How San Antonio Celebrates National Assisted Living Week

Did you know 75% of assisted living residents say the move improved their quality of life, and 70% say their health outlook improved? That is something worth celebrating.

National Assisted Living Week gives communities across the country a dedicated opportunity to do exactly that. In 2026, the week ran from September 13 through 19. It traditionally starts on Grandparents Day, the first Sunday after Labor Day, giving the week a natural family dimension from day one.

The 2026 theme, “Shining Through the Years,” National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) Executive Director LaShuan Bethea described as honoring residents for the lives they lead and the wisdom they share, while recognizing the team members whose compassion helps that light continue to shine every day.

NCAL established National Assisted Living Week in 1995. NCAL is part of AHCA/NCAL, the largest association of long-term and post-acute care providers in the country, representing more than 14,000 communities. The Joint Commission also sponsored the 2026 week.

What the week is and why it matters

What is National Assisted Living Week, exactly? At its core, it is a week set aside to recognize the people who live and work in assisted living communities, not with formal ceremony alone, but with the kind of shared experiences that reflect what daily life actually looks like in these communities.

The week matters because it shifts the focus from what assisted living provides clinically to what it looks like culturally.

Residents are not simply receiving care. They live, celebrate, dress up, laugh, and do it all alongside team members who genuinely enjoy being there.

The “Shining Through the Years” theme in 2026 honors that, and a well-planned week makes it visible to families, friends, and the broader community.

The week is for residents and team members equally. The best National Assisted Living Week celebrations bring both groups into the fun together rather than treating one as the audience for the other.

Ideas for celebrating National Assisted Living Week

For communities planning their own celebration, the week works best when each day has its own character. A mix of dress-up days, special treats, recognition moments, and shared activities adds variety and keeps energy high from Sunday through Saturday.

Dress-up days are among the most popular and easiest to organize:

• Decade day, where residents and team members dress from their favorite era and the common areas fill with stories, music, and friendly debate about which decade was actually the best
• Color wars day, where the community splits into teams by color and spends the day in good-natured competition across games, trivia, and bragging rights
• Pajama day, which tends to bring out a level of comfort and laughter that more formal occasions rarely produce
• Hat day, where everyone arrives in their most creative, meaningful, or ridiculous headwear and the stories behind each choice become the entertainment

Recognition events give the week its heart and remind everyone why the community exists:

• A memory wall or display where residents contribute a favorite photograph, a short story, or a single sentence about something they are proud of, building a visual record of the lives in the building
• A team member spotlight series, where a different team member is recognized each day through a short feature shared with residents and families
• A community talent show that gives residents a stage and an audience, whether the act is a song, a poem, a joke, or a card trick practiced for decades
• A gratitude board in a shared space where residents, team members, and visitors can leave notes for one another throughout the week

Food and social events keep daily energy high:

• A cultural potluck where residents and team members bring dishes that reflect their backgrounds, turning a shared meal into a genuine exchange of stories
• A mocktail hour where residents are served drinks with a little more ceremony than a typical afternoon, complete with garnishes and proper glassware
• A themed breakfast one morning, because a week that starts with something unexpected tends to feel different from the ones that do not

Family and intergenerational programming rounds out the week:

• A grandchildren’s craft afternoon where younger visitors and residents work on a project together and take something home at the end
• A family recipe exchange where residents share a dish or a family food tradition with others in the community
• An open house evening where prospective residents and their families are invited to see the community during a celebratory week rather than a standard tour

The most memorable weeks are the ones shaped around what makes a particular community its own. The theme provides the direction, but the details should feel like they could only happen here.

How Sodalis Windcrest celebrates the week

Sodalis Windcrest offers assisted living, memory care, and respite care for families across the San Antonio area. National Assisted Living Week here looked a lot like the culture we try to maintain all year, which is to say it was warm, a little playful, and genuinely enjoyed by everyone involved.

This year’s celebration in our community included:

• The Resident Choice Awards, where residents recognize the team members who have made a difference in their daily lives
• Band T-shirt day and cowboy hat day, two dress-up days that suit San Antonio’s personality about as well as anything could
• A pep rally that brings the whole community together with the kind of energy that tends to carry through the rest of the week
• Sunglasses day, a root beer float party, a sundae bar, and a red carpet day that closes the week on a high note

Each of these was an opportunity for residents and team members to enjoy the week together, which is exactly what the theme asks for.

Frequently asked questions about National Assisted Living Week