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Dear Bernard, This place seems quite terrific - if you're old. And that is not what I am looking for because I am not old. i am not that young either. I am firmly ensconsed in that in between region that used to be called middle aged. I dont want discos, and strange movies , but I'm not quite ready for reruns of Johnny Carson. Maybe I'll want to go on working ( i teach piano) and supermarket shopping, and theatre ...I am not averse to older people. Most of my friends are a generation older than me. That is what happens when you have PD at my age. But still, I prefer the company of my own kind, my own generation. But I have to be realistic. There w ill come a time when livimg alone will not be appropriate for me, and assisted living becomes the best most viable option.So why cant we have a live-in care facility directed at people my age? If I exist, there are others out there like me. Hilary Blue (40/1 6) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bernard Barber,Ph.D. wrote: > > Many of the members of this list may know, from my previous postings, that > I have been very involved with Parkinson's Disease, starting about 3 years > ago, when one of my patients, at an Assisted Living residence, had > Parkinson's. Forty plus years ago, during my academic training, we had some > discussion about Parkinson's. At the aforementioned Assisted Living residence, I discovered four other > People with Parkinson's, but little, if any help from the surrounding > community. We started our own support group, with assistance from the > University of Arizona, Department of Neurology, an APDA - funded program. > In addition to the University we were connected to a young, socially active > PWP. We also became acutely aware there was little information or > specialized programs dealing with assisted living facilities for PWP in the > US.Construction of the SunBridge Assisted Living Residence was completed in > May 1998; people have been steadily moving in. Staff training and > development is on-going and assisted by the aforementioned organizations. > The residents' Library has a collection of books and articles on > Parkinson's Disease, an exercise facility, and a fully operational personal > computer with e-mail and internet links to PD web sites. The Wellness > Director, a Registered Nurse, and the Activities Director, work > cooperatively on the Parkinson program, and are dedicated to a professional > level of individualized care for all residents > etc...