I toured many assisted living/memory care facilities prior to choosing Morning Star for my parents…read more This place is hands down the best facility I could find in Santa Fe. The patient to staff ratio is not bad, but primarily the staff actually give a care about the residents unlike so many other facilities here where it just seemed like they were just watching the clock to see when their shift was up. They do the checks on my parents every few hours like they are supposed to, and contact me the moment anything so much as a slip and fall occurs with my dad. I do think Morning Star could hire more people, because the ones they have are awesome but you can tell they are putting in more hours than they should. They all deserve raises and additional staffing to help out as far as I can see, especially the kitchen wait staff and maintenance teams. Speaking of the kitchen, they include three meals a day which is nice, and breakfast is served all day in addition to there being a little bistro area, so I don't worry about whether or not they are eating okay. They do a good job with med management and anytime a resident presses their pendant button the staff hustles over to see if they are needed. The look and overall feel of the place is just leaps and bounds above the other facilities I visited. It's very cheery, with high ceilings in the apartments and day rooms offering activities to keep the residents engaged. There is also an exercise room, movie theater, massage and pedicure rooms and on and on. In summary, if you need a place for your aging parents who refuse to leave Santa Fe I would definitely recommend Morning Star. The facilities and staff are first rate and I sleep well at night knowing they are being taken care of.

As soon as I walked in for an interview they immediately put me under a test, they sent an elderly…read morelady to conveniently try and move the chair right besides me to see if I would assist her, I was very uncertain of what to do considering policies would be in place with the residents there as I was not an actual employee and was unsure of what i could and couldnt do as far as interacting with her as a stranger but i offered to help anyways to which her reply was "im fine i could do it myself" over and over again as if hinting for me to do something. As i looked around for a Morningstar employee i noticed most of them huddled together looking at our interaction as if it were entertaining to them to see how i would react. The manager I was scheduled to interview with then sent her inexperienced and childish assistant to interview me. She constantly complained about how unqualified she was to interview me and was wondering when her manager would be back to speak with me while making small talk about how bad their interview questions were. When the manager finally showed up the assistant told her she didnt know why she made her do that and that she had no idea what she was doing. Once I began talking with the manager she would speak to me with her eyes closed overwhelmingly and constantly reminding me of the headache it was working there and that nobody wanted to pick up their own weight hinting if i was willing to help the "team" with their responsibilities besides the responsibilities of the job at hand. She then left me in a room waiting to speak with a maintenance person to which he offered me a part time position in maintenance or housekeeping which I was not interested in or even applied for, he kept mentioning the leak in the restroom above and how he would never get around to fixing it and that "the place would probably never end up repairing the restroom anyways, just use the other restrooms." He said his job was easy because all he did was "paint paint paint!" The manager never came back and the maintenance guy said he wasnt sure what was next so he walked me outside where I saw the manager again with another candidate that was lucky enough to get a tour of their passenger bus which I was not fortunate enough to experience. Another "manager" called to reschedule another interview with me but either forgot or did not really care because nobody knew who I was or why i was there when I called and went back in person, I turned around and walked away. On my drive back home I felt bad and manipulated, which i decided working there was no longer a good option, a very unprofessional and demeaning experience. Two weeks later the same job post again. No surprise.

My parents lived in both independent and assisted living, and both passed last year…read more Upper management threatened to throw my disabled, elderly parents out on the street that day by midnight if they didn't sign a document, despite being paid in full with active lease. They threatened them, and me as the POA. This incident was reported to state authorities. Wait staff is kind but horribly underpaid so turnover is very high. Assisted living staff is mixed, some attentive, some not. Often leaving folks unattended for hours. ***Do not send your family/parents to assisted living here unless you can check on them regularly and often***

Edgar and Linda are terrible people. They make fun of the residents behind their backs. They charge…read morepeople in memory care for services they never receive. A very corrupt place.

I have found that this business has some of the most attentive, knowledgeable and compasonate…read morecaregivers. And I am grateful. The office personnel are understanding and willing to make changes to accommodate their clients, especially the elderly and disabled.

I am a very experienced male caregiver who recently applied to work for Home Instead in Santa Fe. I…read morewas greeted enthusiastically by the recruitment person and met with some staff members who even offered me a slightly higher hourly pay. The following day I prepared for my second interview but was given the cold shoulder and told that I had been rejected but without any explanation. I found this behavior unprofessional and insulting especially from a so-called caregiving agency.

My parents live at this property's sister location, La Secoya. Both locations recently held Covid…read morebooster and flu shot events. I thought this was awesome as many of the residents are well into their retirement years, and as such often don't make appointments for these things due to the difficulty of booking and getting to them. I came up from Phoenix to make sure my parents got theirs. When I took my dad over to the event here as he missed it when they were doing it at his property, they were almost two hours behind the start time for handing out shots and the room was packed. They hadn't even started giving out the shots yet and all the residents were sitting in close quarters during flu season waiting to get their Covid boosters and flu shots. Not exactly well thought out in my opinion. So I took my dad over to Sam's Club thinking it would be easier to get it there. At Sam's we were told they were only making appointments at about four weeks out because the vaccines weren't available yet due to shortages and we wouldn't be able to find them anywhere else in town. So we went back to El Castillo where they finally had their event in full gear and we were able to get in and out in a timely manner. Points given for being able to get the vaccines for their residents who need them the most, but points detracted for the manner in which they ran the show.

