Tommy didn’t know what to expect when he moved to Terracina Grand with his wife after discovering she had dementia. “When I came here, I wanted activity but I didn’t know what to expect, and I didn’t know how to channel the reasons for my existence,” he says.
After moving in, Tommy discovered Soaring®, a program that focuses on supporting the spirit, and it was through this program that he met Ria, a Spiritual Care Director.
Ria helped Tommy understand the greater purpose for his own personal life, while the community helped him give his wife the care she needs. “If you look at the entire community, everybody here offers some kind of help whether it be physical, mental, spiritual,” Tommy says.Watch his story:
Leading the Veteran’s Program
Ria played a huge part in helping Tommy realize his potential by embracing his natural gift of leadership. Tommy served as a Marine, and the lessons he learned in the military bolstered his skills and crafted him into a driven leader. “Tommy has the biggest heart of anyone you will meet,” Ria says. “He finds his meaning and his purpose in being a leader and giving back.”
Tommy enabled his military-bred leadership skills with Ria by launching Terracina Grand’s Valiant Veterans®, a program open to anyone who has served in the U.S. military, as well as their spouses, family members and friends.
Ria and Tommy’s Relationship
Ria helps Tommy coordinate events for the program, but Tommy is in charge of leading those events within the community.
His relationship with Ria has helped him grow as an individual, a leader, and a caretaking husband. And he’s formed a tight bond with her as a friend.
“We have a one-on-one relationship and that’s what’s been cultivated,” Tommy says. “She put me at a different level, I think. I hope she never leaves. Or at least I hope I leave first!”
Finding Purpose in a Community
Since moving into Terracina Grand and joining Soaring, Tommy enjoys a powerful connection with his community. He serves them as a veteran leader and enjoys forming new bonds with friends and family. “The people here have really instilled so much love and friendship,” he says. “Are my retirement years beautiful? Absolutely, I couldn’t ask for anything better. Best years of my life.”
