chili today and some kind of a sandwich. They give you a weekly listing of the meals by the day. Sometimes they're OK, and sometimes they're not. But I think for what we're paying, we should get much better meals. I don't think that they are very good at managing. I don't like the fact that although they have a car that will take you to the doctor or the bank, it's only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. We've got people in assisted living who just monopolize the use of the vehicle. I just always felt that the independent living people here are kind of like second-class citizens.

We were at MorningStar Senior Living at Golden Ridge. It was very nice, but it was way too far out from where we wanted to be. It was a lovely place. The location was the only thing. The person who showed it to us was wonderful. We were very impressed with it. The appearance was very good. It was very impressive. The rooms were really beautiful. The staff who assisted us was excellent. She showed every single detail. She didn't just run it past or something. She had taken us through and pointed out the highlights. She was very enthusiastic about it, and she had a good reason to be because it was a lovely place. The dining area looked fine. We didn't have food. We saw the menu, and it looked good. They had quite a few activities, I noticed. They had a movie once a week in one of the rooms and they had parties. That part of it was very good, too. There wasn't anything I could say bad about it.

We toured MorningStar Senior Living at Golden Ridge. We've looked at some of the perks and things that they give you, and that's why we chose them. We liked them, and they had a lot of the features that we liked. I liked that they have a garage, a lot of storage, and washers and dryers right in the facility. The garage was attached. We like the layout of the home, two bedrooms, and two baths. So basically, the layout of the casitas, we like those. The staff were great. They were friendly and helpful. There was another casita we wanted to see, but it wasn't available. We liked the one we saw anyway. We didn't try the food, but they gave us a great snack because it was right about the time we were hungry. They made that up special just for us. We didn't have any regular meals. They have a library, too.

My father is in MorningStar Senior Living at Golden Ridge. I have absolutely good things to say about them. Experience is outstanding. They were immediate in contacting me. I was welcomed and had a tour. They answered all of my questions. There was a vacancy, so my dad was able to move in quickly. They were very friendly. They were just outstanding: everyone. One of the things I really like is that they called me immediately. They were the first facility to call. MorningStar called me. I had a live voice, a live body to speak with. I met with them quickly. He has moved in, and he loves it. He absolutely loves it there. They have a variety for breakfast, lunch, and dinners. There are sandwiches and hot food. You can have breakfast (all day breakfast), lunch, or dinner. They always have a soup of the day.They generally have some sort of fish or seafood on Fridays. They have your menu for the entire month. They usually have a special every day. I have to see my dad twice a day. H's diabetic, so I'm there with him. I see the menu. There is a huge, huge variety. It's not the same thing every day. The meals that are supposed to be hot are hot. There's chicken, beef, pork, and one day they had meatloaf. My goodness, I haven't seen meat for a long time that was very well seasoned. It is not overseasoned. Because he's diabetic, I always ask him what he's had to eat that day, and he selects different varieties of things. It's just unbelievable. It's like going to a restaurant with what they do and what they have. The environment is so nice and clean. It's just wonderful. They have different activities. They had a Valentine's Day party with decorations. They have a heated pool with a spa. They have exercise classes. They have a salon for men and women for hair and nails. There's a little group of men that meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They invited my dad and they sit around and chit chat. My dad just moved in, and they invited him. Everybody is so friendly. "Oh, you're new, what's your name?" It's beautiful, brand new, and gorgeous. It's clean. It's marvelous.

We like MorningStar Senior Living at Golden Ridge because it's a gated community. They have casitas with garages and it's not overly large. Their casitas are laid out well. The staff members were all wonderful. The casitas were like one-level townhouses. They have all your normal activities like cards, movies, and offsite places that they go to. Of course, they have a pool and aerobics. They have a nice gym. They have everything you need.

My brother is in MorningStar at Golden Ridge. It is brand new. The casitas are large, and the rooms are large. The decor is very modern. They have weight rooms, a bistro where you can get snacks, a library, a heated swimming pool, and garages connected directly to your casita. The food is very good, and they're very responsive to special requests. The staff is very nice, very friendly, very helpful, and responsive. We went to their margarita party. A lot of the residents are new to The Valley, so they took them around on a bus trip to places like the football stadium in downtown Phoenix. I've seen them play cards. It's a very nice facility.