My sister, suffering from relatively well controlled schizoaffective
disorder, is a wonderful artist, a painter. She lives with my mother,
but the latter is in deteriorating health. We siblings are trying to
find my sister a place in a residential cooperative for artists.  We
have heard of these, a place with some structure which gives a safe
and somewhat structured environment for the residents to practice
their art. I want to find out about these to offer them as residential
possibilities for her.

---

Request for Question Clarification by crabcakes-ga on 04 Jul 2004 17:02 PDT

Hi docjon,

 I'd like to research your answer, but I have a few questions:
 Do you have a preference as to where the coop is located?

 How old is your sister?

  Thank you!
Sincerely,
crabcakes

---

Clarification of Question by docjon-ga on 04 Jul 2004 20:01 PDT

thanks. My sister's only surviving siblings, who think it would
probably be better to have her living near us, live in California, one
near San Diego and myself 60 miles north of Sacramento. A second
choice would be in the Houston area. But, in end effect, a good place
that she would feel comfortable in and where she could get personal
encouragement for painting, could be anywhere in the continental US.

She is 59

Hi again, docjohn,

 This answer turned out to be far more difficult than I ever expected!
Finding a facility that accepts people with your sister?s
circumstances, that is an artist cooperative, and that accepts
residents long term, preferably in California is a challenge!  I was
unable to find a facility that was considered an art commune or
cooperative living for the mentally ill that exactly matched your
criteria, in California.  Most of the ?Artist Residences? I came
across were short term, from 3 months to 3 years, which doesn?t sound
suitable for your situation, and did not mention accepting
schizoaffective disorder. Since your sister is only a few years away
from retirement age, it may be easier to focus on a suitable
cooperative living situation first, then hope to find an art program,
or a studio or draft room that would allow her to paint. In my answer,
I am including most of the homes/residences that I came across, so you
may have a selection from which to chose. Some are seemingly more
appropriate than others, but some may have a prohibitively high cost.

California:
====================================================================

I am listing this NAMI site first. While it gives almost no specific
information, the page has a drop down menu where you can select
residences in the area in which you have the most interest. This means
that you will have to do some calling to find out the particulars. (I
chose  different counties and ?Long Term Care? in the Service Type
menu, to locate several possibilities. Since I was having such
difficulty finding California residences, I began to wonder if
information is not made available  to the public as a security
measure. The format of this site leads me to believe this is true.
http://www.namicalifornia.org/services.aspx



Boyer House 
This residence seems a good fit, and is located in San Rafael,
California. Art is also listed on the program!
Boyer House Foundation
900 Las Gallinas Avenue
San Rafael, California  94903
Phone: (415) 456-9958 Ext. 307 
Fax: (415) 456-9965 
Email: kbperlmutter1@aol.com     
 ?As a member of the Boyer House community, you will live in a
household with 2-4 other clients.  You will share the work of managing
a household?cooking, cleaning, shopping?with your housemates.  You
will also learn a lot about yourself as you reflect on how other
people affect you and how you interact with others.  Your community
involvement will also include informal social and recreational
activities with other clients, some of which are facilitated by staff,
some of which are arranged among the clients.?

?The Boyer House Foundation is a private, non-profit organization
providing intensive, long term treatment for adults with severe
psychiatric disorders. Our program combines multidisciplinary
treatment with assisted independent living, providing a level of care
that is more comprehensive and structured than outpatient care and
more independent than inpatient or residential treatment.?

http://www.boyerhouse.org/



Father Joe?s Village
Father Joe's Villages
3350 E Street, 
San Diego, CA 92102-3332 
619.687.1000
http://www.fatherjoesvillages.org/village_news/Summer_03/fjv_d.html




Harbor View House, a Subsidiary of Healthview Inc
921 S Beacon St
San Pedro, CA 90731
(310) 547-3341
http://www.hvi.com/newsite/index.asp



VSA arts of California
3770 East Willow Street
Long Beach, CA 90815
Ms. Leah Goodwin
Executive Director
Tel: (714) 607-8867 
Main Office:
1300 Connecticut Avenue, Suite 700
Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 628-2800 Voice;
(800) 933-8721 Toll Free
(202) 737-0725 Fax;
(202) 737-0645 TDD
info@vsarts.org
?The Very Special Arts of California Gallery was established to
promote a better understanding of inclusion and access for artists
with disabilities, empower the individual artist in the creative
process and support and assist individual artists with disabilities
through professional merchandising and sale of their artwork. This
2,000 square foot art gallery, located in the Westfield Shoppingtown
Main Place mall, opened in September 1997. The gallery welcomes more
than 18,000 members of the public each year. The artists represented
by the gallery have diverse disabilities including quadriplegia,
paraplegia, deafness, blindness, neurological impact injuries, and
mental illness.?
http://www.vsarts.org/affiliates/states/ca.cfm

