My wife and I are 92 years old. Last July we determined it was time to go into senior living but…read morestill live independently. There was no doubt that Merrill Gardens offered exactly what we needed. While our living is totally independent, We have care available whenever we need it. The people are fabulous. We found immediate friendship in every aspect. The employees and the residents made us feel right at home. The dining room is unbelievable. We can select from a large menu. We can eat anytime of the day we choose. The food is of the highest quality. On the main floor is a large living room where we all gather for events. Entertainment is provided often. And it is entertainment of the highest quality. We were extremely apprehensive last July before we made the move. But the apprehension is totally gone. We love this place. We are truly at home.

I went to check this place out for my mom and was very impressed. It is clean and friendly. It had…read morebeen recommended to me by a real estate agent, whose husband is a fireman and knows all the different facilities around. She told me that he had seen them under duress and the Staff still responds very well.

My dad lived at Merrill Gardens for a little over two years, most of the time in memory care at the…read moreGarden house. The staff is so very friendly, and the nurses took such good care of him there. He loved them all. And they loved him. They keep the residence busy over there and give them activities and have lots of visitors and entertainment to come in. My dad loved happy hour on Fridays. And they have great holiday dinners. After losing him suddenly the staff was so very kind. A couple of them came to his memorial service and were genuinely grieving with me. I can't say enough about this place and their staff. Highly recommend.

It started with independent but progressed to full care in the end…read more The quality of care was exceptional. The office, care and dining room staff was exceptional. Everyone knew his name, all who visited names and were very kind. I would recommend this place to anyone who needs the care they provided!

While my mother is no longer with us, I was so incredibly grateful for Elesio and her care team…read more The time was crazy difficult, she initially entered for skilled nursing rehab, later was medicaid bed, hospice, then, well passed. Every person we interacted with were amazing, kind, professional, compassionate. My mom was a high maintenance client, but they were firm but friendly. I will forever be grateful for the team at Elisio that made those months that were stressful and scary...for both of us, bearable. The receptionists upon entering the building, always bright and bubbly, always on point, juggling residents, visitors...all the things, with smiles and amazing energy. The NAC, CNA's RN's, rehab personnel, and the case managers, ....so kind and knowledgeable, I had incredible conversations with accounting - never a fun call, but they just worked with us, helped us, guided us, and were truly there every step of the way. Nobody wants their family member in long term nursing care. It's hard, but sometimes there are just no options, and Elisio was absolutely the best option.

My husband and I live in one of the six-plexes on the eliseo campus and just love it here. It is…read morealmost a year, and the friends, the amenities, the care and kindness are wonderful. We are so very glad we made the decision to move here, and so are our adult children, who feel confident that we are safe and well.

If you are looking for an extraordinary experience in senior living this place really warrants a…read moretour. My senior parent is receiving truley amazing care on a daily basis. From top to bottom their staff is a highly effective team and I am so happy to have found a good home for my Mother.

I should have done this a long time ago, but my Mother lived at Mill Ridge Village for nearly a…read moreyear and frankly, very shortly after she moved in, we realized that it wasn't the right place for her. Her dementia was taking over and that isn't what this place is for. The staff went above and beyond wherever Mom was concerned. You only hear of places like Mill Ridge when something goes wrong, never the daily things that everyone does right. You don't work in this industry if you aren't a caring individual and EVERYONE that I came in contact with there certainly was that. This is a great place and has a great staff. I don't have much experience, but they set the bar pretty high in my opinion. Thank you to the whole staff!

I recently completed my 2nd year living here and couldn't be happier! I was encouraged by my son…read moreto move closer to him and his family and he secured this facility for me, unbeknownst to me, and it has worked out GREAT! In my opinion, ALL accomodations are good to excellent and the location, without a doubt, is EXCELLENT! I would highly recommend this senior independent living facility to perspective tenants looking for this type of living arrangement. A Very Happy Tenant, Dorran

Front office people were great. Our tour of the property was great to see. The apartment and the…read moreentire community was uncluttered and clean.

Best care I could ever have expected for my Mom. She was in the Skilled Nursing section for a few…read moreweeks before she passed. Everyone was kind and the staff to resident ratio was superb.

