There is a new assisted living and memory care community in southern Denton County, and it is something to see. It has been designed and staffed to offer a higher quality alternative and is already winning awards.
Co-owners Godwin Dixon and Teresa Whittington will happily point out every fun and therapeutic feature, medical process, system, and thoughtful design detail they’ve put in place at Teresa’s House in Argyle. That list is a country mile long, too, proving they’ve gone to great lengths to set a new standard in senior care by thinking of literally everything a loved one might need as they transition with dignity through their continuum of care.
That includes the one amenity a growing number of larger senior care communities in the country have tried to emulate but haven’t entirely perfected: It looks like a house and feels like home.
“Everyone wants to be home,” Dixon said. A proud smile stretched across his face as he stood near the kitchen while a small group of residents played a trivia game 10 feet away in the living room. “The problem is that as we age, most people’s homes are not built for senior care, and being home alone at that stage of your life isn’t necessarily good for you. That’s where we come in. We named it Teresa’s House because we wanted everyone to know this was nurse-owned and operated and was truly home. But as one family member told us while visiting her mother, ‘You can call it Teresa’s House all you want. We call it Carol’s House.’ And that couldn’t make us happier.”
Dixon added, “We want everyone to feel like this is their home.”
Dixon and Whittington are nationally recognized senior care professionals with over 60 years of combined experience in North Texas. But despite their success and commitment to doing the right thing for their residents, they knew the industry needed a new tone-setter to welcome residents and guests and eliminate even the smallest hint of a care facility. With locations in McKinney and Argyle, Teresa’s House more than achieves that dream thanks to a boutique, concierge home model in a neighborhood community.
Teresa’s House in Argyle opened in April and currently features four 16-room ranch-style homes. All meals are prepared in a beautiful, open family kitchen immediately adjacent to the dining area and just steps away from a traditional living room and sunroom. Natural light is abundant, allowing views of the landscaped grounds, garden paths, and the warm neighborhood feel of the community. They also have an activity center with a fully functional vintage kitchen and man cave/garage — complete with a classic 1965 Mustang — and a horse paddock with miniature horses named Bucky and Oreo for equine activities. They built the community to be therapeutic and fun for their seniors.
And all of it is fully accessible for supervised exploration, relaxation, and enjoyment.
“I was the CEO of the Presbyterian senior care system in Dallas for 17 years, and Teresa was COO and is an RN and BSN. She was the first to say that if we were ever to create something truly special where seniors thrive, we’d have to do it small,” Dixon said. “The reality is that your mom and dad are different from mine, and in a community with 80 to 100 people, you can’t fully know everyone. We knew a home setting would be the best. And that’s what we have here. Folks can come here and live a normal life in a safe and secure environment where they can walk around freely without any concerns. It really is beautiful and homelike with plenty of front porches and walking areas.”
While the goal was to eliminate even the smallest hint of feeling like you’re in a care facility, the care behind the scenes is top-notch and state-of-the-art. Rather than have residents with different care needs combined, each of the four ranch homes caters to a specific level of senior care (assisted living, early to mid-stage Alzheimer’s/memory care, and advanced care). As a resident requires more care, they simply move to another home within the community, where that level of care is beautifully and uniquely met. And each house is identical, so it is not confusing for residents to transition to a new environment when they move.
The perfect size (16 residents per house) of the community allows their team of licensed nurses and state-certified care providers to truly get to know each resident and their families. In addition, they can plan each resident’s specific care needs and give them a renewed sense of purpose every day.
“As a nurse, I understand the importance of having nurses on-site, 24/7,” Whittington said. “I understand the importance of state-certified professionals providing care and passing medications. This is not the norm in assisted living and memory care, but it should be. We have the highest level of staff and the best ratios because that is what it takes to truly provide the best in care. I work with every staff member to teach them how to work with our residents, especially those with memory loss.”
Just a few of the additional care services and amenities at Teresa’s House include a 1:5 caregiver-to-resident ratio, 24-7 licensed nurses and state-certified care team, 24/7 physicians on call, medication management, daily physical fitness and activities programming, family-style meals, on-site beauty and barber shops, spacious private suites, and gourmet kitchens.
Each room comes complete with large closets, large windows for natural light, and bathroom pocket doors that don’t open inward (much safer). Optional beds are even available that can lower to the ground in case a resident is a fall risk — and in memory care, there are a number of therapeutic features that help residents thrive. Perhaps the most striking design feature is that there is no shared AC ductwork between resident rooms to keep potential illnesses from spreading throughout the house. There are also air scrubbers (with UV lighting) in the main HVAC system to constantly purify the air.
“There are so many important aspects to design that are key to supporting seniors, and we have worked to incorporate all of them in Teresa’s House,” Whittington said. “Our color palate is both beautiful and therapeutic. We have no fluorescent lighting, and our heating and cooling system is whisper-quiet and incredibly comfortable. The furniture is designed to be comfortable, supportive, and durable – so it will stay beautiful. Our bathrooms are beautiful and highly functional. We built air-safe buildings that were called the safest in the state, which are just the beginnings of what we have done. We even have special wardrobes for memory care that help cue seniors through the dressing process, which is important for retaining dignity.”
In just a short amount of time, the communities in McKinney and Argyle have already won several “Best Of” competitions for their commitment to providing high-quality care and services, including the recent “Best of Denton County” awards. They are about to start an intergenerational partnership with Liberty Christian School and plan to follow that with partnerships with Argyle and Northwest ISD. Dixon and Whittington are pioneers in intergenerational care, and the community has been beloved by children of all ages.
“The one comment we hear all the time is that we’ve truly thought of everything,” Dixon added. “We’ve spent a great deal of time planning every last detail, and the results have been amazing. A lot of families want top quality care for their loved ones, and our goal is to provide it. The bottom line is that we hold ourselves to a higher standard, and seniors are thriving at Teresa’s House with many families reporting they have got their mom/dad back.”
To learn more about Teresa’s House, Teresa asks that you please visit them at teresashouse.com, on Facebook, Teresa’s House – Argyle, or call for a tour at (940) 220-6937.