Contact Information
http://www.vsarts.org/info/feedback.cfm




Bonita House
Bonita House, Inc.
6333 Telegraph Ave.,
Suite 102
Oakland, CA 94609-1328
Phone: (510) 923-1099
Fax: (510) 923-0894
Email: info@bonitahouse.org
http://www.bonitahouse.org/clc.html

?Bonita House, Inc., (BHI) offers intensive residential treatment,
supported independent living and case management services for adults
dually diagnosed with severe and persistent psychiatric disabilities
and substance use disorders. BHI also offers a day socialization
program for people living with a serious mental illness.

BHI was founded as a mental health agency in 1971. Based on the social
rehabilitation treatment model, it was developed as a humane
alternative to traditional psychiatric institutionalization. Since
1991, BHI has evolved into a specialized dual-diagnosis agency, while
continuing to provide services to mental health clients without a
co-occurring substance use disorder.?
?Bonita House was the agency's flagship program first opened in 1971
by a group of concerned citizens and mental health consumers as a more
humane response to traditional psychiatric institutionalization. Since
that time the agency, Bonita House, Incorporated, has expanded its
services considerably, including four other residential sites, case
management services, and a day socialization program.?
http://www.bonitahouse.org/faq.html
http://www.bonitahouse.org/about.html




Progress Foundation
368 Fell Street San Francisco  California 94102
(415)861-0828 fax (415)861-0257
?Progress Foundation is one of the most highly regarded alternative
mental health service providers in the country.  It pioneered the
crisis residential treatment program model as an integral element of
all types of public mental health systems, and has been a national
leader in teaching the principles and practice of social
rehabilitation.
Agency staff have extensive knowledge and experience in all aspects of
planning for and providing social rehabilitation services, from
conceptualization to full implementation, including the critical issue
of taking into consideration existing local system and community
conditions.  For more information about how we can assist you, please
call the Deputy Director of Clinical Administration at 415-861-0828.?
http://www.progressfoundation.org/#TRAINING%20AND%20CONSULTATION



Additional Information, California:

Independent Living in Orange County
Independent living opportunities are provided through a cooperative
effort among the private sector, the Orange County Mental Health
Association, the Orange County Department of Mental Health and NAMIOC.
 Placement consideration is determined by County of Orange Behavioral
Health Care.  Please contact the respective County liaison.
http://www.namioc.org/rm_h_independent.htm



The Access Center 
?We provide self-advocacy training for consumers, helping them locate
accessible, affordable and available housing.
We maintain an inventory of accessible and affordable housing in San
Diego County and can direct consumers to subsidized housing programs.?
http://www.accesscentersd.org/what.htm
http://www.accesscentersd.org/ilp.htm


NAMI San Diego
http://www.namisandiego.org/
Patient Advocacy Program
5998 Alcalá Park, AW 304
San Diego, CA 92110-2492
(619) 260-7660 or
1-800-479-2233
Fax: (619) 260-7680
Monday - Friday:
8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Call for help with inpatient mental health services
http://www.namisandiego.org/clientconsumer.html


It is possible that you may get some assistance in paying for your
sister?s housing through Medicaid:
http://www.bazelon.org/issues/disabilityrights/resources/olmstead/under/medicaidadults.htm

Once you find a location, you can check licensing here:
http://www.bbs.ca.gov/



Center for Independent Living (CIL)
2539 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley CA. 94704
Telephone: 510-841-4776
Fax: 510-841-6168
TDD: 510-848-3101
Executive Director: Jan Garrett
E-Mail: cil@hooked.net
http://www.cfilc.org/directory/detail.cgi?Berkeley


Canticle Arts Center, Franciscan Canticle, Inc., 675 N. Palm Canyon
Dr., Palm Springs, CA 92262 (619) 416-1338. Open year-round; artists
of all disciplines; short-and long-term residencies; private studio,
living accommodations, and three meals per day for $1,250/mo or
$1,000/mo. for a shared studio space. (visual, literary, performing,
media arts) No web site.


