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Cedar Hill Continuing Care Community Page 2 | Cedar Hill Celebrating 30 Years of Caring For Seniors Saturday-Sunday, September 29, 2018 Cedar Hill: Three decades of innovation COURTESY The family gathers for a 2010 photo. From left are Patricia Horn, her daughter Elena, Scooby, Mary Louise Sayles, and Patricia’s daughter Annie. By TORY DENIS happens to me,” she said, “they would Judith retired in 2005, moving to North Carolina. Special to the Eagle Times understand the responsibility of having so many She passed away in 2013, and the memory care center lives under your roof.” was named in her honor. Maria lost her life to cancer WINDSOR, Vt. — Cedar Hill Continuing Care Sayles involved her daughters in financial work in 2004. The North Village Expansion wing, opened in Community has seen three decades of positive change and projects, with the hope that one day one of them 2015, was dedicated in her name. and innovation in many forms, and three generations may want to take over the business. Patricia, a former news journalist in Philadelphia, of owner Mary Louise Sayles’s family, since the facil- In 1988 as Mary Louise and Judith were preparing eventually moved to Windsor in 2008 and became a ity was purchased in 1988. to start the business, Maria was a licensed nursing licensed nursing home administrator, a position she This year, the award-winning Cedar Hill celebrates home administrator at Goodwins of Exeter, working held until two years ago at CHCCC. She is now the 30 years of serving the community with a complete with William Gilmore, one of the early pioneers in Community Executive Director. continuum of care at the Village at Cedar Hill, Judith developing assisted living options for elderly resi- “I was thrilled when Patricia wanted to come into Brogren Memory Care Center and Cedar Hill Health dents. the business,” Sayles said. “I thought it would give us Care Center, with a full activities calendar, up-to-date At the time, many elderly people had fewer choices some time working together before, or if, I ever really environmental practices, fresh and local home-made on where to live as they aged. They could share a retired.” meals, and a variety of personalized options for resi- small apartment with a roommate or move into a Although they do not agree on everything, which dents. nursing home, for instance. This was in the early they both admitted with a laugh, “it’s been a joy hav- The Vermont family-owned company was founded days of continuing care as an option, and Cedar Hill ing her on board,” Sayles said. Both understand the in 1988 by Mary Louise Sayles and Judith Brogren, would offer a chance to “age in place,” Mary Louise importance of working out solutions, they said. who expanded and upgraded the former 31-bed Cedar said. Patricia said that when she was growing up, her Manor nursing Nursing Home, a Victorian mansion Maria and Mary Louise worked together to help mother worked in nursing homes, and would that was in poor condition, but with a large property create and shape the early vision for what the neigh- bring her to work, even sitting in on meetings. that held much promise. borhoods of Cedar Hill would look like, spending “I learned to be very comfortable in that environ- Mary Louise and Judith, both employed at SCNH many hours talking about the budding new concept of ment,” she said. Eventually she became a dietary in Unity, New Hampshire at the time, had much “Continuing Care,” and how offering different levels aide and an LNA before moving into her career as a bigger plans for their new business. They sold all of care for seniors with various needs could enable writer. their belongings, moved into a mobile home on the them to get whatever care they needed without hav- Patricia said working in a multi-generational busi- property, and with the help of a Small Business ing to leave the grounds. If someone in an assisted ness can be difficult, but that it is wonderful. Administration loan, they purchased the property living apartment had a stroke or broke a hip, they “She’s the boss. We speak our mind and try to and got to work. Over the years they added Cedar could receive skilled nursing care and rehabilitation make the best decisions,” Patricia said. Having Hill Health Care Center, a 39-bed skilled nursing right there on the same campus until they were well known each other all their lives, they know how home and rehab center; completely renovated the enough to go back to their apartment. Maria went on to work things out, and continue to learn from one original Victorian house, converting it to a Level- to serve on the board of Cedar Hill. another, she added. “And