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MEMBER PROFILE
HERITAGE RIVER RETIREMENT RESIDENCE
When the nursing home Wellington
Terrace moved to its new location next
door to the Wellington County Museum,
Elora residents Bob and Lynn Cameron
decided to turn the building into a quality
retirement home. During a year and a
half renovation the inside of the building
was completely gutted and rebuilt and
the new facility opened its doors on
March 1, 2008. Since then it has grown
from 12 residents to 90. The youngest
resident is 68, the oldest is 98.
―The building sells itself‖, General Manager Shannon Brinkman says. ―People really like
the roomy, light common spaces. The Suites are spacious – with great amenities including
air conditioning, private bathrooms and walk-in showers.‖ Another selling feature is the
community of Centre Wellington – many residents have no family ties to the region, and
move in because of what Centre Wellington has to offer. ―The most rewarding part of my
job? Our residents‘ satisfaction: their health, happiness, well-being; we have seen
residents‘ health improve because of our support services.‖ Shannon smiles.
As an ORCA member, Heritage River Retirement Residence has strict regulations to abide
by. Shannon shares proudly that the facility has been accredited in 2010 – with no unmet
criteria. Heritage River Retirement Residence is managed by Diversicare Canada
Management Company out of Mississauga, which looks after 40 retirement homes. This
includes staffing, menus, building and grounds maintenance, staff relations and marketing.
The Camerons did not have this type of expertise, so they hired Diversicare. But the
Camerons are still very involved in many other areas of Heritage River; ―Bob knows
everyone and everything that goes on every day‖, Shannon says.
Heritage River reaches out to the local community too. ―We want to link to as many local
organizations as possible‖, Shannon says. ―We are heavily involved with the Seniors
Centre in Fergus and foster relationships with the hospital, doctors‘ offices, local radio
station and sports clubs. We also bring in many local artists to show their wares, and
promote the local clothing stores.‖ The Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce is also a
welcome partner. ―Their educational and networking events are great; a recent example
being the Accessibility Regulations workshop that they organized‖.
A retirement home is still a business, with many of the opportunities and challenges that
other businesses face. ―We work hard at getting our name out there, and maintain our
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