Standout Senior Living at Marsh's Edge

The beautiful natural surroundings, temperate weather, golf courses, community activities, and availability of necessary resources and services make St. Simons Island an attractive place to retire. It also offers stellar senior living options. Since it opened in 2006, the reputation of Marsh’s Edge as the island’s premier luxury senior living community has been well established.

Located on 78 acres, the breathtaking beauty of Marsh’s Edge is complemented by meandering lagoons, pristine marshlands and mature southern live oak trees draped in Spanish moss. This Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) was founded to help seniors live longer, healthier, and happier lives and at its heart is a warm and inviting spirit. Their aim at Marsh’s Edge is to help people to age in place and be able to stay in their home, whether an apartment or a cottage home, without having to go to institutional care. As such, Members have access to a full array of services including Active Adult Living, Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care, Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation. This means if your needs change, there is no need to relocate as you’ll have easy access to the care you require.

Their goal at Marsh’s Edge is to help their members stay involved and have a worry-free lifestyle They do this through wellness programs, excellent dining services, curated social calendars and by providing a community where Members feel secure and surrounded by friends. This gives them the freedom to do more things, go more places, spend more time with family, visit more with friends and just generally, live a better life, or what they call a “weller life.” Executive Director Chris Thorpe invited us to talk to Members Dennie and Frances McCrary to get a closer look this “weller life” at Marsh’s Edge.

Longtime St. Simons Island residents, Dennie and Frances McCrary are well known in the Golden Isles community. They have been involved in and support numerous local charities and are active members of St. Simons Presbyterian Church. Until recently, Dennie was on the Board of the Coastal Community Foundation. Frances was a co-founder of the St. Simons Land Trust and was instrumental in creating its popular annual Oyster Roast fundraiser, which began in 2020. She’s also been involved with the Coastal Symphony of Georgia. The McCrarys moved to Marsh’s Edge in October 2021. They explain that they had decided years ago to move to a retirement community before their children made that decision for them. Frances says that some persistent back problems she was battling over the past year made them realize that it was the right time to make that leap. And so, the choice was made to relocate to Marsh’s Edge.

The McCrarys knew of Marsh’s Edge outstanding reputation, so it was immediately a consideration. “We have lived on St. Simons and Sea Island for almost 50 years and did not want to leave the area. We looked at several places and found that Marsh’s Edge was a great fit for us,” says Frances. “The community is built in a beautiful, wooded area of the island where deer roam freely and an osprey nests right by the lake. The houses and apartments are very spacious with nice storage areas. We liked the sense of community that we felt among the residents here.” Dennie adds that the fact that Marsh’s Edge offered “the total package, including nursing care, if needed,” was important to them. Frances explained, “A big draw was the progressive care that is available to us as we face the years ahead. In the meantime, there are numerous opportunities to stretch ourselves mentally, physically, and socially. We also appreciate the efforts of the staff to enhance a feeling of community among the residents with the activities that are offered.”

They haven’t been disappointed with their choice. Frances says, “The amenities and services that we have found have more than lived up to our expectations. Many people seem to think that you are ‘throwing in the towel’ when you move to a retirement community, but we have found Marsh’s Edge to be a lively lifestyle with more activities than we can handle.” In fact, Frances adds, “Marsh’s Edge seems to have thought of what amenities/services to provide before I knew I wanted or needed them! Little things like the newspaper delivered to our door, laundry returned the same day, and weekly housekeeping services, help to make life easier for us.” When asked if there’s anything that the McCrarys do now that they did not before moving to Marsh’s Edge, their response: “Relax!”

Frances says she still enjoys playing weekly bridge games with old friends, and now she and Dennie have joined in one of the most popular activities at Marsh’s Edge, the bi-weekly Trivia game. They’re also part of a monthly Book Club and attend Sunday worship services that feature various local preachers delivering the sermon. She adds that they often join friends before dinner to have a glass of wine in the bar where conversation is very lively and interesting. They’re also fans of the fun monthly Signature Event. Frances explains, “It could be any theme from Downton Abby to Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Activities that week follow the theme with a special dining experience one night. One recent event was Miami Vice, complete with the opportunity to play Black Jack or the Roulette Wheel and win Marsh’s Edge dollars, good for a drink or dessert.”

When asked if there are any programs or amenities at Marsh’s Edge that they haven’t yet availed themselves of, but would like to, Frances replies, “Natalie Dixon heads up a Wellness team that gets high marks but we have not really taken advantage of all the classes offered. There are also frequent outings to events both local and in Jacksonville and Savannah that we have not participated in but hope to in the future. We opted not to go on the ‘Indoor Skydiving trip but were surprised at how many residents wanted that experience.”

The McCrarys also agree that the reputation Marsh’s Edge has for its excellent dining is well deserved. Dennie especially enjoys meals in the dining room, which he says provides an experience reminiscent of the old Cloister dining room. He also appreciates that there are “more special wine dinners than you can take advantage of!” They praise Chef Jayson Ridinger for doing a great job of satisfying so many different tastes. They’re pleased to always find steak (a very good filet, by Dennie’s standards) and salmon on the menu with new specials added each week. Frances says even the soups and salads are excellent and counts the shrimp and grits as one of her favorite dishes. She also enjoys the monthly ‘Chef’s Supper Club’ that gives Jayson an opportunity to really showcase his culinary talents.

The staff at Marsh’s Edge in general has garnered rave reviews from the McCrarys. Dennie has been impressed, calling everyone “very pleasant, compassionate, and helpful.” He appreciated John Killgallon’s helpfulness when they were making the decision to move, and calls Steve Grimes “everybody’s hero.” Frances adds, “We feel the staff works very hard to keep a demanding group of seniors happy and engaged, not an easy task. They are all very friendly and anxious to keep the residents happy, with an attitude of doing what it takes to get the job done. Executive Director Chris Thorpe, Social Director Annsley Felton and Services Director Steve Grimes, often step in to wait tables or move furniture, etc, if there is not enough staff to do it. This has been especially important in the recent past with COVID restrictions limiting staff.”

We’ll wrap up with some thoughts offered by the McCrarys for others considering moving to a retirement community. Frances says, “The thought of moving and going through the process of down-sizing is overwhelming to most people. It certainly was to us! It IS difficult, but we also found it to be very liberating. If anyone is even thinking of moving to a retirement community, they should at least check out their options and know first-hand what is available. We visited Marsh’s Edge and talked with John Killgallon numerous times before deciding that it was the right move for us. And then they worked with us to make the transition as seamless as possible.” Dennie says, “Plan ahead! Don’t wait until you’re forced to do it. Moving, downsizing, etc. can be very difficult.” Sound advice from a wise couple! The transition to life at Marsh’s Edge has certainly been positive for the McCrarys, as well as many other Members of the community we count as oufriends and neighbors. Frances shares, “Now that we feel truly settled, we are very happy here. Dennie loves not having to worry about yardwork or a leaky roof, and I love not having to think about getting a nice meal on the table. And although we still feel a part of the greater island community, we also feel a great sense of community here with many old friends as neighbors and many new and very interesting friends from all over.”

We thank the McCrarys for graciously opening their home to us and sharing their experience. It’s clear that Marsh’s Edge ticks off all the boxes in the Most Likely to Succeed category for senior living in the Golden Isles.

To learn more about Marsh’s Edge or to schedule an appointment with a Lifestyle Advisor, call 912.771.1104 or visit Marshs-Edge.com.