Mission & Accreditation

The Mission of RiverWoods, a not-for-profit charitable organization, is to maintain creative and secure continuing care communities that enrich the freedom of senior living while easing the challenging of aging.

RiverWoods at Exeter started as a dream in the early 1980’s around the dining room table of Rosemary Coffin and Maryanna Hatch. They worked with a grassroots of Seacoast residents who were interested in fostering a new way to live while growing older. Their goal was to develop an active community of interested adults who cared about each other and the world around them.

Ten years after that first conversation, after hundreds of planning sessions, budget revision and town meetings, the land and funding came together. In 1994, the first campus of RiverWoods was opened. Today, we are a thriving, vibrant, independent community with two campuses, and a third campus opening in spring 2010, all nestled on 200 wooded acres, and enjoy a long history of financial strength and experience in the CCRC industry.

Accreditation

There are over 2,000 CCRC’s around the country, but fewer than 10% of them are accredited. RiverWoods was one of the youngest communities to be accredited by the Continuing Care Accreditation Commission (CCAC/CARF), the nation’s only accrediting body for these types of care networks. In 2009, RiverWoods was re-accredited for another 5 years, and received a rare 7 Exemplary Ratings from CCAC, for standards reached new levels, which is very unusual.

When the service, facility, or program you choose is CARF-accredited, it means your provider has passed an in-depth review of its services. It is your assurance that the provider meets rigorous CARF guidelines for service and quality -- a qualified endorsement that your provider conforms to nationally and internationally recognized service standards, and is focused on delivering the most favorable results for you.