Interview with Amica Dundas resident, Chuck Gouett

I'm enjoying it! It was the best decision I ever made! I came here almost accidentally. I'd never even heard of Dundas or Amica before, but a friend of mine suggested it. All I had to do was drive into the town, and I fell in love with it. Then I visited Amica, had lunch with some people that I could relate to, and said, ‘This is where I want to be.’ It clicked for me... Things have evolved [in senior living]. I come from a life of comfort and security, and that's exactly what I'm getting here. 

The meals [are] the thing that surprised me the most. I have a one-liner that I tell people. I say, ‘I came for the ambiance, and I stayed for the soup,’ which speaks very well to what's here.... We live here by our stomachs. Meals have to be—and have been!—excellent. The chef and the staff listen to feedback.... People receive [suggestions] openly. They're open to anything that we can suggest. 

I have access to a workshop. I work in a garden. I do little Mr. Fix-it things for other residents that they can't do on their own, like hang pictures and things. I'm happily busy, and I wasn't where I was living before.

The atmosphere at Amica Dundas is good. There's people who want to be involved in everything and people who don't want to be, and that's real life. There're all kinds of activities. For example, we're getting ready to do a play here.... There're bus tours and things like that happening all the time. 

The staff is one of the reasons I continue to stay at Amica Dundas. When I first came, I was greeted by everyone, and everybody has name tags. It doesn't take long before everybody remembers your name. Everyone's on a first-name basis here, from the maintenance staff to the cleaning staff and right through to management. I feel at home. 

Dundas is in a valley surrounded by the escarpment. When I came down the hill from the escarpment and overlooked the city, I said, ‘This is a place I'm going to like!’ We’re one block away from King Street, the main street in town. There are restaurants and galleries and bars and specialty shops of all kinds within walking distance… We're part of the town. A lot of places you would have to go quite a distance to get the atmosphere that we have here. 

When moving in, we didn't have that much furniture. There was a U-Haul that I had some friends help me with, but the elevator was available. The mats were on the elevator. There was someone there to make sure that I understood all the moving parts of the unit itself, the air conditioning, etc. We were in and out in a matter of a couple of hours. It went very smoothly. 

[I felt at home] the day I arrived… [My first day] they seated me with another couple from the Maritimes [from] an area very close to where I lived, and we had a whole bunch of friends in common. Right off the bat, I was comfortable and went forward from there. 

You can't explain to someone what the experience of living here is like. You have to experience it… This becomes your home. This is where we're going to live for the rest of our lives… Make friends, [participate in the community life], go out and visit the town! You should also look at other locations, too, so you know what you're comparing things to… Come for lunch or dinner and do it more than once…. [Meet] the residents who are here, and it'll click.

There is no set time for dinner. You don't have to sit with [the same people] every meal…. The maitre’d (by the time you've been here for a while) understands where you'll fit best. You're meeting somebody different most times… That makes a big difference to being regimented into doing and sitting and meeting the same people all the time. 

I did my research beforehand [and] everyone should do that. Research not only the company but the financial basis of the company. That made me feel more comfortable with the investors who own the corporation…. I looked at things well in advance and I can't think of anything I would do differently. Involve your family, or whoever manages your finances…. The last thing you should be thinking about, though, is the financial part of it. That’s going to fall into place, and there are people that can help [with financial advice]. Don't just look up a list and say, that's too expensive. When you understand everything that's included, [there] are things that make a  difference here.

I think you get the gist that I'm comfortable here. And the meals are great. Everything is great.