The Fine Art Of Living At Someren Glen

What Does A Retirement lifestyle In An Active Community Look Like?

Everyone has a unique vision of retirement, and for many older adults, this next chapter is a chance to embrace rest, relaxation, connection, and purpose. At Someren Glen, living well is more than a phrase; it’s part of the community experience. What does “living well in retirement” mean?

Living well looks different for every resident. For some, it means trying new hobbies; for others, it means enjoying familiar routines, meaningful friendships, and a supportive environment that evolves with their needs.

“Exceptional, satisfying living is often an art form,” says the Executive Director at Someren Glen. “For some, it may take some time to learn exactly how they want to live in this unique chapter of their lives. Our goal is that when people move in with us, they see that the art of aging is really the art of continuing to live.”

She explains that Someren Glen is a unique community because of its distinctive layout: “Residents who are in independent living and assisted living share the same social and dining spaces.” This supports residents creating friendships regardless of the neighborhood where they live, or residents’ changing abilities. This makes it easier to envision the transition from independent living to assisted living, should a resident need more support.

How Can You Personalize Your Retirement Lifestyle?

Someren Glen recognizes that every resident brings different goals, interests, and expectations to retirement. The community is designed to support those individual preferences while making it easy to stay engaged and connected.

A fulfilling retirement lifestyle often comes with false starts and trial and error, but eventually, you can discover what drains your energy and what makes you feel alive. However you envision your ideal retirement, the team at Someren Glen has an endless supply of ideas to help older adults find the perfect combination of rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation during their retirement years.

What Are The Elements of Living Well at Someren Glen?

Living well often comes down to a few essential ingredients: time to rest, opportunities for fun, meaningful social connection, and a sense of purpose. Someren Glen builds daily life around all four. At Someren Glen, we believe that living well begins with looking inside yourself. Every one of our residents is a unique individual, and their ideal lifestyle is as well. Not every retirement means an overflowing number of assets or settling into an exotic location. For most of our residents, it’s much simpler than that.

Rest and Relaxation at Someren Glen

Residents can enjoy quiet moments, leisurely meals, reading, walks, or time with loved ones. These simple pleasures help create the balance many older adults have long hoped for. As you think about what the art of living well looks like, be sure to include elements that add relaxation to your days. Residents have worked hard all of their lives, and it’s time to enjoy the simple pleasures in life. We encourage them to embrace everything Someren Glen has to offer.

Whether it’s relaxing with a book, taking a walk, or enjoying a long lunch with a close friend or family member, these activities provide an opportunity to recharge. Now is the time to achieve the balance that may have been elusive when residents were younger.

Resident Dot agrees: “Been there. Done that. I can handle owning a house. I just choose not to…. This is our time to enjoy!”

Fun and Engagement in Retirement

Life Enrichment calendars offer daily opportunities to participate in hobbies, fitness, music, games, educational programming, and outings. Residents are encouraged to try new activities or revisit old favorites. There is plenty of fun to be had for residents at Someren Glen. Life Enrichment calendars for both assisted living and independent living are full every day of the month, with opportunities for residents to continue their hobbies, try new ones, continue to learn, or creatively express themselves.

Because programs, including the fitness center, chapel, and dining area, take place in the common area of the community, residents have the opportunity to see, socialize, and enjoy time with everyone.

Residents who make the move from independent living to assisted living because of increased care needs can continue to see the same friends and participate in the same programs and get the added support they may need. The current calendar includes activities such as fitness and exercise, music, educational topics, bridge, Wii bowling, church, Broncos game parties, and more.

Not all activities take place under the Someren Glen roof. Residents recently enjoyed excursions outdoors for Movie Night on the Glen, as well as the Walk to End Alzheimer’s and a Colorado Rockies baseball game. Resident Cal says, “I love going to Brain Boosters, Brain Games, and all the outings that are made available here. It is important to work my brain because I’m a firm believer that you have to ‘use it or lose it’.”

Don’t see your favorite program on the calendar? Have ideas for something new? This resident-led community welcomes suggestions from new and seasoned members of our community alike.

As the Someren Glen Executive Director points out, “The community belongs to the residents. We get a variety of people from all different backgrounds, and the beauty of it is that they get to contribute all of their unique gifts and talents to create the community we have. Residents are not just sitting idle; they are actively planning the way our community looks—and what its culture is like. Resident involvement is vital to ensuring that our community members are indeed living well.”

Social Connections in an Active Community

Older adults thrive when they have opportunities to connect with others. At Someren Glen, residents can socialize, host family, join clubs, and participate in shared experiences that support mental and emotional well-being.

It’s no secret that many older adults can become socially secluded. The truth is that living well rarely occurs in solitude; people need people. This doesn’t mean a perpetually full social calendar, but it does mean having the opportunity to make connections with other people to boost mental and physical health. “One can be as busy as desired or as alone as desired,” says resident Marilyn.

“Often, as people grow older, it becomes more difficult for them to get out and socialize,” says the Executive Director. “Perhaps their vision has failed them, so they are no longer comfortable driving. At Someren Glen, they have a place to invite their families—or their bridge club—as a great place to entertain.”

Whether residents choose to visit family, join a club, volunteer, or meet up regularly with their best friend, these social connections are essential for living well. Someren Glen resident Jean says that “there is an abundance of activities, physical exercises, and faith-based meetings to meet the needs of the residents.”

Purpose and Contribution Throughout Retirement

Purpose is an important part of healthy aging. Residents find meaning through volunteering, creative groups, committee involvement, faith-based activities, and everyday interactions that help them feel valued and needed.

A sense of purpose is a crucial element to living well that cannot be overlooked. Purpose can elevate every other part of a person’s life, filling it with meaning and contentment. Residents find purpose in many things: volunteering, spending time with grandkids, pursuing a new hobby, or simply chatting with team members and other residents.

Some of the resident-led activities that provide purpose include the Resident Knitting Group, which made socks for the homeless. The Creative Writing Group is a collaboration of both residents and team members and provides an outlet for creative types. The Give Unto Others Committee is constantly in search of ways to give back. The Resident Welcome Committee strives to welcome new residents and help them to feel at home from the moment they move in.

Resident-Led Living at Someren Glen

Someren Glen encourages residents to shape the community alongside team members. That resident involvement helps create a culture where people are not just living in a community, they are helping build it.

Having a sense of purpose leads to a more positive outlook on life, which can enhance mood and decrease stress, and contribute to better physical health.

Dee, a resident at Someren Glen for more than a year, describes it this way: “Senior living doesn’t have to be a means to an end. It can be a purposeful, engaging, rewarding way of living…as life-long learners and teachers, [we] can use [our] assets as we continue on this journey, and by doing so, we become fulfilled.”

Living Well at Someren Glen

At Someren Glen, older adults are invited to continue growing, contributing, and enjoying life in a community designed to support who they are and how they want to live. The result is a retirement experience centered on possibility, not limitation.

Older adults may be surprised to discover a lifestyle of living well when they move to an assisted living or independent living community. At Someren Glen, we like to think that we’ve embraced the art of living well by providing a community where older adults partner with team members to collaboratively contribute to the success of an evolving culture and operation of a community.

Rather than limit what residents can do when they move here, we’ve made our community a gateway to the possibilities of enjoying the art of living. Each resident gets to decide what that looks like for them, and we provide the resources to help them get there so they can thrive.