“My dad always said, ‘It’s like living on a cruise ship” - Barbara Miles, daughter of Victorian Village residents

Ray and Jean Dering always enjoyed active lives in their retirement, filled with volunteering, church, and time with the people they loved. Twenty years ago, they decided they wanted even more freedom to use their time as they pleased, so they packed their things and downsized from their condo to an apartment at Victorian Village.

“My mother just thought this was the best thing ever,” their daughter Barbara Miles says. “It gave easy access to all the places and people she loved to visit. Someone was going to clean her apartment for her. Someone would make a lovely dinner every night in the beautiful dining room. She couldn’t wait to move in!”

While Jean was enthusiastic about the move, Ray was less excited. “He didn’t think they needed to move yet, and, of course, they didn’t,” Barbara explains. “But shortly after they moved in, my dad couldn’t stop talking about it. He always said, ‘It’s like living on a cruise ship,’ where their every need is taken care of. And he loved taking cruises!”

Both Ray and Jean came from big families, so they embraced living in a community. “They became involved in all the activities,” Barbara says. “They knew everyone there and would tell me all about their neighbors—they just loved the whole schmoozing aspect of it.”

Living at Victorian Village also gave the Derings a chance to explore new hobbies. “My dad was a businessman his entire life, and suddenly, he’s spending his days in the woodshop making things. My mom was on the Wii Bowling team and she’d never bowled in her life,” she says. “But they also continued the things they loved—going to church, volunteering, exercise, and so much more.”

When Ray passed away a couple years ago, Jean had a compassionate community to help support her. Jean moved to an Assisted Living apartment, and now lives in the newly-renovated Memory Care wing, where she’s still as social and as friendly as ever. This continuum of care is one reason Barbara, a former registered nurse who now lives in Oregon, can feel so much peace about her mom’s care and well-being at Victorian Village.

“Both of my parents used the Health & Wellness Center for rehab,” she says. “Whatever they’ve needed, Victorian Village is there to help. My mom loves the staff and loves her neighbors—I’m so fortunate that this is where my mother is cared for.”