When the Alexandria City Council cut the ribbon opening the new health department facility, they did more than recognize a new building. They gave hope to hundreds of the city’s residents who suffer from some form of mental illness.
The Clubhouse has been searching for a home for more than 15 years. The old facility was overcrowded, had only a home kitchen and not even a coat rack. Now the entire sixth floor of 4480 King St. is theirs.
“We serve about 50 members each day,” said Judy Carter, the Clubhouse director. “We have this wonderful space where our members can participate in pre-vocational training and social activities.”
Clubhouse members are referred by case managers and those who plan for individuals who are leaving inpatient psychiatric care. “We have a contract with members that they agree to follow the rules and behave in a manner that is consistent with an office environment,” Carter said. “We also require them to follow their treatment plan and take their medication. Our rules really are pretty simple,” Carter said.
SHAREE TROY LED a tour through the new Clubhouse. She has been a Clubhouse member for many years. The Clubhouse day begins with morning meeting at around 9:30 a.m. “The staff talks about plans for the day and makes announcements,” Troy said. “Almost everyone attends morning meeting.”
After morning meeting, members report to their work areas. Troy has worked in a number of units within the Clubhouse, including membership services, food services and community relations. “These are the groups that support the Clubhouse,” Troy said.
The food service unit operates the Friend’s Café, selling coffee and snacks to members. Deborah Acuzena and Roberta Haley are two members who work in the Friends Café.
“We serve a lot of coffee after morning meeting,” Acuzena said. “I really like this job. I have learned to use a cash register and to work with people.”
She hopes to work in some type of food service some day. “The whole focus of the program is to get people employed,” Carter said. “The work in each of the Clubhouse units is pre-vocational training and prepares members for some type of work in the community.”
Wendy Bond is a job coach. “We have about 20 employers right now and are always looking for more,” she said. “The idea is to place our members in jobs in the community. Most of them are receiving some type of Social Security or disability benefits so we are generally looking for part-time work so that they can retain their benefits.”
One of the employers who works with Clubhouse members is the Safeway at Bradlee. Lisa Alferink has been employed as a courtesy clerk there for the past five months.
“I greet people and help them bag their groceries and get to their cars,” Alferink said. “I think I have found my career and I am going to retire there. I got a certificate for smiling at customers. I am doing such a good job that I fired Wendy; I don’t need her anymore to come to help me at work.”
MANY CLUBHOUSE MEMBERS haven’t worked in the community for more than a decade. “If I didn’t have the Clubhouse I would be at home in bed all day,” Acuzena said. “Now I am learning a job.”
From food service to clerical to janitorial, members are learning job skills that will take them into productive work environments that didn’t seem possible before they found the Clubhouse. “I promised to help them find a new home and couldn’t be more pleased with this facility,” said mayor William D. Euille. “I am particularly aware of what the Clubhouse means to persons who are suffering from mental illness because I had a family member who used the services some time ago.”
Vice mayor Redella S. “Del” Pepper was also impressed with the facility. “I was skeptical about putting health and mental health programs in an office building,” she said. “But this is wonderful and welcoming. I couldn’t be more impressed with what they have done here.”
Michael Gilmore is the director of Mental Health Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services. “I was fortunate enough to arrive just when the new facility was being completed,” he said. “A lot of thought and planning went into this. But, while the facility is certainly important, what is more important is that this building is really making a difference in people’s lives. That’s why we are all here after all.”