By Sandy Hall

NORTH SMITHFIELD – The spacious courtyard was filled with conversation and laughter as some 300 guests including residents, staff, executive board members, families and more gathered to mark the 25th anniversary of an assisted living facility last week.

The Villa at Saint Antoine technically turns 25 in December, but the party came early, before it becomes too cold for the whole community to get out and celebrate.

“This is really the big celebration,” said Melissa Smith, director of marketing and communications for the Saint Antoine Community.

Opened in 2000, The Villa features 76 apartments with capacity for 90 residents, including 14 semi-private units.

But it was the larger Saint Antoine Community – which also includes a skilled nursing unit, assisted living memory care and short term rehabilitation – that showed up to party on Thursday, Sept. 4.

“Everyone RSVPd yes,” said Tammy Summiel, executive director of The Villa. “They don’t miss a party. We do so many parties here.”

The history of that larger community dates back to a time long before The Villa’s opening – beginning more than a century ago, in fact. Msgr. Charles Dauray established L’Hospice du Saint Antoine across the street from Precious Blood Parish on Hamlet Avenue in Woonsocket in 1913.

The facility on Mendon Road in North Smithfield was constructed in 1941, changing its names to Saint Antoine Residence in 1987.

More than 50 years later, in 1994, a new building was constructed with capacity for 260 resident beds. That division of Saint Antoine, known as The Residence, features 24/7 nursing care, rehabilitative services, wound care, dementia care, hospice support, and daily activities.

Now Rhode Island’s largest long-term care community, Saint Antoine offers its residents the unique opportunity to stay in a familiar setting through their older years, starting in the more independent ‘Villa,’ with access to more comprehensive medical care as their needs progress.

“What’s wonderful with this community is it’s a continuity of care,” said Summiel. “People start here, but can transition as they need more care.”

Article: https://www.nrinow.news/2025/09/10/a-celebration-of-care-saint-antoines-the-villa-marks-25-years/