We placed our mom in Cherry Park in Gresham. We chose this place because of the convenience of proximity. They also had an opening in their memory care unit, which is what my mom needed. Some other places we looked at were willing to make accommodations, but most of them were pretty full up on memory care. It was a small unit, which we thought would be best for Mom, and then just the proximity of the location itself. The staff had been very, very good. I think they've been very caring for Mom, taking a lot of attention to her in trying to make her feel at home as much as possible. Of course, there's a lot of anxiety associated with doing this, and they've done a really good job of trying to acclimate her into the everyday setting, and in going to the lunches, and really helping her acclimate to the other people that are in the memory care unit. So I think they've gone above and beyond to really try to make her feel comfortable. In terms of the food, they were raving about the Friday clam chowder. She was on a diet that she didn't really appreciate, but that's not a negative thing towards the food that was offered. They had a preacher coming in and playing music. I know they engaged her in a number of the activities they had, bingo being one of them, so I know that you have considerable activities that they try to get the residents involved with. She's in a memory care unit, so there's a small outdoor courtyard that's protected, and it's very nice. The facility for memory care is very small, I don't think they have more than 14 units, but we thought that was very adequate. They had a nice little cafeteria but they didn't really make the food there. They made it in the larger facility and brought the food over to memory care. So I'm very pleased with the amenities that they offer.
We're very, very pleased with Cherry Park Plaza, the staff is excellent, they're working with us especially with the COVID thing, it's really difficult. They're making some steps out of their way to accommodate the needs that we have since we can't necessarily be in. We feel it's a good, comfortable, safe, and effectively run place. My mother is in independent living, and my father moved into memory care from another place. So far, it's so good, I'm very impressed with everything that's taken place thus far. The food seems to be very good, they seem to be properly nourished, very good scheduling for meals, they're able to relax and eat together. They've given me feedback already on things I can do to give my father more to do in his room in memory care 'cause his functionality is a little better than we anticipated. They've been on top of keeping me informed on all those kinds of changes. My father is a little hesitant to take part in activities, but if he wanted to, there's plenty of exercise, they have entertainment, and group activities where they can all work together. I'd say it's ideal.
I really like Cherry Park Plaza. There is a bigger caregiver to patient ratio, so I feel like my mother is well taken care of. She enjoys everything that they do. They take them out every Friday, and everybody in memory care gets to go. They're not left alone in their rooms; they're kept in an area where they're kept busy. The dining area in memory care is just for the memory care people, but the food is good. I've had breakfast there and I've seen what they're serving her and it's much better than what she used to get. I love the staff, they're all really nice, they were really cooperative, and helped us make it a smooth move. It's a great facility.
We fell in love with Cherry Park Plaza but it was too expensive and my mother-in-law couldn't afford it. They didn't take Medicaid either. We would have liked to put her there but it didn't work. It just felt like home and it was beautiful. The lobby had a homey feeling and didn't feel like an institution.