it’s great to have Elena Three Residential Care Facility; and built and later “Now there are more options,” Mary Louise said. here.” expanded The Village at Cedar Hill, which includes And in the long run, “it has reduced the stigma of Mary Louise also notes that in a long career, the Memory Care Center, transforming the sprawling long-term care.” with times of stress and difficulty, going to work campus that sits on the property now. When Mary Louise and Judy purchased the busi- has always been “the best thing for me,” knowing Today, Cedar Hill is still owned by a dual-gener- ness, they renamed it “Cedar Hill Continuing Care that she needed to be positive, and put things aside ation team, Sayles and her daughter, Community Community,” and hired a contractor to renovate the to focus on the well-being of the people in her care. Executive Director Patricia Horn. old home. Judith took charge of the nursing depart- “It’s one of the benefits of this profession,” she said. Mary Louise, Patricia, and Patricia’s older daugh- ment and staff education, and Mary Louise became Patricia added that though it is a serious profession, ter Elena Preece, 17, gathered to talk about the Cedar the licensed administrator for the home. it’s important to “bring a sense of joy with you,” and Hill community recently. They opened the new 39-bed CH Health Care Center instill that in employees as well. Patricia and her older sister Maria Horn, the eldest in September 1994, and opened the Victorian House Elena is part of the third generation to take an interest in senior care. She started working this sum- of three, had been involved with Cedar Hill for many Residence in 1995. They opened the first phase of The mer in the Activities Department at Cedar Hill. years, Mary Louise said. Village at Cedar Hill for independent and assisted liv- Working at Cedar Hill is “like having 30 new grand- “I felt it was very important for my daughters to ing with 20 apartments in 1999, and a second phase, parents,” Elena said. “I just fell in love with it.” know about the business,” said Sayles, who is the with 20 additional apartments, in 2015 with a 20-bed Today, Mary Louise, Patricia, their husbands, and daughter of Italian Immigrants. “So that if anything Memory Care Center. Patricia’s daughters Elena and Anna Maria have con- nected homes on the campus. The community is built neighborhood-style and pet-friendly on 12 acres along the Connecticut River in scenic Windsor. With a total staff of about 100 now, it is nestled alongside a farm and is just a few miles from downtown Windsor, but surrounded by greenery, flower beds, and beautiful views. Sue Spadaro, executive director for The Village at Cedar Hill, has been with the company for 20 years and said she has seen a lot of changes over the years, including the development of teams and changes in administration. “I’ve always felt that Mary Louise has been a visionary,” she said. One of the things that defines Mary Louise is that “she really cares about the well-being of people, and it’s not all about dollars and cents,” Spadaro said. She also said Mary Louise has been a mentor. “She taught me everything I know” about long-term care adminis- tration, she said. Residents also spoke recently on what life is like at Cedar Hill, and why they enjoy living on the campus snuggled into the foothills of Mount Ascutney. “They do everything for you. You just have time to enjoy yourself,” said Rita Bergeron, who has lived at Cedar Hill since November, and is originally from Claremont, but lived for many years in Washington, D.C. “The activities here are excellent.” Connecticut native and former teacher at Ascutney Middle School Muriel Rowland is one of the longest- term residents at Cedar Hill, having lived here for nearly seven years. A perfect example of the benefits of “Continuing Care,” both she and her late husband, Bob, who lived with her in the Village for two years before his passing, have lived in both the Village and the nursing home while recuperating from medical issues. “I feel secure, and there are people my age that I can associate with,” she said. “There are all kinds of activities. One of my favorites was cribbage.” She was also a National Shuffleboard Champion in the 1990s, she noted proudly. Longtime volunteers Rick Monarque of Ascutney and Terry Ryan of Springfield were playing music TORY DENIS on a recent Friday. Monarque also volunteers every Three generations of the family gather on a recent breezy day at Cedar Hill. They are, from left, Patricia Horn, her mother Mary Louise Sayles, and her Friday playing music or helping to serve or playing daughter Elena Preece.

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