Award-winning Florida Baptist Retirement center at Vero Beach recovers after September hurricanes

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VERO BEACH (FBW)—The Florida Baptist Retirement Center in Vero Beach is near the end of repairs and clean-up from hurricanes Frances and Jeanne in September. Administrator Tommy McDaniel told Florida Baptist Witness he “can now see the light at the end of the tunnel” on hurricane recovery, and, through it all, the center remains “financially sound.”

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Mrs. Ruth Truex, 102, has lived at the Florida Baptist Retirement Center for six years. According to administrator Tommy McDaniel, she still walks to meals in the dining room. The FBRC consistently receives the state’s highest ratings for senior facilities.

Hurricane Frances damaged the roofs of the nursing home building and one villa and felled trees on the 22-acre campus. Jeanne’s onslaught three weeks later damaged the roofs of two cottages. The nursing home building was repaired almost immediately after the storms, but the villa and two cottages remained unoccupied until December. McDaniel reported roofers were completing “patching” the porches of several of the units April 7.

“The residents are always happy to see work going on,” McDaniel said.

Several church groups have aided in the recovery, including some from out of state. McDaniel said churches in Miami have sent crews to trim the trees and grind stumps.

Even through the recovery process, the 45-year-old agency of Florida Baptist Financial Services has maintained its five-star rating from Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration. According to its administrator, FBRC is the only facility in the area to receive the highest rating.

The retirement center stands at capacity, with almost every unit filled. The nursing home houses 24 people; assisted living units hold 16; and in unit 1, which is the original building, there is room for 24. Thirty couples reside in the villas; and singles and couples fill the 12 cottages.

A feasibility study is underway to discern the facility’s future direction in building.

“My favorite solution would be to build more assisted living and apartments,” McDaniel said. “We want to make room for more people.”

For more information on the facility and the application process, visit www.floridabaptist.org.