Tim's Friends Need A Forever Home
Donation protected
A special collaboration of Peter Ferrantelli and Noah Homes.
The homes are almost ready for move-in day! Tim and his friends couldn't be more excited. Watch their first impressions below and help us finish off this campaign!
Tim's Story
Tim is 33 years old, has worked for a landscaping company for the past 10 years, has 20 years of altar service at Santa Sophia Parish, and recently had the opportunity to be a fashion model. For the past 2 years, he has happily lived in “Casa de Esperanza,” funded through a nonprofit called Noah Homes, and has become good friends with neighbors like Terri, Kathy and Julie.
Tim and his neighbors have something in common: Down syndrome. And while it may not be affecting his quality of life now, almost all people with Down syndrome show signs of Alzheimer’s by age 40. More info on that below.
Tim and I, along with many others, are saddened that there is not a home for people with developmental disabilities facing Alzheimer’s disease… so we’re building TWO and we need your help. Show the world that this is possible, that it needs to happen and help us raise the last of the funds we need to do it. If we can make it happen, that means others across the country can also make this happen. We’ve already raised nearly $6 million and are $737,000 away from fully funding the project. We’re hoping by posting this on GoFundMe that we can build the momentum we need to close the books and open the doors!
Tim, other residents and staff have been there for Terri as she began to experience early onset Alzheimer’s three years ago - at age 50. Though still ambulatory, she is often confused and prone to repeating herself. It’s clear that Terri will soon need more support and we do not want her to have to go to a senior care facility that does not specialize in care for people with Down syndrome. Kathy is following closely in her footsteps. Fortunately, Julie remains ambulatory and she still has a good time rooting for the Chargers, however she had to quit her job making pizza because Alzheimer’s has left her very confused and less able to participate fully in activities.
At Noah Homes, we are working hard to not only build awareness around this issue, but to build two of the first homes in the nation for people with Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s! Terri, Kathy and Julie will be three of the first 20 people who can take comfort in knowing they have a safe and loving place to call home, not a hospital or a senior home. The new memory care homes will have more intensive staffing, safety features and offer activities such as yoga and memory games. The staff themselves will be trained to recognize and care for less familiar signs of Alzheimer’s that are more common to see from people with Down syndrome, such as increased inactivity, visual deficits, seizures and hoarding.
Working at Noah Homes is mostly a joy, but it is so hard hearing stories from families who wished they could find a place for their loved one to live out their life, that was affordable and could handle the increased care requirements of someone with Down syndrome AND Alzheimer’s. While Terri is blessed to have her father in her life, Julie’s parents have passed and Julie has become quite dependent on the staff at Noah.
Family members of people with Down syndrome, such as Sally Ahnger, weren’t able to find a place like Noah. Sally even felt lucky to have found a “less than perfect” place for her 51 year old brother Charles. He is currently in a facility that cares for senior citizens with Alzheimer’s, but does not specialize in care for people with Down syndrome. Evelyn Howland, who tried five times to find a place that her son Paul could call home, has too many stories of negligence and over medication that resulted in her taking Paul out of those homes to live with her. Now in her later years, she is seeking a place that she can feel comfortable knowing Paul is loved and safe.
There are 800 people in San Diego in need of a place like this. We can only imagine how many other families are feeling a loss of hope right now, and we have the opportunity to come together as a community and show them there is hope and that people with developmental disabilities deserve the same options of quality end-of-life care as everyone else. Please share with your friends and make a donation. Thank you for your support!
Click to learn more about Noah Homes
More about Alzheimer’s and Down syndrome:
According to the Alzheimer’s Association “Down syndrome is a condition in which a person is born with extra genetic material from chromosome 21, one of the 23 human chromosomes. Most people with Down syndrome have a full extra copy of chromosome 21, so they have three copies instead of the usual two. In ways that scientists don't yet understand, the extra copies of genes present in Down syndrome cause developmental problems and health issues. Scientists think that the increased risk of dementia in individuals with Down syndrome may also result from the extra gene.”
http://www.wsj.com/articles/down-syndrome-is-thought-to-hold-clues-to-alzheimers-1453392207
http://www.alz.org/dementia/down-syndrome-alzheimers-symptoms.asp
First Milestone reached! $5000!