Outside of California:
====================================================================

North Carolina:

Cooper Riis
This, of all the places I have located, seems to be an ideal place for
your sister. Unfortunately it is in Mill Spring, North Carolina.
http://www.cooperriis.org/

Contact information, and directions:
http://www.cooperriis.org/contact.html

?Residents will be offered many arts and recreation opportunities on a
daily basis in both a structured and unstructured format. The
beautiful grounds of CooperRiis itself offer opportunities for
walking, swimming, paddle-boating, tennis, volleyball, and fishing.
CooperRiis highly values artistic expression and has created an Arts
Barn that accommodates woodworking, pottery, bookbinding,
screen-printing, and photography. Painting and sculpting materials
will also be provided in addition to instruction and guidance across
several artistic mediums.
Residents are also encouraged to express their creativity through our
weekly writers group and by utilizing multiple musical instruments.
Several recreational outings will be offered that will take advantage
of the multiple outdoor and arts activities in the surrounding area.
Just like the work training program, the arts and recreation program
facilitate the recovery process in many important ways. Recreation
opportunities promote physical wellness as well as emotional wellness
by addressing health issues, increasing self esteem, increasing
opportunities for positive
social interactions, and offering opportunities for personal growth,
learning, and play. The arts program also offers opportunities for
productivity and fun as well as creating an important opportunities
for creative growth and creative expression.? (Page 6)

http://www.cooperriis.org/images/recoverypgm.pdf


New York
Crystal Lake Lodge
6342 Mill Street
Rhinebeck, NY 12572
845-876-3740
http://www.crystallakelodge.com/

Contact information and directions:
http://www.crystallakelodge.com/contactus.html


Georgia:
Skyland Trail
Nationally Recognized Schizophrenia and Depression Treatment Facility
SKYLAND TRAIL
(866) 528-9593 Toll Free
1903 North Druid Hills Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30319  ?  (404) 315-8333

http://www.skylandtrail.org/
http://www.skylandtrail.org/art_th.html


Ohio:
Hopewell
Mesopotamia, Ohio
9637 State Route 534 P.O. Box 193
Mesopotamia OH, 44439
Phone: 440-693-4074
Fax: 440-693-4168
This is a working therapy farm, and only lists ?fiber art? as an art program.
?Fiber Arts: Hopewell's Fiber Arts program engages residents in
several activities from learning to knit and crochet to dying the wool
from Hopewell sheep and then spinning it to use later. Staff and
residents learn these techniques together.?
http://www.hopewell.cc/
http://www.hopewell.cc/the_program.html

Gateway Homes
This program is geared towards people with schizoaffective disorder.
(The web site is done completely in Flash, making it a bit difficult
to maneuver, and to  place the information here.)
http://www.gatewayhomes.org/index.html
Contact Information
http://www.gatewayhomes.org/contact/index.html


http://www.gatewayshospital.org/


Connecticut:

Parent?s Foundation
One Hundred Broadway
New Haven, Connecticut 06511
tel: (203) 776-3236
fax: (203) 782-9100
e-mail: pftl@parentsfoundation.com
http://www.parentsfoundation.com/about.shtm
http://www.parentsfoundation.com/programs.htm


Massachusetts:

Wild Acre Inns
Wild Acre Inns, Inc.
Attn: Mary Bruno
108 Pleasant Street
Arlington, MA 02476
781-643-0643
800-750-0236
Fax   781-648-2937
?Wild Acre Inns offers mental health residential treatment and day
treatment programs at five community residential treatment facilities
in Massachusetts. Some of the specific types of mental illnesses
treated are schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, depression,
bi-polar, manic-depressive, character pathology, schizoid personality
disorder, borderline personality disorder, alcohol and drug
addictions, and trauma.?
http://www.wildacreinns.com/
http://www.wildacreinns.com/res1.html
Locations
http://www.wildacreinns.com/loc.html



WindHorse
Windhorse Associates, Inc. 
211 North Street, Suite #1 
Northampton, Massachusetts 01060 
Telephone: 1-413-586-0207, ext. 113 
Toll free: 877-844-8181, ext. 113 
Email: Admissions@windhorseassociates.org
http://www.windhorseassociates.org/index.php


New Hampshire:

