NORTH SMITHFIELD – The spacious courtyard was filled with conversation and laughter as some 300 guests including residents, staff, executive board members, families and more gathered to mark the 25th anniversary of an assisted living facility last week.
The Villa at Saint Antoine technically turns 25 in December, but the party came early, before it becomes too cold for the whole community to get out and celebrate.
“This is really the big celebration,” said Melissa Smith, director of marketing and communications for the Saint Antoine Community.
Opened in 2000, The Villa features 76 apartments with capacity for 90 residents, including 14 semi-private units.
But it was the larger Saint Antoine Community – which also includes a skilled nursing unit, assisted living memory care and short term rehabilitation – that showed up to party on Thursday, Sept. 4.
“Everyone RSVPd yes,” said Tammy Summiel, executive director of The Villa. “They don’t miss a party. We do so many parties here.”
The history of that larger community dates back to a time long before The Villa’s opening – beginning more than a century ago, in fact. Msgr. Charles Dauray established L’Hospice du Saint Antoine across the street from Precious Blood Parish on Hamlet Avenue in Woonsocket in 1913.
The facility on Mendon Road in North Smithfield was constructed in 1941, changing its names to Saint Antoine Residence in 1987.
More than 50 years later, in 1994, a new building was constructed with capacity for 260 resident beds. That division of Saint Antoine, known as The Residence, features 24/7 nursing care, rehabilitative services, wound care, dementia care, hospice support, and daily activities.
Now Rhode Island’s largest long-term care community, Saint Antoine offers its residents the unique opportunity to stay in a familiar setting through their older years, starting in the more independent ‘Villa,’ with access to more comprehensive medical care as their needs progress.
“What’s wonderful with this community is it’s a continuity of care,” said Summiel. “People start here, but can transition as they need more care.”
Many residents, she noted, will go back and forth between rehabilitation and assisted living. Considered a trailblazer in the industry, Saint Antoine was the recipient of the state’s inaugural license, License #0001, and also offers hospice for end of life care.
“It’s truly right from the beginning of your older years,” Summiel said.
The staff, she notes, tends to stick around – another aspect that makes the facility a real community for those in its care. Director of Nursing Kathy Keeling has worked at Saint Antoine for 34 years, and Executive Chef Cynthia Strode has worked there for 20, as has Summiel. .
“We have a lot of longevity,” Summiel said.
In her time, Summiel notes that the average age of a resident has changed significantly, from 80 when she started, to the current average of 92-years-old.
“People are staying at home longer,” she said.
On Thursday, those residents, staff and others blended together as they enjoyed live music, and a feast prepared under direction of Strode featuring seafood rolls, sandwiches and salads.
“She can pull together a party like you wouldn’t believe,” said Summiel of longtime co-worker Strode. “She comes up with all kinds of great stuff. I have the most amazing staff.”
Summiel noted that the facility has been fortunate to attract and retain such talent.
“They’re just so kind and conscientious, and they treat residents like their own family,” she said of staff.
“A lot of them are here in their off time,” noted Smith.
Keeping all aspects of the celebration right in the Saint Antione family was band Acoustic Soul, led by Saint Antoine receptionist Valerie.
It was an elaborate affair marking the launch of the assisted living facility, which features 21 studios, 52 one-bedroom apartments. three two bedroom apartments and a respite suite for those in need of temporary care.
Growth of the community, meanwhile, has continued, with the recent opening of the memory care unit known as Primrose Lane.
Through the passage of time, such additions won’t just offer residents an ever-growing list of services; it will give the whole Saint Antoine community just one more reason to gather and celebrate.