From the owner: El Castillo Retirement Residences is a senior living community located in Sante Fe, NM. We have…read morebeen a premier LifeCare Retirement Community since 1971. Our mission is to enrich the lives of older adults through community living. We are committed to the lifelong care, comfort and satisfaction of our residents. As a LifeCare community, we provide a continuum of care: Independent Living Assisted Living Nursing care on site. In exchange for an entrance fee and monthly service fees, residents are secure in knowing they may have a permanent home for the rest of their lives. Whether it's participating in El Castillo activities, enjoying a delicious meal in our lovely dining room or just sitting and reading in one of our beautifully landscaped courtyards, our residents feel safe and at home. Our proximity to the Plaza and the multitude of downtown amenities make El Castillo ideal for those who enjoy eating out, shopping and cultural events.

Carolyn Moore and her staff are simply very smart at what they do for our seniors. They are the…read moremost caring & kind folks I know. They have provided services to many of our local seniors in their homes and in local senior care living facilities. Carolyn is also an active member of the SF Rotary Club and on several non-profit boards. I hightly recommend Nurses With Heart Home Care!

I cared for an elderly friend of mine who needed 24/7 assistance. I hired Nurses with Heart to…read morecare for her, so I knew she would have someone constantly with her to feed, bathe, clothe, and take care of all her needs. She was in her 90's, and had dementia. Not only was Nurses with Heart there to make sure she lived her best life during her final years, they were there until the end, and I do mean end. I got the call at 3am in the morning that my friend had passed. Not only did the owner of Nurses with Heart meet me there, she let her caregiver go home, and stayed with me until the funeral home assistants arrived. Carolyn Moore the owner, myself, and the two funeral assistants carried my friend down to the stretcher because the elevator to her apartment in the assisted living facility was too small to accomodate the stretcher. No one at the assisted living facility could be found to help. It was quite a journey, believe me from beginning to end, and Carolyn was there all the way. If you are looking for a company that truly cares, has compassion, great caregivers, and does exactly what they say they will do, you will want Nurses with Heart to care for your loved ones. Carolyn and co-owner Alise are fantastic! Santa Fe and Los Alamos are fortunate to have them in their communities.

My parents moved in here several years ago and it's been a nice community for them. Surrounded by…read morefriends, they thrived in their new environment. The apartments are of a decent size with small balconies, and it's really got that upscale feel to it as you would expect from all things Santa Fe. The facility has quite a few amenities available to residents such as a nail salon, fitness room, laundry service, dining room (one meals day included), shuttle service and activities galore. They also have security and a nurse on duty, although to be clear this is not an assisted living facility. It is a nice midway point between fully independent living and a nursing facility however, as it's they handle maintenance and such that the older set shouldn't be doing at this point in their lives. Pets are allowed as well and there is a small dog park on site. Conveniently located in the very heart of Santa Fe, it is within walking distance from several decent restaurants and the main square. There is secure underground parking for the residents as well. The main downside is that there is no parking for guests. There are about five parking spots out front and that's it. Most of the time these spots are taken up by work trucks, so finding a spot to park if you want to visit a resident is darn near impossible.

My 93 year old dad moved into the assisted living wing at the Legacy in January. He had a beautiful…read moreapartment overlooking the mountains on the second floor. Unfortunately, he declined quickly and passed this month. He loved interacting with the staff at Legacy who treated him with dignity and compassion and honored his sense of humor. In the last week of his life, their care and concern for my dad's comfort was extraordinary. Because of his medical needs, we supplemented his care with caregivers from eagis during day. However, during the last week of his life, the Legacy staff checked in on him every 30 minutes during the night. The staff also asked my brother and I if we needed anything.

Legacy has left us with such a bad taste. Continuous turn over in staff which there is no…read moreconsistent routine if the staff is in constant learners mode. Food was not good. relationships between staff was not good. From an outside perspective the Legacy needs a whole new head staff. Dangerous to keep people waiting for assistance, the one good thing the legacy is good at is looking good. They are performative with events but day to day running is negligent. Save your money this is not the place for your loved one.

This is a great place for respite care. The staff are caring and diligent to give personal…read moreattention to the needs of the residents. The food is appropriate and appetizing. My dad loves the variety and personal aesthetic touches to the presentation and taste of his meals. He loves the dining area and being able to sit with friends and have conversations in the dining room or adjacent to the dining room on comfy sofas by the fireplace. Respite care includes access to fun excursions, shopping and transportation to appointments and church with sign ups in the main dining area downstairs and at the front desk for appointments from 9-3 M-Th and until noon on Friday. There are movies showing every other day, and my dad loves attending yoga and sharing his exercises with me so I can do them too! There is access to doctor care and physical therapy onsite. There is access to nursing care. If you need respite care for your loved one you can talk to Reuben or Peter. Kingston has been awesome for our family and the respite care we need! Dad loves going to Kingston and thinks of it as a home away from home

We were initially very impressed with Kingston. The building was clean, the staff seemed warm and…read morewelcoming, and we were told they were one of the few facilities with 24-hour nursing care. We felt hopeful that this would be the right place for my dad. When my dad needed specific care - which hospice was fully prepared to support - Kingston seemed to decide it was too much of a liability. The decision itself might have been understandable, but the way it was handled was incredibly disappointing. Communication was almost nonexistent. One person from the recruitment office had been so kind and accommodating early on, talking about how the facility was "about the people and for the people." But on the day everything fell apart, she said nothing and offered no information or support, which was disheartening. After my family spent days gathering paperwork, coordinating with doctors, and preparing to bring in the check to reserve my dad's spot, the head nurse simply told us they could not accommodate him. When I explained that hospice had confirmed his needs could be supported, we were met with a flat "no," with no discussion, empathy, or effort to problem-solve. My dad was still in the hospital, and we were exhausting ourselves trying to meet all of Kingston's requirements. To be told - on the very day things were supposed to be finalized - that they would not take him felt careless and deeply upsetting. To add insult to injury, we continue to receive calls asking whether we are still interested in the facility. Because of the lack of communication, compassion, and sensitivity during such a vulnerable time for our family, I cannot recommend this facility.