Georges Estate: Now Open

Georges Estate

NOW OPEN

The latest addition to the Hall & Prior NSW Group has opened its doors, making it the 30th industry-leading aged care home to join the family.

In October Hall & Prior opened Georges Estate Health & Aged Care Community in Penshurst, a world-class luxury aged care home in the fast-growing Georges River area in NSW. The $70-million home is a state-of-the art facility with stringent COVID-19 infection controls in place, as well as specialist care units. It is the group’s 13th home in NSW. The 111-bed facility, located at 1 Centre St in Penshurst, is aimed at the ageing population in this popular part of Sydney, as well as the general public who can use some of its amenities.

“Georges Estate represents the culmination of our experience in designing innovative residences with all of the features of a luxury hotel,” Hall & Prior Chief Executive Officer Graeme Prior said.

“We have created a Wellness Centre, specialist health clinic and hydrotherapy pool for our residents. This is a new era of aged care, with cutting edge amenities, including BBQ areas, a gymnasium, private dining room and cinema.” The Wellness Centre provides physiotherapy, restorative care, exercise rehabilitation and is available for use by the general public. A key element at Georges Estate throughout COVID-19 is the requirement for all staff to be fully vaccinated. Residents and visitors are also encouraged to get the jab with Rapid Testing in place and a nurse onsite 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “Keeping our residents and staff safe is our number one priority at Hall & Prior,” Graeme added. “With the ongoing support of the Georges River Council, Georges Estate will provide better outcomes for local residents and the wider community in a safe, comfortable and convenient location, as well as home care for those who wish to remain in their residences.”

The facility also features spacious single or double bedrooms and suites, as well as a private guest room and dining room for family stays and functions. Georges Estate has an in-house chef and culinary team who prepare fresh meals, snacks and beverages on a daily basis, catering for all cultures, tastes and dietary requirements.

Visit georgesestate.com.au for more information.

NEW BEGINNINGS The first residents have been welcomed to Georges Estate, Hall & Prior’s 30th aged care home nationally.

Meet Maureen and John - first residents at Georges Estate

As Georges Estate finally opens its doors, first residents John and Maureen Kneipp are determined to enjoy their lives together in their new home, after 63 years of marriage and a lifetime of wonderful memories.

Maureen and John met while they were living in the suburb of Marrickville almost 67 years ago. After getting married in 1958, they bought their first house in nearby Earlwood, where they lived until their first child was born. Their next move was to a house in Narwee where they had three more children (including twin girls); with four children in tow, they quickly realised they had outgrown their home. So they bought a newly built larger home in Peakhurst Heights in 1970. In 1971 they had another child and then again in 1973; a grand total of six children, three girls and three boys. Having six children obviously had an influence on their lifestyle. They were dedicated to family life with John at one time holding down three jobs. Working by day in the city as an accountant, he was a barman at Massey Golf Course by night and pencilled at the horse races on weekends. Maureen kept the wheels turning at home with military precision, and thrived on organisation. One of her favourite sayings is: ‘a place for everything and everything in its place’, and it stood the couple in very good stead. It’s a mantra she truly believes in to this day - just ask John or her children about the consequences of leaving shoes, clothes, tools, newspapers or empty plates and glasses lying around.

Once their youngest child was in high school Maureen re-joined the workforce to ensure the children didn’t want for anything. Maureen was incredibly house proud, so she was always coming up with new ways of enhancing their home and when the children were young, John spent many hours building rockeries, painting, wall papering, moving furniture and climbing up and down ladders to ensure all his wife’s plans came to fruition. Most importantly, he made sure she had enough space to store her numerous pairs of shoes, which she was very fond of. Once the children grew up and left home it was time to downsize with a move back to a single storey home in Mortdale. Maureen continued to come up with new ways to express her passion for home design, but John now had the luxury of paying someone else to do the work while he pursued his love of golf in an effort reduce his handicap.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER John and Maureen Kneipp are continuing their 63-years of marriage in Georges Estate. Above, the couple with Hall & Prior’s Emma Juretic, Executive Director of Care at the new home.

Story continued overleaf.

FAMILY FRIENDLY John and Maureen are looking forward to many happy days at Georges Estate with visiting family and friends.

However, like the majority of golfers, he mostly enjoyed lingering on the 19th hole. John also has a great love of sport - he will watch any sport if Australia is involved. He also likes horse racing and can negotiate his way around a form guide better than Gai Waterhouse.

Maureen and John have been blessed with eight grandchildren and during their retirement, it was evident that family came

Maureen kept the wheels turning at home with military precision . . . “

first, as they spent many hours babysitting and helping out when needed to enjoy their role as Grandma and Grandpa.

This wonderful couple have just celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary, and wish to continue their journey together. They believe that Georges Estate Health & Aged Care Community will provide them with the perfect environment to remain together.

Flower power

Hall & Prior has a legion of unsung heroes who perform daily acts of kindness and generosity across all the Group’s many homes. These volunteers, who largely give their time for free to enrich the lives of residents, may attend homes to read books aloud, talk to residents or even just help around the home where they can. One such very special member of the WA Hall & Prior community is Natascha Gacia - otherwise known as

‘the flower lady’.

Natascha’s day job as a special education teacher for children with disabilities perhaps gives a hint of her caring nature. She’s also a volunteer for Feed It Forward Perth, a network of people dedicated to supporting their communities and helping those in need. Natascha and others in this group collect perfectly edible food which would otherwise be discarded from supermarkets and other outlets, distributing food to families in need each week.

In addition to all this, for the past three months, Natascha has also been delivering fresh flowers to residents at Leighton Aged Care Home, a selfless act inspired by the fact a local flower store was throwing away otherwise perfectly good flowers.

“I thought that it would be nice to use them and to bring a smile to the residents at Leighton, especially as I live nearby,” said Natascha. “My own grandparents have passed away and I thought that this would be a good way of interacting with aged care residents in their absence.”

It’s a lovely way too for her own daughter to be able to get to know the older generation; her little girl often accompanies Natascha on a flower delivery run to Leighton. “She loves getting involved and handing bouquets to the residents.”

Natascha would like to extend a thank you to several organisations which help her distribute otherwise wasted produce and flowers.

“I’d like to thank Feed It Forward, Second Bite, Sealanes, Woolworths and Oasis Fresh.”

Natascha Gacia delivers beautiful blooms to the residents of Leighton Aged Care Home - an act of kindness that’s not lost on staff or residents.