Passion for helping seniors spurs Goodlife expansion

Deciding to move out of a legacy family home or even a comfortable long-standing rental can be a difficult change and emotional challenge for many older adults.

However, sometimes transitions bring unanticipated benefits.

For Bob, all it took was one visit to The Meadows of Fond du Lac community to see the advantages of a lifestyle with great amenities. He loved having the adjacent Rolling Meadows golf course within walking distance and also enjoyed meeting his golf partners or friends at the Back Nine Lounge, which he called “The Pub.”

This kind of joyous discovery and comfort through care are the foundation of Goodlife Assisted Living.

In 1989, Tim Burns founded New Haven Inc., opening a 20-bed group home in Oshkosh. At the time, his wife Julie Burns was a registered nurse who worked in a senior care community and saw an opportunity to expand senior care living options beyond conventional nursing homes. Julie’s vision was to give seniors a chance to enjoy “the pride and dignity of having their own home” in an assisted living setting.

Julie passed away in 2006 due to breast cancer but Tim, as owner/director, and now their son, Jacob, assistant director, are carrying on her legacy. Along the way, Tim changed the name to Goodlife Assisted Living to better reflect Julie’s passion and encompass the innovations made to help seniors navigate their golden years.

Today, with more than three decades of experience in the senior care business, Tim has extended his Goodlife holdings even further with Community First as his financing partner.

Goodlife’s The Meadows of Fond du Lac campus – designed for active seniors and conveniently located alongside Rolling Meadows Golf Course – provides a community setting with access to long-term and hospice care. “Assisted living is really expanding and creating a lifestyle for our residents,” Burns said. “When they move in, we really make a difference and we see our resident’s lives improve substantially just because of the activities and socialization and all the things occurring in that environment.”

Construction is nearing completion on The Manor at the Meadows, a new memory care facility opening in March 2024.

“When we looked at developing properties, we wanted something that was going to help the community; Community First shares that same passion for helping people and being engaged in the community,” said Burns, who also owns and operates assisted living communities Arborview Manor and Oakwood Manor in Oshkosh and Webster Manor in Omro.

“Community First has been a terrific partner for us and John Nygaard (Community First VP of Business Lending) has been amazing,” Burns said.

A decade ago, Burns sought to restructure Goodlife’s debt and he found Community First as a valuable financing partner, assisting with pursuit and approval of an SBA (Small Business Administration) loan that made a significant difference. “That’s created financial security for the future,” Burns said.

The ongoing relationship is important and supportive to Goodlife’s success. Throughout the financing and construction of the Fond du Lac campus, Community First accommodated his needs. “John is always there when I need him,” Burns said.

“The theme behind Goodlife is, ‘Savor life’s simple pleasures, we’ll take care of the rest.’ With Community First, you can savor the simple pleasures in life with the financial services they provide.”

Burns is glad that residents like Bob have enjoyed a positive transition with Goodlife assisted living.

He believes the name Goodlife represents a desire to “create an environment for our guests that will improve the quality of their life. In essence, it’s everything that our company stands for – to provide high quality and compassionate services when people need it,” Burns added.

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