When Gord Montgomery was given two days to vacate a retirement home in Kingston earlier this year, his situation looked dire.
A resident of one of two Fairfield Manor Retirement Homes forced to close by regulatory bodies, the 86-year-old and his neighbours scrambled to find other living arrangements.

To his relief, Gord and several other Fairfield residents found comfort and safety at Helen Henderson Retirement Lodge in Amherstview.

Talking from the accredited home on a cold winter afternoon, Gord’s voice is filled with relief after surviving the upheaval of being forced out of the place where he lived for almost two years.

“It’s nice here. I’m well looked after and taken care-of,” he says from his room. “It’s better than where I was. We got kicked out in two days.”

A graduate of Mechanical Technology from Ryerson University, Gord taught at St. Lawrence College for 20 years before retiring. He has lived at Helen Henderson for approximately four months.

“The door opens often with staff checking up on me which is good,” the father of one says about the health care he receives at the accredited home. “I feel lucky to be here.”

“It’s so open and different here,” adds Orize Davis, a 90-year-old woman who lives a few doors down from Gord. “I find the staff helpful, courteous and nice.”

A former resident of Fairfield Manor, Orize has been at Helen Henderson Retirement Lodge for approximately five months.

When asked how she likes her new home, she answers with a smile, “I love it.”

A mother and grandmother, Orize enjoys the view from her room which overlooks a manicured park.

“I especially like the women I dine with, Helen and Inez,” she says kindly.

Helen Giddy smiles when she hears this feedback from her friend. The two women met while living at Fairfield Manor.