Aging in Paradise Center will build upon chapel's tradition of service

Construction for the Longboat Island Chapel’s Aging in Paradise Resource Center space could begin next month, according to chapel board member Bill Shuttleworth, who is handling strategic planning for the resource center. Renovations of the 3,700-square-foot space in the chapel will likely be completed in the fall.

But, according to Shuttleworth, the renovations will only build upon the outreach services that the chapel has offered for years, including the Shifting Sands Support Group and various seminars that draw up to 100 people during season.

“Now we can dream a little bit bigger,” Shuttleworth said.

Although the resource center will not be a health-care facility, its organizers have been working with the Longboat Key Healthcare Committee and the Bay Isles Medical Group, both of which formed in the past year to address the challenges of maintaining medical services on the island.

“We’re just asking the general question, ‘That, in some way, can we complement what they’re trying to do?’” Shuttleworth said, suggesting the possibility that the facility could be used to bring in health-care professionals to provide services.

Shuttleworth said that resource center organizers are considering what services are needed based on what they hear from the community. For example, the facility could be used to provide adult daycare one or two afternoons a week, through a licensed professional, to provide respite to full-time caregivers who need time for basic errands.

The idea behind the Aging in Paradise Resource Center sprouted approximately four years ago as the result of issues, many of which were related to aging, that chapel members were seeing in their congregation. The center will eventually serve as a liaison between individuals facing age-related issues and the organizations and services available for everything from health problems and memory loss to financial planning.

Contact Robin Hartill at [email protected].

IF YOU GO

Aging in Paradise Resource Center Summer Offerings

• Memory Loss Screenings — The screenings are completed on an as-needed basis by qualified personnel at the Longboat Island Chapel.
• Shifting Sands — The support group for people dealing with loss meets at 3 p.m. Thursdays.
• Yoga — Yoga classes, led by Anne Silverman, are held at 2 p.m. Fridays. The Cancer Support Community conducts a free yoga class open to all members of the Longboat Island Chapel to cultivate healing and awareness and to reduce stress.

Call the Longboat Island Chapel at 383-6491 or email [email protected] for information.