What is Independent Senior Living Like?

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retirement community columbus georgia

You might be hesitant to consider moving to a retirement community because you’ve heard some of the persistent myths about “senior living.” You know – you have to give up your belongings, you won’t have any privacy, you won’t be able to do the things you love most. In other words, you’ll be restricted in every way.

Senior living is all about lifestyle and retiring from all the stuff you don’t want to do. You live in a private home, as noted earlier, though it may be smaller than your current house. Downsizing means less clutter, but your furnishings and treasures will be all yours. You can come and go as you like.

And when you want to go, your biggest challenge will be deciding what to do.

Here are some common resident services and amenities found in independent senior living communities:

  • Multiple dining venues
  • Arts or crafts room
  • Library
  • Walking path
  • Beauty salon & spa
  • Wellness programs and fitness centers
  • Transportation, either on-demand or scheduled shuttle service
  • Game rooms
  • Housekeeping
  • Home and yard maintenance
  • Multiple dining venues
  • Religious services, including Bible study and pastoral care
  • Special events and performances
  • Cultural programs
  • Classes and workshops
  • Outdoor recreation (swimming pool, tennis courts, adjacent golf course, fishing pond, etc.)
  • Security with staffing 24/7, for peace of mind

At The Lodge, we talk a lot about living a carefree life, but we are committed to giving every resident every opportunity to feed their mind, body, and spirit. The indoor and outdoor facilities, amenities, and activities we offer are daily evidence of our holistic approach. Whether your spirit thrives on faith-based activities, quiet contemplation or the certain knowledge that you are loved and cared for, you’ll feel right at home at The Lodge.

There is no typical day

But, to give you an idea, let’s look in on Betty, a fictional resident at The Lodge:

  • 6:30 am: Betty likes to rise with the sun (or almost), but some mornings she has a lie-in instead, especially if she stayed up late the night before, reading or Zooming with family out west.
  • 8’ish: she fixes breakfast. Today she is going heart-healthy with oatmeal, but sometimes she treats herself to bacon and grits. She doesn’t have to fix all that for herself, because she can head over to one of the on-site restaurants and let The Lodge’s fabulous chefs prepare her morning meal.
  • 10 am: her friend Dottie comes by, and the two of them drive to Uptown Columbus to shop. Betty needs a present for her niece’s birthday party tonight, and Dottie wants to pick up some fresh flowers for her apartment and a couple of steaks to grill later.
  • Noon: Betty and Dottie are back at The Lodge, enjoying a tasty, relaxing lunch at the on-site bistro. After lunch, they take a nice stroll with Dottie’s dog on one of the many walking paths at The Lodge. They stop briefly at The Lodge chapel to have a friendly chat with the full-time chaplain.
  • 2 pm: Dottie heads back to her place to prepare the flowers and steaks (she’s having company for dinner). Betty wants to take it easy before the birthday party tonight, so she puts her feet up to read for a while. That hand-woven afghan she brought from her previous home is the perfect coverlet.
  • 4 pm: Betty pays a visit to her neighbor Frank, to bring him the book her book club at The Lodge just finished reading. Frank belongs to the men’s book club at The Lodge, and he’s thinking this might be a good read for his group as well.
  • 5:30 pm: Betty is freshly showered and dressed, ready to head out for her Niece’s birthday party at a popular restaurant in nearby downtown Columbus. Betty has difficulty driving at night and since she’s uncertain of when the festivities will end, she decides to take an Uber there and back.
  • 5:35 pm: Not so fast! Betty realizes she forgot to buy a birthday card when she went gift shopping earlier in the day. While her Uber driver waits, Betty runs into The Lodge’s gift shop to grab a birthday card. Thank goodness for conveniences like this at The Lodge.
  • 9:30 pm: Betty is back home and in for the night. What a great day it has been!

Tomorrow, she has a different sort of day planned full of activities all on-site at The Lodge– morning yoga at The Lodge indoor fitness center, The Lodge gardening club (they’re deciding what to plant in the courtyard planters this year), a massage at The Lodge spa, and The Lodge Bible study group with a few of her neighbors, who have become some of her closest friends.

In the heart of Columbus, GA

Exceptional senior living doesn’t happen in a vacuum. You’re moving to the heart of Columbus, Georgia, a city that is both vibrant and modern and steeped in American history. Interestingly, the percentage of seniors 65+ who live here is exactly the same as the national average — 13%. Friendly is the word residents use most often to describe Columbus. And the list of things to see and do here is long, long, long.

In short, Columbus is a heavenly haven for seniors and the perfect neighbor for our community at The Lodge.

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