A ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday morning at St. John’s United Church of Christ in Delhi signified hope for members of the intellectual and developmental disabilities community.
The opening of Hope Cottage, a former parsonage, was worth the wait, said Emily Kendall, co-founder and president of EmpowerMe Living, a vital partner in the project.
“When we can bring together a church that has contributed this beautiful home that was sitting empty for residents with conditions like this at an affordable rate, it’s exciting,” Kendal said.
A parsonage is a home maintained by a church that is provided for a minister or priest to live in.
The four men chosen to live in Hope Cottage will be provided services from the Ohio Valley Residential Services, an organization that works with intellectual and developmental disabilities to offer support based on what the individuals need.
“We help them at their level of independence,” said Chris Alexander, chief financial officer at OVRS. “We support a wide level of individuals throughout Hamilton County, from minimal staffing at the home to the more 24/7 total care.”
In the state of Ohio, there are 292,000 people living with intellectual or developmental disabilities, according to Kendall, and 77,000 adults living with caretakers older than the age of 60. Across the four counties in the Cincinnati area, Hamilton, Butler, Clermont and Warren, there are 12,000 adults living with caretakers over 60.
“Caregivers age,” Kendall said. “They have to take care of their own needs; they may slip and fall and have to go to a rehabilitation facility. Unfortunately it’s estimated that 30 to 40 percent of the homeless population in this country has a developmental issue. They ended up facing housing insecurity because they lost their primary caregivers.”
Hope Cottage could be an example of what could be for other churches with parsonages or other homes on their property, Kendall said.
The home was built in the 1960s and was rarely used.
“Pastors don’t want to live in our house, they want to live in their own houses,” said Carol Thomas, president of the board at St. John’s United Church of Christ. “The house sat vacant for 20 years.”
She said eventually, the church had to decide what to do with the property.
“One of the options was to tear it down. That was unacceptable,” she said. “It was a perfectly good house. So why tear it down?”
The board was determined to find use for it, exploring options with organizations across the county.
“We spoke with all kinds of people, and heard all kinds of ideas,” Thomas said. “Finally, we spoke with the Hamilton County board of developmental disabilities. They said, ‘This is exactly what we’ve been praying for.’”
The home needed some renovations: refinishing the floors, new roof, new water heater, New HVAC, mold removal, and new paint.
Rent for the units will be $400 a person. Thomas said the money collected will go toward the upkeep of the home. The Church has a 20 year lease with Ohio Valley Residential Services, also known as OVRS.
“Right now, that kind of housing is unheard of,” Thomas said. “The church owns the building and will work with OVRS. The folks who will be living here will be placed by them and cared for by them, should they need any care.
“It’s supposed to be independent living. A lot of young adults, middle-aged adults who have developmental disabilities and lived at home all their lives and then mom dies, dad dies,” Thomas said. “Nobody wants to have them in their house; nobody knows where to go with them. Places like this are necessary and needed. When we found out about that, it was a revelation. We as a church council and congregation made a vote that this is what the building would be.”
This ribbon cutting was a big deal for the intellectual and developmental disability community.
Alexander said this was the first home they opened in about six years.
“I want you to think about how many parsonages there are sitting empty in the county,” Kendall said. “So now, you have a faith-based community that welcomes all members of the community with open arms. This is a unique offering compared to a random house in a neighborhood. We’ve figured out a pretty turn-key solution to use under-utilized assets across our city, across our county, across our state.”