Category: Latest industry developments

Giselle Spice loves people.

“If you have a passion working with people, and strive for exceptional customer service, then this job is for you,” said the Village Manager of RetireAustralia’s The Verge at Burleigh Retirement Village on QLD’s Gold Coast.

“Every day is a different day. It’s like a box of chocolates, you don’t know what each day is going to bring. You have to have skills in all sorts of things but the most important is people skills.

“It is really a people-person job.”

Giselle has been working in the sector for the past 30 years and the job brings her back to a former workplace.

“I have an extensive background, working for Robinson Park, Aveo, Stockland, Aura and Ingenia. 

“I started as an Assistant Village Manager, when I was 27, and worked my way up to Village Manager, before moving into sales.

“I don’t know if you know, but I’ve actually worked for RetireAustralia before. I was the Village and Sales Manager at their Noyea Village for six and a half years. It was a great company to work for.

Giselle said she loved the variety of the role, even if it is challenging.

“I have a passion for the residents and for trying to make their lives better while they are living in the village. 

“There are always different things to do every day. It’s not just one thing.”

The Verge on Burleigh, RetireAustralia’s first vertical village, opened in June last year. 

“I have only been here three months but working in a beautiful village like this one has been amazing, just seeing how big the apartments are and what we have to offer residents here at The Verge,” Giselle said.

Daphne Williams remembered how she and her husband Brian rushed down on a brisk morning in late 2007 to make sure they secured the unit they fell in love with at Bolton Clarke’s Moreton Shores Retire Village at Thornlands, Redland, QLD.

“We were here at 8:15 in the morning to make sure we got the unit that we wanted and to this day we are still really happy with it,” she said.

“At the time, we were starting to look at going into a retirement village after my husband had a stroke.

“From day one, we watched the village progress and grow while the facilities started being built and we got really excited about it all, so when they opened their doors for the first sale we had to be here.”

Fellow original residents (from left) Ivor Worrell, Josie Dougherty, Wilhelmina Van Opstal-Nihot, Audrey Hardy and Josie Matthews joined Brian and Daphne in cutting the anniversary cake.

Moreton Shores had 52 units when it opened and has grown to 155.

It’s great to see retirement village operators spruiking not only their business but the sector in general.

Lendlease is launching its Long Live Me experiences next month, featuring Foxtel’s Selling Houses Australia host Andrew Winter, entertainer Rhonda Burchmore, TV and radio personality Kerri-Anne Kennerley, and comedian Jean Kittson.

“Long Live Me centres around the belief that after years of hard work, paying off a mortgage and raising a family, we can finally say ‘we earned this’ in this next life chapter,” said Nathan Cockerill, Managing Director of Retirement Living, Lendlease.

Over four weeks, from 1 October to 31 October, 73 villages nationally will host a series of over 400 free onsite and livestreamed experiences, designed to give Over 55s a chance to discover what it means to have the freedom to live your way and make the choices you want as well as take part in all the fun that retirement life can offer.

In separate experiences across the states, residents and guests can enjoy happy hour with Rhonda Burchmore, high tea with Kerri-Anne Kennerly, and happiest hour and a dash of humour with Jean Kittson.

Residents and guests can also register for happy hour with live music, Tai Chi, Zumba, Yoga, aerobics, painting, and pinot and much, much more. 

“Our villages encourage residents to experience retirement in any way they choose, provide opportunities to support the strong sense of community and help everyone connect. 

“We’re really looking forward to inviting guests to take a leisurely look around the vibrant villages, meet our residents and inspire those over 55 to try something new.” 

For more information and bookings: click here.

R U OK Day 2022 was marked with cup cakes for residents and staff at retirement villages and aged care homes up and down the nation.

COVID-19 has been a traumatic event for everyone and the requirements for the sector have been unheard of.

However, the soaring cost of living and personal debt is the number one threat to mental health for the first time with interest rates continuing to rise.

Forty per cent of Australians feel more distressed over finances compared with last year, Suicide Prevention Australia’s annual State of the Nation report revealed.

It is the first time economic stress has overtaken social issues such as drugs, loneliness and family breakdown as the primary cause of self-harm.

Many, such as Twilight Aged Care (pictured), posted photos on social media with the simple message being for everyone to touch base with friends, family or colleagues and ask the simple question.

Village Manager Hannah Horsley (right, pictured with Support Coordinator Aggie Massarotti) has worked at Baptcare The Orchards in East Doncaster, Melbourne for the past 17 years.

She loves how the DCM Institute Management course teaches her that there can be a “different way of dealing with issues, concerns and comments”.

It has helped me with a difference perspective and way of thinking through such courses as dealing with residents committee and duty of care.

Hannah who has a nursing background, joined the Orchards when a friend said that was a role as she was looking to get back into the workforce after her last child started kindergarten.

“I felt aged care was my passion and I have not looked back,” she said.

”The DCM Institute is a fantastic resource and I love hearing from the other managers and discovering that we are all going through the same experiences and can share our knowledge together”.

Hannah admitted she has been on a “deep learning curve” with the Orchards undergoing a redevelopment over the last 6 years.

“We are in the final stage of the redevelopment. There is currently a 150 bed Aged Care Facility, 22 units, 33 apartments and a further 52 Villas under construction and due for completion in early 2024” she said.

The Orchards is a close community where everyone is valued, and we all support each other. Hannah believes this is what makes her Retirement Living Community a great success.

Find out more about the DCM Institute

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