Florida Partners in Crisis

Dave’s House: An inspiration for many

January 5, 2010

So many of us take so much for granted—a healthy brain, a clear-thinking mind, a safe place to live.  But, for people with serious mental illness, none of that is taken for granted.  Those uncertainties plague them every day.

Dave’s House was borne out of an understanding that in order to live life as fully as possible, a person in recovery from mental illness needs a safe, secure and affordable place to live.  And for six fortunate individuals, Dave’s House is that place.

Lin Wilensky, who watched her brother Dave struggle with the uncertainties of severe mental illness, knew what a difference permanent, secure housing could mean to someone struggling with the disease.

Dave Jeffreys

Lin’s brother, Dave Jeffreys, had schizophrenia—one of the most devastating of mental illnesses.  Dave was diagnosed with the disease while attending college and struggled with it for 40 years.  He was hospitalized every three or four years during his adult lifetime until he lived in permanent, supportive housing.

Permanent housing was a huge factor in his ability to attain stability, achieve recovery in his illness and lead the maximum possible quality of life, according to his sister.  For his family, it meant peace of mind knowing that Dave could live independently with dignity and with the support he needed for the rest of his life. 

Just two years ago, Dave’s House was just an idea.  After Dave’s sudden death in April of 2007, Wilensky and her husband, Ron, knew they wanted to honor him in some way. Although they had planned to leave some funding for housing in their will, they realized that they needed to do something immediately.

The critical need for permanent, supportive housing for people with mental illness is so well understood in the mental health care community, that when the Wilenskys broached the subject with Jerry Kassab, CEO of Lakeside Behavioral Healthcare, it seemed almost too easy to get things started and the right people engaged.

In mid-May of 2007, they met Kassab for lunch and asked if he would be interested in starting a program.  Without hesitation, he said, “Yes!” 

Other housing models offered inspiration
By mid-July, the Wilenskys hosted a trip for Kassab and several key Lakeside staff to Pathway Homes in Northern Virginia, the model supportive housing program where Dave Jefffreys had lived, to learn how the program operates and to visit some of the homes.

Upon returning to Orlando, the Lakeside staff put together a proposal and in the fall, the board gave its approval.  Soon after, they assembled a team to begin the search for a house.

“We went through a learning curve over several months," Lin Wilensky said.  But, after looking at a dozen or more house, we landed on the perfect setting for our needs:  a good location near Lakeside services, public transportation, grocery shopping, a corner lot or with privacy from neighbors, spacious rooms, one floor and in our price range.  This house had it all!”

The house became Dave’s House, the first of its kind in Orlando to provide permanent, supportive housing for people who are stable and ready for independent living in a collegial setting.  Support is provided by staff who check-in on the residents regularly to be sure they are continuing with their individual recovery and to help ensure successful community living.  The house is owned and operated by Lakeside Behavioral Healthcare. 

The Wilenskys at Dave's House

“Lin and Ron are passionate about providing permanent, supportive, safe housing for those living with severe and persistent mental illness,” said Kassab.  “They are so committed to this project that they made a major contribution to help get the program started and remain involved with the residents and Lakeside’s fundraising efforts.”
 
Lakeside lends housing experience to the project

Lin Wilensky has served on the Board of Directors of Lakeside for 11 years and remains impressed with the center’s strong track record in serving Central Floridians with mental illness for more than 25 years.  In addition to the clinical skills needed to provide the supportive piece of the program, Lakeside also had housing experience.

“Dave’s House is a natural progression in the services we currently provide,” explained Kassab.  “Lakeside offers a time limited residential program that gets individuals ready for permanent housing, but housing options have been extremely limited for individuals who graduated from our existing programs.” 

The majority of residents who will live at Dave’s House have been through a multi-month program of learning life skills (such as how to cook, good hygiene practices, etc.) at Independence, a Lakeside group home with 24-7 staff support.  Following completion, individuals can transition to College Place supervised apartments, where they can live temporarily up to two years while they hone their life skills.  They can then “graduate” into Dave’s House. 

Previous to the opening of Dave’s House in June 2008, there were few good options for those leaving the supervised apartments.  Many existing housing options are not feasible due to cost or other qualifying requirements.  For some, leaving the apartments meant living with family, in assisted living facilities or living on the street—the latter often triggering a cycle of recidivism and the terribly demoralizing and costly need for acute care hospitalization

Staff already seeing successes

“David would have been ecstatic to live in such a beautiful home," said Lin Wilensky.  He would have loved the spacious yard and the location with the Wal-Mart Market right down the street." 

 “Ron and I appreciate the support of so many in so many ways to get Dave’s House up and running: our friends and family who have encouraged us from the start, Lakeside which has done so much work, and the current residents who inspire us to continue the journey.”

Kassab says his staff has seen success already.  In the past year, none of the current six residents have required hospitalization or an increase in mental health services and they report that support from Lakeside staff helps them stay on track with recovery. 

“As a treatment provider, no hospitalizations is a success to us, but to a resident, the opportunity to have a home, not just a place to live, is the true success of Dave’s House.”

Lakeside is currently working with the foreclosed home program in Orange County to obtain additional housing for the program.

As for the Wilenskys, they remain impressed with the Lakeside staff and how they have embraced this project.  “They really have a heart for it and we are very grateful to them,” said Lin Wilensky.

Click here to read the next in our series of stories about programs and people in Florida who are making hope and recovery a reality.