Riverbend
Administrative Offices & General Information
PO Box 2032, Concord, NH 03302-2032
603-228-1551
?Last year, Riverbend's 280 employees served more than 7000 people,
including 1,600 children, helping individuals and families to live
healthy, productive lives and foster independent living for adults
with serious mental illness.
Riverbend serves many of the Merrimack County region's most vulnerable
residents.  85% of Riverbend's clients have annual incomes less than
$20,000, and many have limited ability to pay.
Last year, Riverbend provided more than $750,000 of services free of
charge or at discounted rates.
Riverbend Community Mental Health primarily serves people who live in
the New Hampshire communities of Allenstown, Andover, Boscawen, Bow,
Bradford, Canterbury, Chichester, Concord, Danbury, Deering,
Dunbarton, Epsom, Franklin, Henniker, Hill, Hillsborough, Hopkinton,
Loudon, Newbury, New London, Northfield, Pembroke, Pittsfield,
Salisbury, Sutton, Warner, Weare, Wilmot, Webster and Windsor.?
http://www.riverbendcmhc.org/html/generalinformation/info_who_we_serve.html
?Key employees are three artists, staff vocational specialists, and 10
mental health consumer employees. The program has art activities each
weekday, and consumers produce pottery, wooden picture frames, rag
rugs (from recycled fabrics), wall hangings, poetry books with
original poems (see attached sample), greeting cards, baskets, music,
and crafts.?
http://www.riverbendcmhc.org/html/consumersfamilies/consumr_csp_h&s_studio.html
http://www.riverbendcmhc.org/html/generalinformation/info_intro.html



Additional Information:

ZuZu?s Place
Whitman, MA.
http://www.zuzusplace.org/
http://www.zuzusplace.org/index.php?id=philosophy

Art Awakenings, Phoenix, AZ
There was very little information on this organization. There are many
e-mail contacts on the site that you could contact however.
http://www.artawakenings.org/
http://www.psaemail.com/

Creedmoor Psychiatric Center
Not exactly an artist?s coop, but they do have several homes that have
artists programs.
http://www.omh.state.ny.us/omhweb/facilities/crpc/facility.htm
The Living Museum, Creedmoor Psychiatric Center, 
http://www.daboragallery.com/livingmuseum.html
http://www.mentalwellness.com/mentalhealth/programs/index.jsp
http://www.mentalwellness.com/mentalhealth/programs/working.jsp


Another program, with little online information: HAI (Hospital
Audiences Inc.) delivers a wide range of arts services to people with
disabilities.  For over twenty-five years, the HAI Workshop Program
has provided ongoing, participatory arts experiences led by
professional artists in both visual and performing arts.  Day
treatment programs, and group residences, serving seriously mentally
ill and mentally retarded/ developmentally disabled adults and
children host HAI?s professional artists.  In response to requests
from the HAI Consumer Advisory Board, HAI added workshops in visual
and video arts for participants from mental health programs throughout
New York City at its offices on Saturdays.  (Consumers can determine
their eligibility for the program and register by telephoning [212]
575-7696).
The HAI professional artists establish studio environments where many
program participants are introduced to the arts for the first time. 
Other participants have been involved in the arts in their past and
are returning to a familiar and comfortable experience from those
earlier days.  The workshop  program emphasizes the fundamental
healing power of the arts and encourages artistic creativity and
expression.
http://www.mwcac.com/Aug001.htm

Alternatives, INC
Alternatives, Inc.  600 First Ave.  Raritan, NJ 08869   Phone: (908)
685-1444   Fax: (908) 685-2660
Since its founding, Alternatives, Inc. has reached out to serve other
populations: the mentally ill, homeless, teens at risk and others with
special needs. Today, the Agency serves over 260 individuals and their
families with a series of innovative programs - all structured to
enhance the quality of life with Dignity Through Independence.
http://www.alternativesinc.org/resident.htm

Coast Foundation
British Vancouver
Coast Foundation Society (1974)
293 East 11th Avenue
Vancouver, BC V5T 2C4
Phone (604)-872-3502
Fax (604)-879-2363
info@coastfoundation.com
http://www.coastfoundation.com/services/R-Centre.html


This somewhat odd looking site may be of interest to you:
http://www.schizoaffective.org/index.htm



I hope this information assists you in locating a suitable home for
your sister. If any part of my answer is unclear, or if I have
duplicated information you already had, please request an Answer
Clarification, before rating. This will allow me to assist you
further, if possible.

Sincerely,
crabcakes

Search Terms:
artist coop  mentally ill  california
residential art communities + mentally ill
art community + california + mentally ill
mentally ill + cooperative residences + california
NAMI
Schizoaffective disorder
housing  california schizoaffective
California residences mentally ill
california homes mentally ill art community
mentally ill + communal residence + California
residence programs + mentally ill + California
residence + mentally ill + California
art cooperative mentally ill  California
california communal living mentally ill
independent living schizoaffective  california
group homes california mentally ill

This seemed a very thorough search. the answer has given our family a
good view of possible solutions of a difficult situation.