When you’re searching for a memory care community for someone you love, it’s natural to wonder how a place has earned the trust of families and the recognition of its industry peers. In just a few years, The Cordwainer has been honored across nearly every category that matters in senior living: voted on by neighbors, chosen by its own employees, judged by a national design jury, selected by industry peers, and now recognized for the individual leading its programming. All of it belongs to a single, independently owned community.
Here’s a look at the recognition The Cordwainer has received since opening, and what each one says about the way we approach care.
South Shore Magazine Star of Excellence (2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026)
The Cordwainer has been named a Star of Excellence by South Shore Magazine five years running, from 2022 to 2026. This regional recognition celebrates standout local businesses and earning it three consecutive years reflects the consistency families have come to expect from our team.
Norwell Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year (2023)
In 2023, the Norwell Chamber of Commerce named The Cordwainer its Business of the Year, an honor decided by the Chamber’s official membership. It’s a meaningful nod from the community we’re proud to call home.
The Boston Globe Top Places to Work in Massachusetts (2023)
The Cordwainer was also named a Top Place to Work in Massachusetts by The Boston Globe in 2023, an honor determined entirely through the Globe’s confidential employee survey. For families, this matters beyond bragging rights: a workplace where staff genuinely want to be tends to be one where residents feel that same warmth and consistency day to day.
Best Stand-Alone Memory Care, National Winner: Senior Housing News Architecture & Design Awards (2023)
Perhaps our proudest recognition came from the Senior Housing News Architecture & Design Awards, which named The Cordwainer the best-designed stand-alone memory care community in the country in 2023. Every element of our building, from the sensory gardens to the looping pathways with no dead ends, was designed from the ground up for memory care. This national award affirmed that intention.
International Plantscape Awards, Platinum (2024)
Our living moss wall, one of the most talked-about features when families tour The Cordwainer, earned a Platinum Award from the International Plantscape Awards in 2024. This project accolade was awarded to Cityscapes, the landscape design firm behind the installation, in recognition of their work bringing this biophilic feature to life within our community.
South Shore Home, Life & Style Best of the South Shore, BOSS Award (2026)
Most recently, The Cordwainer was voted Best of the South Shore by South Shore Home, Life & Style magazine’s 2026 BOSS awards, a reader-voted honor that reflects how the wider South Shore community sees us.
Memory Care Innovation Awards: Somita Ray (2026)
We’re also proud to celebrate a member of our own team. Somita Ray, The Cordwainer’s Director of Memory Care Programming, was named to the 2026 Memory Care Innovation Awards Class in the Senior Housing & Senior Living category by Senior Housing News, a WTWH Healthcare publication. Somita’s work shaping our programming is a big part of what makes daily life at The Cordwainer feel purposeful and engaging for residents.
Independently Owned, Not Part of a Chain
Many memory care communities competing for these same honors are owned and operated by large corporate portfolios, some of which have hundreds of communities under a single parent company. When a chain announces an award, it’s often earned by one or a handful of properties within that much larger group, and the recognition is spread across the portfolio in a press release.
The Cordwainer is different. We’re independently owned and operated by Tamilyn and Bodo Liesenfeld, with a single community built from the ground up for memory care. Every award on this list, the Star of Excellence wins, the national design award, the Chamber recognition, the Globe workplace honor, the BOSS award, and Somita’s individual recognition, was earned by this one building, this one team, and this one approach to care. None of it is diluted across a larger portfolio, and none of it belongs to a company you’ll never meet. It belongs to the people you’ll meet when you visit.
What This Recognition Means for Your Family
Taken together, these honors come from very different places: neighbors, employees, design juries, and industry peers, and each was earned by a single, independently owned community rather than a large corporate portfolio. Awards are gratifying, but what matters most to us is what they represent: a building designed with real intention, a team that loves where they work, and programming led by people recognized as experts in their field. Whether it’s through The Learned Environment℠ or the everyday moments our staff share with residents, we hope these honors reflect the same experience you’ll find when you visit.
The best way to see it for yourself is in person. Schedule a personal tour of The Cordwainer and meet the team behind the recognition.