Noelene’s journey to The Bayview is a story of resilience and warmth, as she finds comfort, community, and a true sense of belonging in a place she now happily calls home.
Noelene and her husband were living in Bowentown, near Waihi Beach, when he decided it was time for a move to Tauranga.
They started exploring their options, unsure of what the next step would look like.
“I’ll tell you what my concern was,” Noelene laughs. “You’ll laugh too - I said to my husband, ‘They don’t have a circular clothesline. Where am I going to hang my washing?’”
That moment captures Noelene’s spirit - practical, witty, and down-to-earth.
“To me, The Bayview is just so close to everything. Town, the hospital, the shops, everything I need.”
Their journey was interrupted when her husband sadly passed away in 2010. “I had to sell the house on my own,” she says. “And I thought, where am I going to go now?”
That’s when she discovered Village Guide. Through the website, she came across The Bayview in Tauranga and everything started to fall into place.
“To me, The Bayview is just so close to everything. Town, the hospital, the shops, everything I need.”
But the true turning point came when she stepped inside.
“I opened my villa, opened the door, and I just thought - this is it.”
Now, life is about making the most of every day.
Noelene talks about her experience at The Bayview Retirement Village.
“I’m on my own now, and I decided I was going to enjoy it. So I went on all the van trips, I met people, I chatted… here, I’m in my element.”
The community has become her greatest joy.
“I opened my villa, opened the door, and I just thought - this is it.”
"I’ve got all these people around me, and we have such a good time. Honestly, laughter really is the best medicine - and we’ve got lots of it.” Noelene’s story is one of resilience, humour, and finding joy in the next chapter.
Her words say it all: “I’m really pleased I came here. I really love it.”
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