Moving to the village hasn’t meant giving up the life Bruce already had.
He continues his regular walks, meets friends out and about, and spends five hours each week back at Selwyn College tutoring students in English. After a career as a technical writer, the full-circle moment isn’t lost on Bruce. “It was actually my weakest subject at school,” he laughs.
When Bruce’s home began to feel like more house than he needed, he started thinking about what might suit him better – both now and in the years to come.
“My house was far too big, and I’m at the stage where I’m not as stable on the feet as I once was,” he says. “You don’t want to go climbing ladders and doing other stupid things, thinking you can do it.”
Living on his own, Bruce was also missing the everyday contact he’d had with others when working and volunteering with Scouts and Camp Quality, which supports kids affected by cancer.
As he planned for the future, Edmund Hillary Village appealed because 'everything’s in one place' – a community on his doorstep, the independent lifestyle he enjoys now, and levels of support should he need them later.
Above: Bruce loves his spacious apartment which he says has plenty of storage.
Top pic: Bruce loves looking out at the views from his first floor balcony.
He found moving from a large house to a two-bedroom apartment a surprisingly easy transition. “I have everything I could want here, and it’s large for an apartment. Lots of storage and plenty of space.” But the highlight for Bruce is out the window. “It has a nice view where I look across the village and the bowling green, all the way to the hills. There’s nothing in the way.”
Since moving in, Bruce has found plenty to keep him occupied. He plays bowls, enjoys a bit of snooker and makes use of the gym and pool. He sometimes joins morning tea after volunteering, and while he cooks a lot at home, he also enjoys the village dining for social meals. Then there’s happy hour. “A free drink with good company gets everybody out of the woodwork,” he laughs.
Bruce already knows a number of residents. “You don’t appreciate that daily contact with others until it’s gone,” he says. But now that he’s living in the village, “you can go down any time, and you always meet somebody.”
A keen walker, Bruce enjoys walking through the stunning village grounds at Edmund Hillary Village.
These days he describes himself as having 'a foot in both camps' – enjoying what Edmund Hillary Village has to offer while continuing to be part of the wider community. “I see village activities like walking groups that I can do in the future. I’m not doing them now, but as my needs change, I’ll probably spend more time at the village and get more involved in the daily activities.”
For Bruce, choosing a retirement village isn’t simply about finding somewhere that suits your life today. It’s about considering what life might look like further down the track. “You’ve got to think about not where you are now but where you could be, where you need to be in the future.”
For now, village life looks like taking part when it suits him and having his own space when it doesn’t. “You can make it what you want it to be.”
And while moving home inevitably comes with financial considerations, Bruce sees the return rather differently.
“It’s not just a monetary investment,” he says. “It’s investing in your life.”