I’m 93 years old and my name is Charles Muller.
I was born in Arkansas, and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I went a year and a summer to LSU and then went with some buddies of mine to Louisiana College, which is a small Baptist college in the heart of Louisiana.
I asked my minister of music; how do I know what God wants me to do? He said, Charles, don’t sweat it, don’t make it a big deal. He said that you just tell the Lord, hey, I’m available, God, what do you want? And so, I did. And I ended up going into church music for over 50 years and serving here in Florence at First Baptist Church for 18 of those years.
I knew about The Manor when I lived in Florence, I knew it was a good place, and I knew the people here were well cared for because I would visit our members from First Baptist who lived here. I don’t know that I would have ever thought about myself personally living here, but I do remember thinking, this is a nice place.
The main thing I saw back then, of course, was the chapel. I sang for one of the services here, and it’s a beautiful, quiet, solemn kind of place. It’s beautifully laid out. I love the style of the chapel. But it’s also just a quiet, gentle sort of feeling in the air. And I remember thinking that the chapel would be a good place just to go, just to sit. I had the privilege of going over there and sitting some. It was such a nice experience.
Relocating to The Manor was something I hadn’t expected. But after my second wife passed away and I needed a place to be, I didn’t want to overload my family with an extra body and mouth to feed and all that. My first thought was that I’ll rent a nice apartment somewhere. Then I thought, well, if I go to The Manor, I’ll have people all around me, I can meet as many people as I want to meet, or I can hibernate in my room, do my thing, and I’m still going to be cared for.
I decided to move to The Manor.
Two weeks later, I fell and broke my hip.
I was delayed in getting fully settled in Independent Living, but I was treated beautifully in Assisted Living the short time I was there recovering with my hip. I have recovered well, had some great physical therapists; they take their job seriously. But I feel like I’m close to being back where I was, almost back to where I was when I moved here.
I remember thinking; we’re in good hands out here. Especially when, like in my case, when your spouse is gone and it’s just you, and you don’t want to be off in some place all alone.
The thing that turned out to be good for me was I not only found a place where I’ve got other people all around, but I’ve got medical care available right here. I think it’s a good thing to consider being someplace where, as I found out 7 o’clock on a Saturday morning, if you fall and break a hip, you have someone just around the corner, who can be there in the drop of a hat. Having known of The Manor beforehand and knowing what kind of facility it is, I was glad that I came here. And, you know what, it paid off.
Before I moved here, my wife and I lived in an Assisted Living community in Texas, as she was the one who needed care, and I was just there with her. After she passed away, I came here, and I began to wonder if it was going to live up to what we just came from in Texas. Turns out, it’s just as good. People say that Texas is bigger and better than anybody else. Well, in a way that’s true, but if I could, I’d say, guess what? There’s another community down in South Carolina, and we’d stand toe to toe with you. I’ve been really pleased with all the care that I’ve gotten here compared to all the care that my wife got in Texas.
If something is needed here, it happens quickly. The few things I’ve needed, things being done in my apartment or for me physically, have been handled immediately and done well. Texas may be good, but hey, don’t forget about your sister Carolina down here. We’re doing good too.
I can’t say enough good things about the staff, they’re very well-trained. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I love it here. I’ve had a wonderful career, and I’ve had a wonderful life. I’ve had two wonderful brides. I guess I can say, God, you did me good, and don’t leave me now. And I know He won’t.