My mother was at Franke Tobey Jones, first in an apartment, then assisted living and finally the…read morenursing home part of the facility. She enjoyed going for her daily walks participating in classes. She developed a deep friendship with one of the other residents. Staff were kind to her. The beginning of the tragic turmoil began during her transfer to the HCC. She was shocked. She was excluded from having any part in decision making for the HCC. When I took her to see her new room she sat down and cried, "Please don't let them put me here". I told the nurse, but they went forth with placing her in the HCC against her will. FTJ has a history of not disclosing that the nursing home (HCC) is far more restrictive and that the resident may not need this level of medical care. In the age bracket of my mother, residents are transferred to nursing homes, in order to access nursing home insurance. Through rapid transfer, isolation, immobility and restricting communication, my mother lost her level of functioning rapidly into the parameters of the insurance. The transfer to HCC, was over $10,000 per month. My mother was sent to live in a constricted small room along a dark hallway. When she looked out her windows she saw parked cars right in front of her room. After placement in the HCC, FTJ could then rent out the beautiful assisted living unit she had lived in with views of Mt. Rainier over the fountain. One of the administrators informed me that residents are often transferred before they need that level of care. A direct care provider told me how residents are placed with no contact with friends or family for two weeks. When I came to visit and support my mother two days after her move, I was told to leave immediately or they would call the 'authorities'. I asked to speak to the CEO, who was a compassionate man. I was told he was not available and I must leave. There was no consideration for our mother's needs for support from the family. She later told me she thought she would never get to see me again in her lifetime. Another staff member told me how residents are transferred and cry for a few days. She went on to say that staff give them lots of attention and gradually they adapt. After transferring from assisted living to the HCC I observed that residents were no longer looking up and engaging with others, like they did before. From my perspective the move against my mother's will, isolation, restraint to wheelchair is 'kidnapping'. I never would have believed before that FTJ would do this to her. My mother grieved, with her loss of freedom, choice and respect. She had been a social activist for equal rights of minorities in Tacoma and president of the YWCA. She trusted the medical system, as a professional in the field herself. How ironic that a citizen who fought for equal rights would have these taken from her when she became an elder. My mother had been promised with the move that she would get to eat with her friends. Never again. She was no longer allowed to get up and walk on her own with her walker. She was placed in a transport wheelchair, with footrests. My mother was restrained through taking away her means of mobility, unplugging her telephone, not allowing her to eat or visit with her friends in assisted living. My mother told me, "I am imprisoned. I have no more rights. I cannot speak at a deep level. I must be superficial in my conversation or they will confine me even more." "When I die I want you to be free. To go where you are loved and never have to come back". The new Nursing Supervisor, Jenny Dooley, RN, had been my mother's Nursing Care Coordinator from Sound Options. She put further restrictions in place. My mother could no longer eat with anyone from outside FTJ staff, including healthcare professionals specializing in this field. My mother wanted to go out with her sister to eat and go with myself to her beach cabin. This right was withdrawn, even with accommodations including adaptive equipment and care providers. As a retired ARNP, who was a rehabilitation disability specialist, it was so hard to simply stand back and watch it all happen. FTJ lacked the knowledge and provided unsafe behaviors in eating and drinking, toileting, transfers, and working collaboratively with family. When the struggle impaired my health I had to give up on trying to support my mother's duration of life. I needed to adapt her quality of life needs to simply visitation in her room, and never again to go visit family or even go to her own home. I even needed to get an attorney to quote the Washington state laws in order to be with my mother as much as SHE wanted 24/7 for her last month of life. FTJ had requested no more than 2 hours a day, which was devastating for my mother. FTJ forgets how one's life expectancy is significantly reduced when opportunity to be with loved ones is restricted. My mother felt trapped and at FTJ's mercy until she passed. Then she was free.

My father has been living here now for 9 months. He has had some health complications and I had to…read moremove him from Colorado to be close to me. He could no longer live on his own. I vetted many assisted living facilities, with the help of a place for mom, and independently searched others on my own, all doing tours and serious meetings. My father is very critical and I knew in order for this to work I would have to find the right spot. Immediately I know this was the spot after touring many. The staff have helped me and my father so much, from my emotional downs, to all the logistics of this change. He uses both their physical therapy and their assisted living that is available. All have been great! Because it is independent the cost is so much more affordable but still it offers everything an assisted living facility offers. The place really is a gem and you must stop in before you make any decisions for your loved one. They do it right. One thing I found when touring is I paid very close attention to the residents, where they happy, these residence are very happy, the other day they where dancing during the Friday happy hour with a live singer songwriter they had for the social hour. It is such a sweet community. Also I would notice if the staff were happy and proud of where they worked, immensely, and they help so much. To sum up my review, which I don't review typically, but have so much gratitude for my dads new home I had to, the one thing my Dad has praised me on since this life change for him is, "You really found me a good spot to live." So thank you to the staff and to this community for being a haven for us during this time. So much gratitude.

Nice apartments, good meals, friendly staff. Assistance available as well as physical therapy…read more Clean well done common areas.

This community has a serious lack of leadership, communication, and cleanliness. I really worry…read moreabout the residents there. I have been a vendor at this community on 3 separate occasions and each time I've entered this building there is an overwhelming smell of urine. its not just in one spot it is in the entire community. I actually had to bring a sheet to put down on the chair I used for my class because the chairs all smell of pee. Its really outrageous that this is the standard for this community. This shows a profound lack of leadership, any manager that allows residents to live in that level of filth while charging the ridiculous costs that they charge should be fired. I am a former Activity director, and physical therapist assistant I have been in countless facilities and if a place cant keep up basic cleanliness how can they care for residents. They also have no communication and they do not pay their vendors. FIND PLACEMENT ELSEWHERE FOR YOUR LOVED ONE!

I am a senior advisor and have many clients at Deer Ridge. Jennifer and Shawn have always taken…read moreexcellent care of them from start to finish. They provided a very thorough and transparent tour experience for myself and my clients. Their community, rooms, activities, meals and staff are wonderful. My clients and their families have expressed sincere gratitude for the care they have dedicated to their loved ones.