Hearthstone senior living, nursing home in Woodstock to close; 117 jobs lost

Hearthstone Communities, a senior living facility and nursing home in Woodstock, is closing.

According to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act notice posted on a state of Illinois website, the facility plans to lay off 117 staff members. The notification was given Tuesday, and the first layoffs will be Sept. 30, according to the filing with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

Illinois law requires employers with 75 or more full-time employees to provide 60-day notice of a plant closure or mass layoff. The closing of Hearthstone, run by Woodstock Christian Life Services, is listed as a plant closure.

An Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity spokesperson said Hearthstone provided the required 60-day advance notification and sent in original notice Aug. 1.

A message left for a nursing home administrator Friday was not immediately returned.

When SAK Healthcare, the company that manages the nursing home, was reached Friday, a representative said the CEO of the company was unable to comment. SAK Healthcare took over management of the facility in 2024, according to the company’s website.

Hearthstone Communities was sued by a pair of vendors who claimed they were not paid. The lawsuits were resolved in 2023, one with a settlement and the other by a default judgment in favor of the plaintiffs and against the nursing home.

Hearthstone Communities has independent living, an assisted-living facility called Hearthstone Village, and a skilled nursing and memory care facility called Hearthstone Manor at its Woodstock site at 920 and 928 N. Seminary Ave., according to the Hearthstone website.