Bethany Silloway joins the management team at Gifford’s independent living program

Bethany Silloway has been named the director of operations at Strode Independent Living, a 49-unit apartment complex for seniors aged 65 and older at Morgan Orchards Senior Living Community in Randolph Center, Vt.

Silloway has worked at Gifford Health Care since 2012 and spent her first five years as the manager of their Randolph-based specialty clinic. In 2017, she transitioned to Gifford’s community relations coordinator, where she not only managed patient concerns but coordinated the organization’s community outreach events, allowing her to establish relationships with both patients and the general community throughout central Vermont.

In joining the Strode team, Silloway assumes the management of day-to-day operations, working closely with Diane Way, the community’s director of sales.

“This new structure allows Diane to focus on working with new residents up until we hand them the keys, at which point I become their go-to person,” said Silloway. “I’ll help orient new residents and take care of them once they’re moved in. Every day, my goal is to make sure the needs of all of our residents are taken care of–from cleaning, to meals, to their entertainment.”

In her new role, Silloway will direct daily operations including staff oversight, and building and property maintenance. She will also work closely on resident engagement and activities, resident communications, and assisting in the coordination of community-based groups, such as the landscaping committee.

Silloway shared her enthusiasm about the move,

“I moved away from Vermont but came back because there really is no place like home. Anytime I’ve come to Strode for a visit or an event, I always felt at home and so welcomed. And I’ve always been intrigued by what this building has to offer and excited by the opportunity to be involved in that.”

Opened in 2018, Strode is the second building on the Morgan Orchards campus. The first was the award-winning 30-bed skilled nursing facility, Menig Nursing Home. Menig relocated to the property in 2015 from its previous location attached to Gifford Medical Center in Randolph.

Since opening the independent living building has seen consistent community growth, and today is approximately 71% occupied. Of its six apartment layout options, only a handful of each is still available. Apartments range in size from a 602 square foot studio to a 1,075 square foot two-bedroom unit.

The independent living lifestyle offered by Strode enables residents to give up burdensome home maintenance chores such as winter shoveling, mowing lawns, and tending to household upkeep chores. Instead, the staff takes care of the routine apartment maintenance and light housekeeping. Residents can enjoy chef-prepared meals and 30-acres of scenic meadowland that offers both ground and raised gardens to tend, an apple orchard, a pond, and over a mile of walking trails to enjoy.

“I see this lifestyle as a gift for both the residents and their children because it takes away the burden of taking care of a home, of mowing lawns and shoveling steps. Living here means families can spend more quality time together,” shared Silloway on what she sees as one of the greatest benefits of communities like Strode and their ability to enable seniors to maintain their independence while shedding unnecessary burdens.

“This is our residents’ home, but this community is also my home,” Silloway added. “I want to make sure Strode is here for my own aging relatives as well as me and my friends, so we can remain in this community as we get older.”

Silloway lives in Randolph Center, just around the corner from Morgan Orchards, on a family-run dairy farm with her husband, children, and lots of animals. When she’s not working she enjoys going for horse rides, walking her property with her kids and dogs, attending her children’s sporting events, and being an active member of the community.