The homes are almost ready for move-in day! Tim and his friends couldn't be more excited. Watch their first impressions below and help us finish off this campaign!
Tim's Story
Tim is 33 years old, has worked for a landscaping company for the past 10 years, has 20 years of altar service at Santa Sophia Parish, and recently had the opportunity to be a fashion model. For the past 2 years, he has happily lived in “Casa de Esperanza,” funded through a nonprofit called Noah Homes, and has become good friends with neighbors like Terri, Kathy and Julie.
Tim and his neighbors have something in common: Down syndrome. And while it may not be affecting his quality of life now, almost all people with Down syndrome show signs of Alzheimer’s by age 40. More info on that below.
Tim and I, along with many others, are saddened that there is not a home for people with developmental disabilities facing Alzheimer’s disease… so we’re building TWO and we need your help. Show the world that this is possible, that it needs to happen and help us raise the last of the funds we need to do it. If we can make it happen, that means others across the country can also make this happen. We’ve already raised nearly $6 million and are $737,000 away from fully funding the project. We’re hoping by posting this on GoFundMe that we can build the momentum we need to close the books and open the doors!
Tim, other residents and staff have been there for Terri as she began to experience early onset Alzheimer’s three years ago - at age 50. Though still ambulatory, she is often confused and prone to repeating herself. It’s clear that Terri will soon need more support and we do not want her to have to go to a senior care facility that does not specialize in care for people with Down syndrome. Kathy is following closely in her footsteps. Fortunately, Julie remains ambulatory and she still has a good time rooting for the Chargers, however she had to quit her job making pizza because Alzheimer’s has left her very confused and less able to participate fully in activities.
At Noah Homes, we are working hard to not only build awareness around this issue, but to build two of the first homes in the nation for people with Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s! Terri, Kathy and Julie will be three of the first 20 people who can take comfort in knowing they have a safe and loving place to call home, not a hospital or a senior home. The new memory care homes will have more intensive staffing, safety features and offer activities such as yoga and memory games. The staff themselves will be trained to recognize and care for less familiar signs of Alzheimer’s that are more common to see from people with Down syndrome, such as increased inactivity, visual deficits, seizures and hoarding.
Working at Noah Homes is mostly a joy, but it is so hard hearing stories from families who wished they could find a place for their loved one to live out their life, that was affordable and could handle the increased care requirements of someone with Down syndrome AND Alzheimer’s. While Terri is blessed to have her father in her life, Julie’s parents have passed and Julie has become quite dependent on the staff at Noah.
Family members of people with Down syndrome, such as Sally Ahnger, weren’t able to find a place like Noah. Sally even felt lucky to have found a “less than perfect” place for her 51 year old brother Charles. He is currently in a facility that cares for senior citizens with Alzheimer’s, but does not specialize in care for people with Down syndrome. Evelyn Howland, who tried five times to find a place that her son Paul could call home, has too many stories of negligence and over medication that resulted in her taking Paul out of those homes to live with her. Now in her later years, she is seeking a place that she can feel comfortable knowing Paul is loved and safe.
There are 800 people in San Diego in need of a place like this. We can only imagine how many other families are feeling a loss of hope right now, and we have the opportunity to come together as a community and show them there is hope and that people with developmental disabilities deserve the same options of quality end-of-life care as everyone else. Please share with your friends and make a donation. Thank you for your support!
Click to learn more about Noah Homes
More about Alzheimer’s and Down syndrome:
According to the Alzheimer’s Association “Down syndrome is a condition in which a person is born with extra genetic material from chromosome 21, one of the 23 human chromosomes. Most people with Down syndrome have a full extra copy of chromosome 21, so they have three copies instead of the usual two. In ways that scientists don't yet understand, the extra copies of genes present in Down syndrome cause developmental problems and health issues. Scientists think that the increased risk of dementia in individuals with Down syndrome may also result from the extra gene.”
http://www.wsj.com/articles/down-syndrome-is-thought-to-hold-clues-to-alzheimers-1453392207
http://www.alz.org/dementia/down-syndrome-alzheimers-symptoms.asp
First Milestone reached! $5000!
Organizer
Jerrod Pardini
Organizer
Spring Valley, CA
