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| John Trepp (2nd from left), CEO of the Coalition for Community Living facilitates discussion of Fairweather Lodge Residents (The Woodlands, Williamsburg, VA) |
The Coalition for Community Living (CCL) returned to Williamsburg to give a presentation on Fairweather Lodge. This is the second time the board has come to town. This year they met at Colonial Williamsburg Woodlands Conference Center. The two-hour presentation was excellent.
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| Audience for the three panel discussions |
Longtime lodge residents of these homes were a crowd hit. They described their lives before and after joining a Fairweather lodge. (Currently, there are 60 lodges in operation around the country.) The audience was inspired by their stories. Who attended? Local and state governmental leaders; NAMI affiliate families; peer and family support group attendees; W&M Business School; and the founding families of Hope Family Village.
W&M film students filmed the entire session. Here’s the link.
Afterward we held a dinner, where residents, family members, community members were invited to get to know each other better.
Hope Family Village plans to incorporate a lodge within their community design. Fairweather is a highly successful, research-based model and practice. We have been coordinating with CCL for two years now. Tremendously dedicated people work in this organization. If you are interested in knowing more, their next conference is in Erie, PA in September.