Jim Knox, Greystone Communities senior vice president; Stan Waterhouse, SQLC president and CEO; Jesse Silas, The Buckingham associate executive director; Joe Anderson, SQLC board chairman; Julie Fenske, The Buckingham executive director; Bernie Francis, board member, SQLC and The Buckingham; Dr. Jan van Sant, board member, SQLC and The Buckingham (Photo Courtesy:The Buckingham)

The Buckingham, an SQLC retirement community, was recently awarded the Greystone Diamond Award for excellence in service. The annual award from Greystone, a senior living advisory group, honors senior living communities for extraordinary achievements in areas including hospitality, leadership development, financial performance and resident and employee satisfaction. The Greystone Diamond Award is the senior living development company’s highest honor, and is presented each year to honor distinctive service in a retirement community. The Buckingham was one of only six retirement communities nationwide to be recognized as a recipient of the Diamond Award in Greystone’s Distinctive Service Recognition Program.

“It’s an honor that we have now received this award for the fifth year in a row,” said Julie Fenske, executive director of The Buckingham. “The Diamond Award is a reflection of The Buckingham team’s dedication and attention to the high quality standards and benchmarks, and we take great pride in receiving this award. We pride ourselves on the level of service we provide to our residents every day, and it is wonderful to be recognized in this way. Through training, teamwork and always looking for new ideas, we are excited to continue providing our residents the high level of service that they have come to expect from The Buckingham.”

To qualify for the Diamond Award, a retirement community must meet stringent criteria based on ten operational benchmarks. The operational benchmarks include a resident expectation survey, employee expectation survey, first impression visits, financial ratios, hospitality culture implantation, task force participation, professional employee growth, leadership development, successful licensure, and community accomplishments.

Members of the media who want to cover this story can email Jena Spiro at jspiro@fortegroupinc.com

or call 214-378-7970 ext. 245, or contact Amy Jones at ajones@fortegroupinc.com or (214) 378-7970 ext. 302.

ABOUT THE BUCKINGHAM

The Buckingham, a Masterpiece Living Centers for Successful Aging certified community, is Houston’s premier life care senior living community located in the heart of the Memorial neighborhood. Situated on a 17-acre site along Buffalo Bayou at 8580 Woodway Drive, The Buckingham offers resort-style services and amenities for active, independent seniors, as well as all levels of health care services on-site at The Plaza at The Buckingham. The community features 204 independent living residences; 43 private assisted living apartments; 16 private memory support apartments; and 60 private skilled nursing suites.

The Buckingham is currently undergoing a $72 million expansion that will add 183 new residences, including 106 independent living apartment homes, 27 assisted living suites, 18 memory care residences and 32 private skilled nursing rooms. The new independent living apartment homes will be offered in one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans.

The Buckingham is a 501(c)(3)nonprofit senior living community sponsored by Senior Quality Lifestyles Corporation (SQLC), a Texas-based nonprofit organization that sponsors sister communities Edgemere in Dallas, Querencia at Barton Creek in Austin, The Stayton at Museum Way in Fort Worth, Mirador in Corpus Christi and The Barrington of Carmel in Indianapolis. For information visit www.buckinghamhouston.com, or call (832) 426-1372.