Tauranga's Bob Owens Retirement Village has won Ryman Healthcare's Village of the Year award for 2020.
The news was announced during a virtual awards ceremony hosted by TV personalities Hilary Barry and Anika Moa and broadcast to Ryman's 36 villages and 12 construction sites around New Zealand and Australia.
The winning village is decided on a range of factors, Ryman board chair Dr David Kerr explained.
'The village that creates a sense of the residents loving the experience of being in the village, a feeling where the staff love to go to work and feel fulfilled and honoured in their work, a sense of community within the village and being part of the wider community and a sense of pride in the physical appearance of the village and how it's presented, so it's a lot of different things but they're all important,” he said, before revealing Bob Owens had taken out the title.
The judges decided that all these things were true of the village, which has been operating in Bethlehem since 2012.
'Bob Owens has an excellent reputation in Tauranga because its residents love living there, and their families appreciate the care and attention their loved ones receive,” say the judges.
'The team, with Brian Bark at the helm since 2015, maintain good occupancy levels, have consistently positive staff survey ratings and provide excellent clinical care.”
Ryman Healthcare was founded in Christchurch in 1984 and owns and operates 36 retirement villages in New Zealand and Victoria. Ryman villages are home to 11,600 residents and the company employs 6000 staff.
In another coup for the village, clinical manager Tracey Dunn was a finalist in the Leader of the Year category.
'Tracey embodies everything that it means to be an outstanding leader and a wonderful Rymanian,” say the judges.
'She is approachable, understanding and unflappable, with a great sense of humour. Her genuine care and kindness are loved by residents and team members alike who find it an absolute honour to work with her.”
Village manager Brian Bark paid tribute to Tracey in his acceptance speech.
'Without Tracey, we wouldn't be the village that we are,” says Brian.
He also credited the outstanding gardening, maintenance and housekeeping teams for keeping the village looking so beautiful, the activities team, care staff and registered nurses for providing the residents with the best care, and he gave a special shout out and thank you to the village's kitchen and laundry staff and sales advisor Jan Corbett adding that they all combined together to make a ‘phenomenal team'.