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From Rough Waters to Smoother Sailing
Deciding when it’s time to move a parent into an assisted living facility can be hard for anyone.
But for this local family, The Sycamore in Shrewsbury has made the transition easier to bear.
Longtime Monmouth County resident
Virginia Horr, 85, can be considered
an expert on Jersey coast living, as she
and her husband, George, raised three
children in Fair Haven and owned
several waterfront homes in Oceanport,
Little Silver, and Long Branch.
But one day when George fell ill, it
seemed that age had just crept up on
the Horrs. So they were grateful when
their son Pete offered to move in with
them and lend them an extra set of
hands. Pete happily took up temporary
residence in his parents’ three-story
townhouse and helped his wheelchairbound
father get around. And when
George passed away several years later,
Virginia was comforted by Pete’s desire
to stay on for a while to help her.
Both Good and Bad Luck
Unluckily for Virginia, she fell and
broke her hip in February 2004. "I just
stood up, and the next thing I knew,
I was on the floor. I don’t really know
what happened," Virginia recalls. But
luckily, Pete was still living with her at
the time and was only minutes away,
driving home from work. Virginia was
immediately rushed to Riverview
Medical Center’s Emergency
Department, where board-certified
orthopedic surgeon Bernard P. Murphy,
M.D., performed her hip surgery.
Fortunately, the procedure was
successful. Unfortunately, however,
Virginia experienced a heart attack
as she was being wheeled back from
surgery. Riverview cardiologist Arthur
A. O’Keefe, Jr., M.D., was fortuitously
on hand to stabilize her and help
her through the recovery process.
Additionally, Virginia’s primary care
physician, Brendan J. Mulholland,
M.D., checked in on her every day
while she remained on the hospital’s
Intensive Care Unit.
Upon her discharge several weeks
later, Virginia transitioned first into
Riverview Rehabilitation Center
and then into Meridian Nursing &
Rehabilitation in Red Bank to complete
her course of physical therapy. Virginia
admits that there were initially many
doubts about her recovery. "But there
was one physical therapist who said
that if I gave him a few weeks, he’d
have me up and about. I thought,
‘What have I got to lose?’ "
Armed with that sentiment — along
with the steadfast support of her family
and her own admirable determination
— sure enough, within a month,
Virginia was moving around with
the help of a walker.
A Tough Decision
Resilient as she proved to be, this
whirlwind of events in a relatively
short span led Virginia and her
children to realize that it might
be time to move her out of her
townhome and into an assisted
living facility so that she would
have professional care
available around the clock.
Since this was a decision the
family took very seriously,
younger daughter Nancy
Miller, a Monmouth County
Social Services employee,
spearheaded the effort to scour
the area for top-notch facilities.
Relying on Nancy’s informed
perspective of the optimal
placement for her mom, the
family eventually chose The
Sycamore, Meridian Assisted
Living’s premier community,
designed for older adults who
want to remain active and
social yet can benefit from daily
help in a secure environment.
The facility offers spacious
apartments, day and evening activities,
gourmet cuisine, compassionate staff,
and more amenities than any other
assisted living facility in the region.
The community also offers 24-hour
personal assistance coupled with
caregivers who live on-site.
But Virginia’s string of bad luck
wasn’t quite over yet. Right after
moving into The Sycamore and using
her walker independently for the first
time, something unexpected happened.
"I slipped, fell, and dislocated my
shoulder!" Virginia says. An aide
rescued her quickly, and again, Virginia
found herself in Riverview’s Emergency
Department, where again, she was
ably and promptly treated. This time,
however, no surgery was needed; the
team was able to adjust her shoulder
into place. And while this fall required
another round of physical therapy,
Virginia was happy to learn that she
could conveniently complete it right
at The Sycamore.
Taking Comfort in Excellent Care
With Virginia’s recent travails now
behind her, older daughter Marcia
Horr-Grace breathes a sigh of relief.
"Our entire family feels so fortunate
that our mother is getting the care
she needs in a warm, supportive
environment. When my husband
and I last visited from California,"
she states, "we were actually able to
stay in one of The Sycamore’s guest
rooms on the same floor as Mom.
She was very pleased and even made
several ‘preparation’ trips to leave us
little goodie baskets. This really made
us smile — it was almost like home!"
That’s exactly the feeling the
community wishes to convey.
"The Sycamore is located in historic
Shrewsbury, nestled in a quiet wooded
area within the active-adult community
of Thornbrooke," relates Nicole Serluco,
administrator of the facility. "We’re
close to Route 35, to upscale retail
stores, churches, and several Meridian
medical facilities."
Marcia continues with her praise:
"I’ve never once heard a mean, unkind,
or even exasperated remark from any of
The Sycamore’s staff. I realize it certainly
can’t always be easy, but they are always
responsive, patient, kind, and gentle."
When asked how she’s coming along,
Virginia replies with a coy smile and a
hint of laughter, "Slowly." And, indeed,
maybe it’s best that she’s taking things
slowly, considering everything she’s been
through over the past couple of years.
Her residence has changed in that time,
but what hasn’t changed is her
contagious sense of humor and her
cheery disposition. "I can’t say enough
about the help they provide for me here
— they’re marvelous. I feel like they’re
all my new best friends."
 – Chris Teasdale
Mulholland, Brendan J., M.D.
Board certified in Family Practice
Red Bank, NJ 07701
(732) 842-3050
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Murphy, Bernard P., M.D.
Board certified in Orthopedic Surgery
Red Bank, NJ 07701
(732) 741-2313
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O'Keefe, Arthur A., Jr., M.D.
Board certified in Internal Medicine
Tinton Falls, NJ 07724
(732) 741-7400
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