“Dracut, Massachusetts, is a close-knit community. It’s the kind of town you never want to move out of,” describes Amie Hanrahan, executive director of The Arbors Assisted Living Residential Communities. The problem was, though, that there are no Assisted Living communities near Dracut. Amie and her cousin, Sara Robertson, chief operating officer of The Arbors, saw the opportunity to help an underserved community and decided to open The Arbors at Dracut. “Now, people can stay home in the town they know,” she says.
The Arbors Welcomes Dracut
The cousins welcome Dracut to The Arbors family as part of their own family business. The Arbors at Dracut offers 79 one- and two-bedroom apartments, as well as Reflections, a specialized memory support environment. With Dracut, The Arbors consists of 7 residential communities scattered all over Massachusetts in Amherst, Chicopee, Greenfield, Stoneham, Taunton, and Westfield. Each community has many similarities:
- Individual apartments
- Modern kitchens
- Private bathrooms
- Elegant dining room
- Private dining room
- Living room
- Theatre
- Community room
- Sun room
- Beauty salon/barber
- Pub
- Outdoor porches
- Gardening areas
- Walking clubs
- Spiritual ceremonies
- Brain games
- Wellness clinics
- Social excursions
- Yoga
- Transportation
- Emergency response system
- 3 dietitian-approved meals a day
- Weekly housekeeping
- Personal care
- Medication management
Yet, each community is different, and each community of The Arbors family is responsive to the personalized requests of their residents. Amie explains: “Each community is geared around the residents. Taunton has a big Portuguese population, so we serve them linguiça and other dishes they prefer. The Amherst community enjoys going to the theater, so we schedule theater outings. We try to gear our programs around our residents, so we’re going to cater to the residents of the Dracut area.”
Dracut Welcomes The Arbors
Perhaps that personalized touch is why the announcement that The Arbors would be constructing a new assisted living community at Dracut was met in such a positive manner. “We’ve gotten a lot of nice feedback from everybody in town,” notes Amie, adding, “We’ve been welcomed with open arms.” The Arbors at Dracut even joined the local chamber of commerce. Foreseeing the needs of the people of Dracut and the surrounding area, the new community will offer additional storage space in the bathroom and the kitchen. Dracut will also be the first community in The Arbors family to include granite countertops in the kitchen.
The Arbors Is a Family Business
Amie and Sara take pride in continuing the Gralia family tradition of caring for others as if they are family. “A lot of times, when people know we’re not corporate, there’s a sigh of relief. You don’t have to climb a corporate ladder to get answers. We’re always in the building. We’re right on-site and available,” says Amie. Amie and Sara, along with their siblings, have been part of The Arbors Assisted Living since they were children, learning the business from the ground up. They washed dishes, mowed lawns, and got to know and love the residents. And although you can’t find them washing dishes any more, the insight into residents’ wants and needs and the love continue to inspire them to do better.
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