Thabo and Thembeka were happily married and lived in the same house for most of their married life. Their adult children often came to visit but as career opportunities came along and their children moved abroad, Thabo and Thembeka filled their time by seeing friends and sticking to their daily routines.
Just before their 55th wedding anniversary, Thembeka had a bad fall and sadly passed away. Thabo was devastated! At the age of 78, not only did he have to come to terms with the loss of his beloved wife, but he also had to pack up and sell their family home, find a smaller house and start a new life. He couldn’t expect his children to do it all for him and he was at a great loss.
We understand how difficult these situations are for anybody going through a major life change and having to do it on your own, is a great blow.
Let’s face it, we all want to be in a place where we feel welcome. A place where we feel a sense of belonging, a place that feels like home surrounded by like-minded people.
For a man like Thabo, who is now on his own, there are many things to do in our village. We host:
- wine tasting evenings,
- happy hour,
- sport matches that are shown in the clubhouse
- a weekly boules match
- card clubs (canasta)
- weekly shopping trips to the malls and
- outings arranged with the garden club
At The Somerset Lifestyle Retirement Village, the entry age is a mere 50 years, the age at which we should all be planning our retirement. A good policy is to make these major retirement decisions whilst you are still able. We are here to welcome you and help you make those decisions every step of the way.
The lyrics of the theme song to “Cheers” (*) comes to mind:
(* an American sitcom television series that was aired on SABC many years ago)
“Be glad there’s one place in the world
Where everybody knows your name
And they’re always glad you came
You want to go where people know
People are all the same
You want to go where everybody knows your name…”
The Somerset is a luxury retirement village situated in Somerset West. It’s an elegant haven for over-50s who wish to retire in a luxurious, tranquil and secure setting where they can discover their own sense of belonging. To contact us, click here.
