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October 1, 2004/Tishri 6 5765, Vol. 57, No. 5
Design project gives seniors a fresh start
JENNIFER GOLDBERG
Staff Writer
In the heart of Phoenix, the community is working together to improve the lives of some Valley seniors.
In May 2003, the Area Agency on Aging received an almost $1.3 million grant comprising funds from the City of Phoenix and the Arizona State Housing Fund. The agency used the money to purchase a 19-apartment complex in Central Phoenix that would be refurbished as transitional housing for the abused elderly.
However, the funds only covered the purchase of the property and basic reno-vations and repairs. So when the agency contacted Scotts-dale Community College, the interior design students there agreed to use their time and talents to make the apartments livable.
"We were given a zero budget and asked if we would renovate as many apartments as we could," says Hank Arens, a student who is vice president of the SCC chapter of ASID (American Society of Interior Designers) and owner of Hank Arens Design.
Arens says that about 18-20 SCC students renovated 10 of the apartments. They typically worked in teams of two or three, and solicited donations of cash and materials from friends, family and local businesses.
"The students did a superb job," says Wally Sjolander, Area Agency on Aging senior vice president of program development. "They really worked hard, and they spent many, many of their valuable hours volunteering to do this project."
Sears donated new ap-pliances for all the apartments, while The Room Store gave the project new beds. Sherwin-Williams donated more than 50 gallons of paint.
"Our community of busi-nesses don't get enough credit for how generous they are. I really did not hear 'no.' Our Valley is very philanthropic," Arens notes.
Arens designed his apartment under the aegis of his business, Hank Arens Design. He gave the space a contemporary feel with bright, cheery colors. He painted artwork for the walls and bought new dishes and linens to complete the apartment.
When an agency employee saw the finished product, Arens says, "she gave me a hug and started crying and said, 'You have no idea. These people are going to see this, and they're going to feel like it's home. You have no idea how grateful they're going to be for what you've done.' It felt amazing."
Sjolander explains that the housing is intended for people ages 50 and over who are coming out of abuse sit-uations. "It works primarily with older women who have been subjected to domestic violence, although we do have other kinds of abuse issues we would deal with," he says. For that reason, the location of the apartments is con-fidential.
Seventeen one-bedroom apartments are available for residents, one two-bedroom apartment is occupied by an on-call resident manager, and the other two-bedroom apartment was refurbish- ed as a community room and office for agency case managers.
Sjolander says the resi-dents are not initially expected to pay rent, "because most of them come to the program without anything." Some residents will pay rent later depending on their income and ability to work. The first group of residents moved in on Sept. 18. Each resident will be able to stay at the transitional housing for up to two years.
Sjolander says that the work of the design students has made an impact in the lives of these seniors.
"They brought a lot of joy to people. They just made living a little bit easier for some folks."
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