In the know.

As the pair of siblings pulled into the Cornerstone parking lot, Cece Tye cringed at the thought of moving into a “nursing home.” As she toured with the community representative, there was a frustration building inside of her. In fact, she was more than annoyed, more than frustrated, she was angry. At the time she felt her daughters unwanted intervention was taking away her independence.

Things initially began to change for Cece after she lost her husband. The loss caused her to withdraw from routine activities and outings. Then came the pandemic of 2020. Her world would shrink to the size of her living room and bedroom in her big empty house. Before long, the changes to her emotional and social wellbeing began to manifest in her physical wellbeing as well. Not only did she find her endurance had declined, she was also less steady on her feet. Her daughters were watching carefully, noting each change. Although they were worried, they didn’t step in until Cece had a scary fall in her home.

For Cece, it would be this one fall that would change it all. As far as her children were concerned, the biggest change needed to be a change of address. They could see something Cece couldn’t, how the loneliness and boredom had changed her from the inside out. While the change in health was concerning, they were more concerned to see how their mom had lost her signature sparkle. They had watched their mother slowly decline at home alone and took the chance, even if it made her upset, to force the move and hope for the best.

As a result, whether she liked it or not, Cece found herself signing on the dotted line to take one of Cornerstone’s available Assisted Living apartments. “While Cece didn’t come kicking and screaming exactly, it was pretty darn close,” recalls Carrie Trusty, Marketing Director.

It wasn’t long before things begin to change, starting with her attitude. “I fell in love with Cornerstone! I couldn’t have been more wrong about all of the stereotypes I believed,” said Cece. As her attitude changed, her physical wellbeing also changed. She was almost fully restored to her condition prior to her fall. Her improvement was so significant that the Cornerstone team approached her about transitioning out of Assisted Living and into an Independent Living apartment.

While it is common for the team to advise residents that it might be time to move to another neighborhood in the community, to see their needs better met, it is not often the recommendation includes moving backwards through the continuum. Trusty explained, “Most people start in Independent Living and move through the continuum of services like Assisted Living or Long-Term Care as their health declines. It’s not often that we get to move people in the other direction.”

Cece described the shift as nothing short of a “total shock.” She is now a key contributor to the fun and vibrancy uniquely found at Cornerstone. It only takes you a few brief moments with Cece to recognize that she is a barrel of laughs, which comes naturally from her engaging personality. To put it simply, her sparkle came back, a shine that had dulled in her previous condition of loneliness and boredom in her home.

When asked how she might encourage someone who gets dragged to Cornerstone's front door by their children, her response was immediate saying, “It is the best thing I’ve ever done.” CeCe credits her new home with pulling her out of a lonely, depressed state, and giving her a renewed sense of purpose. “I am alive again,” she explained.

In most circumstances, the idea of moving backwards is not positive, but for Cece, moving backwards was an exceedingly positive milestone in her aging journey that underlines the power of a supportive community.

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