For resident Patrick Lenihan, living at The Woodlands is a true family affair. His daughter is a doctor at Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital, APD Lifecare’s affiliated medical center, while her daughter — Patrick’s granddaughter— is a Hanover High School student with a job in the dining room.
“My wife and I visited The Woodlands some years back, and we felt it was a very attractive place, but it wasn’t really suitable to our needs at the time,” said Patrick, whose two other children live in Wisconsin and California. “More recently, my primary reason for moving is that my daughter lives here, and I thought it was time for me to move to closer to one of my children.”
Patrick has loved being around family since joining the Woodlands community nearly six months ago, after moving to New Hampshire from Charleston, Illinois following the loss of his wife. Prior to that, he lived in the Illinois area for more than 50 years, where he was employed as a professor of economics at Eastern Illinois University.
Patrick is pleased with his new home beyond the proximity to family, though, and said he enjoys keeping busy with healthy activities. He tries to exercise at least five days a week and often takes advantage of The Woodlands’ fitness classes, including chair exercise, yoga, aerobics and tai chi.
“There are a lot of things to do around here,” said Patrick. “The activities at The Woodlands would be interesting to almost anybody. There are residents here who do more cultural things, but I’ve been mostly doing exercise classes and games. But they also host lectures by members of the community and people from outside as well.
“I also find The Woodlands to be a very attractive place,” he added. “It’s well laid out, it has a swimming pool, a weight room, a pool table. It’s really nicely appointed.”
Now that spring is in full swing and all Woodlands residents have been vaccinated, Patrick said he is excited to go out strolling in the courtyard and enjoy outdoor concerts in the warmer months. He is also looking forward to going on outings organized by The Woodlands’ trips committee, which, like The Woodlands’ activities committee, is run exclusively by residents.
“The people here are very welcoming, I must say. I’ve met virtually every one of the residents,” Patrick said, and went on to list two other personal highlights: his spacious two-bedroom apartment and the tasty, nutritious meals available in the dining room.
“They have a main menu here which is great, but if you don’t like any of the selections for a particular day, you can turn the menu to the back page which has standard cuisine like omelets,” he said. “There hasn’t been a meal here I haven’t liked, so I’ve still never eaten from the back page!”
Thank you, Patrick, for sharing your thoughts, and for being a valued resident of The Woodlands! It’s residents like you who make our community so special.
