The Lantern Alzheimer’s Center of Excellence Opening Early 2025
The Lantern at Morning Pointe Alzheimer’s Center of Excellence, Hardin Valley will offer expanded care services to better serve the growing need for early memory care.
The Lantern is joining Morning Pointe of Hardin Valley Assisted Living and Memory Care to comprise Phase II of the senior living campus. It is located at 2433 Reagan Road in Knoxville. The Lantern will feature 60 apartments that encompass two levels of memory care – the new Lamplight for early stages of Alzheimer’s and other dementias, along with the current Lantern for the more advanced stages.
Greg A. Vital, Morning Pointe Senior Living co-founder and president, shared: “We are seeing an increased need for memory care services, especially for early memory care, and with this expansion in Hardin Valley, Knoxville, Morning Pointe is rising to meet that need, committing to serving more residents and families and supporting them on their journey with Alzheimer’s and dementia.”
Offering two distinct areas for stage-appropriate care all under one roof:
The Lamplight Program is for residents in the early to moderate stages of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. It offers a large, expansive environment that is secure and safe. It is also a more active area as residents are still able to engage in more lively activities.
The Lantern Program is for more advanced stages of Alzheimer’s/dementia and focuses on individual interests, life experiences, and personal strengths to ensure each resident benefits from personalized and purposeful support. It is a smaller, more intimate space that is designed to be calming for residents who may be more easily overstimulated.
Care staff will be specially trained in dementia and Alzheimer’s. Memory care programming to include the Best Friends™ Approach, Teepa Snow’s Positive Approach™ to Care, Meaningful Day™ purposeful programming, music therapy, art therapy and cuddle therapy.
Services and amenities at both communities will include:
- Licensed nurses providing oversight of health, wellness, and medication management
- Single-level living
- Licensed, clinical, and care staff available 24 hours a day
- 24-hour personalized care services
- Medication assistance and reminders
- Periodic check-ins
- Personal grooming assistance, such as bathing or getting dressed
- Assistance with transferring to a bed or chair
- Escorting to meals and events
- Incontinence management
- On-site occupational, physical, and speech therapy
Programming campuswide will include a variety of life enrichment such as arts and crafts, wellness offerings like exercise classes, and intergenerational activities, including partnering with local schools. Residents will also benefit from Morning Pointe’s Farm to Table program with local, farm-fresh and seasonal ingredients.
Founded in 1997 by healthcare entrepreneurs Greg A. Vital (president) and J. Franklin Farrow (CEO), Morning Pointe Senior Living operates assisted living and Alzheimer’s memory care communities in five southeastern states: Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama and Indiana. Other locations in the greater Knoxville area include Clinton, Knoxville, Lenoir City and Powell.
The Lantern at Morning Pointe Alzheimer’s Center of Excellence, Hardin Valley, is expected to open in early 2025. It will create approximately 60 permanent healthcare positions and is estimated to have a positive economic impact of more than $25 million annually, considering payroll, property taxes and local purchase of goods and services. It will be the 40th Morning Pointe Senior Living community.
The philanthropic arm of Morning Pointe Senior Living is the Morning Pointe Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that works to provide clinical scholarships and caregiver support.
