What I learned from Canada's coolest retirement home

by Now or Never host Trevor Dineen

Beverly Suek is the founder of the Women's Housing Initiative Manitoba, a housing co-op in Winnipeg that offers shared housing for women who are retired or nearing retirement. There are currently five women, ranging in age from 55 to 69, living in the seven bedroom home.

They invited me to come by and see Canada's coolest retirement home for myself. Here's what I learned: 

They love a good meal. And really... who doesn't? But these women do it right. Every night, a different person is tasked with cooking dinner. So with five women living in the house, one or two of the women only end up having to cook once a week. Can you even imagine the joys of not having to cook six days of the week? You're basically living like a Kardashian at that point.

There's never a dull moment. When I asked them what their week looked like, they told me they were having friends over for a gathering that night. They were all attending a book reading later in the week as well as a theatre production. The weekend before they had had a giant lobster party at their house. Do you want to know what I have planned for my week? A trip to Costco and maybe a nap.

They love to laugh. Just being in the room with four of them, you could see they truly loved being around each other. These are women who, less than a year and a half ago, never knew one another existed. Now, they're like sorority sisters — living and loving life in what seems more like a dorm-like atmosphere than a stereotypical seniors home.

I don't trust happiness as much as the next person, but this seems real. Very genuine. And as long as no one misses their night of cooking... I can't see it changing anytime soon.