Brainstorming and visioning a care center into existence

Over the last month, since their annual general meeting on February 21, Circle of Care has hosted three sessions of brainstorming and planning, involving over 50 participants in the process of visioning a community-based care center into being. Long-standing residents have found themselves collaborating with newly arrived residents, in the hopes of creating a facility here in Point Roberts where young and old, the healthy and the infirm can gather, and perhaps even live in community.

Will it look like a “Golden Girls/Guys” community home or a retirement/assisted living facility? Will it occupy existing buildings or be purpose-built? There are many questions yet to be answered and plans are currently in place to conduct both an online as well as person-to-person survey of what the community needs and wants.  

Just a few of the ideas for creating a Center for Community Care that have come out of these sessions are:

• Intergenerational care/respite care/pet care (adult/child/pet daycare) 

• Health/activity center for exercise & community well-being (Senior Center) 

• Online computer services for outreach

• Care navigator (referral center for mental health, Medicare/aid, social services)  

• Campus-based co-housing (multigenerational, all income) 

• In-home service support (non-medical) for ‘aging in place’ (Circle of Care)

• Home health care support (not telehealth) – nursing, PT/OT, speech, medical

•Pharmaceutical dispensary/delivery services

• Shelter facility for emergency needs (temporary workers, weather hazards)

• Community garden benefiting community services/meal prep etc.

Community development plan 

Circle of Care is currently reaching out to residents, university students and non-profit organizations in hopes of acquiring the assistance needed to compose a comprehensive survey. If you have that sort of expertise and the time and willingness to assist, please contact Circle of Care at prcircleofcare@gmail.com.

Whatever the final concept, it will likely take at least a few miracles along the way to bring it into fruition, but Point Roberts has shown itself to be powerful, resilient and resourceful. Your energy and input is invited. Together, we can make this happen.

The next brainstorming/planning session is April 5 at 7 p.m. via Zoom. The Zoom link will be posted on the ePB, Next
Door, PAWS, Point-Interface and the Circle of Care website and Facebook page.