West Virginia Catholic Assisted Living

Catholic seniors looking for a faith-based assisted living in West Virginia may be faced with a challenge as there aren’t too many Catholic retirement communities in the state of West Virginia to choose from. Our local advisers can help you find the most suitable assisted living in WV that fits your needs. Give us a call – this service is free of charge.

Cost of Catholic Assisted Living in West Virginia

Catholic assisted living doesn’t offer any direct information about prices but what is available will likely come in at the same rates as all other assisted living facilities in the state. On a statewide basis, the average monthly rate is $3,750, which is about $250 under the national average for these facilities. You can find lower prices in Beckley, WV, where average rates are $3,250, but you’ll also find more pricy destinations, like Weirton, WV, where the average hits $4,500. Most of these assisted living centers are in in the western portion of the state. For more easterly settings, seniors may have to cross over into Virginia.

Catholic Assisted Living Communities in West Virginia - Amenities

Assuming seniors can find a true Catholic assisted living facility in West Virginia, they are most likely to be run by private owners, rather than any church affiliated organization. The one organization that does appear to be actively involved in caring for seniors, Catholic Charities of West Virginia, only offers home care. The fact that these will be privately owned and operated doesn’t suggest that they are any less valuable than a Catholic assisted living facility run by the church, as a non-profit. It just means they won’t have the same shared resources, that a church associated center will have.

In an odd sort of way, life in a secular home could prove to be more fulfilling for faithful Catholics. First, it will take a greater commitment to their faith when they are faced with finding alternative ways to live that faith. The effort alone can create a stronger and deeper sense of faith than they might enjoy if everything was there at their fingertips. It’s also an opportunity to do more evangelization among fellow seniors, which is something all of the faithful are called to do.

Catholic Retirement Communities in West Virginia - Religious Amenities

In a Catholic assisted living facility, the chapel is the very center of life. It is what anchors everyone, from the start of the day, with morning mass, and throughout the days and nights, whenever seniors feel the need to sit and talk with God. In a secular assisted living facility, there will almost always be a chapel as well, but in these centers, this is more of a contemplative space where there is no focus on any one faith, or on faith at all. When this is the case, seniors will have to find alternatives.

For the daily mass, they can try heading out to the nearest parish church when possible. When impossible, they can tune into the mass on TV or online. CCTN is the most common source for the daily devotions, but there may be others as well that are managed by the local Dioceses. Faithful seniors will probably already be familiar with these resources but if not, the parish office will certainly know where they can tune in.

To receive communion or to have a priest hear confession, seniors can also visit the parish church but as a group, seniors can also invite priests and lay ministers to visit them in the assisted living facility. This may need to be coordinated with the assisted living facility management team.

Even in non-Catholic assisted living facilities, the staff is a critically important amenity. Even if they don’t share the Catholic faith, having faith in God and a love for Jesus, will often be all that’s needed to ensure a compassionate and loving level of care that makes these senior living centers a great alternative to independent living.

Finally, seniors, as a group, can create an amenity that can be more powerful then they might imagine. Faith is meant to be shared and when that happens, it adds meaning, it deepens commitment, and it creates a shares blanket of faith, that enrich all of the members of that group, in equal parts. So, seniors that are looking at an assisted living facility that isn’t Catholic, still have options well worth considering.

Catholic Assisted Living Communities in West Virginia - General Amenities

Start with the basic care seniors coming into an assisted living facility are most likely going to need. These are commonly known as ADL’s or Assisted Daily Living tasks and they address daily personal activities that have become too difficult to accomplish independently. ADL tasks include basic housekeeping, laundry service, linen service and building maintenance, both indoors and outdoors, so the first things seniors can completely forget about doing is cutting the lawn or shoveling snow or doing the laundry and folding the sheets.

Then caregivers step in as needed and help seniors bathe, dress, groom, use the toilet and get up and around as the events of the day progress. They provide a helping hand with eating too when there’s a need. They offer medication management, bathroom reminders and more that help ensure nothing important is missed and life remain comfortable.

Now activity managers step in to create exciting opportunities to fill each day. Seniors certainly aren’t looking forward to being bored and assisted living centers don’t want that either. Active and happy seniors are healthier seniors and that is most definitely a shared goal. So, there will be all sorts of programs that touch the interests of all residents in one way or another. Maybe that will be with arts & crafts, or gardening. It could be with woodworking or some outdoor fun on the Bocce court or croquet lawn. It could be a series of educational programs, or just some relaxing game time. Whatever it is, there is something for everyone that wants to get up and get involved in living an active life.

Assisted living centers provide all of a senior’s daily meals and they do it with style. Professional chefs design delicious menus that are varied so everyone can find something they will enjoy without ever feeling like they’re getting stuck in a rut. These senior living centers also provide snacks throughout the day so energy level and metabolism remain where they need to be.

Only a few are, but some assisted living facilities are pet-friendly. This means that those seniors that have a loving dog or cat, will be able to bring them along when they move into these assisted living facilities. And as an added bonus, these pets and their seniors often become the center of attention in these communities so seniors hoping to make a lot of new friends, will probably have an easier time of it with their dog at their side or their cat in the lap.

No one needs to give up privacy when they enter an assisted living facility. Private apartments ensure everyone has a comfortable space they can call their own, and where they can comfortably entertain friends and family. Typically, these are offered in floor plans like studio and one-bedroom apartments. Most assisted living communities also offer semi-private rooms for seniors that are on a tighter budget and don’t mind sharing a bit. There are companion apartments in some assisted living facilities as well, where seniors can choose to share with a companion or family member if they wish. These will have a common living space that joins two separate bedrooms.

West Virginia is unlikely to meet all of the wants and desires of Catholic seniors but it does offer some very solid assisted living options that seniors will do well to consider.