Marge Callahan was excited but a little anxious Friday. After 11 years in the same high-rise senior apartment building, moving was a daunting task for the 63-year-old.
"We had to get rid of a lot of stuff," she said, eyeing a growing stack of brown cardboard boxes. "I'm still going to have a job putting all this away."
Callahan's new address is Valley Horizons, a West Valley City housing complex for senior-age residents who also have mental illnesses. Run by Valley Mental Health, the 20-unit complex, 2133 S. 360 West, will have a 24-hour support system for residents, including on-site case managers to help with medications and therapy or access to other medical, educational and aging services.
"What we've tried to create is a healing environment," said Dr. David Dangerfield, director of Valley Mental Health. "I think it will help people stay healthy longer."
Many among the senior population struggle with the issues of aging, such as diminished physical abilities, loneliness and the loss of work and loved ones. Those challenges can be even greater when someone is mentally ill, Valley Mental Health Housing Program coordinator Aura Royo-Snarr said.
The hope is that residents will be buffered from some of those struggles because they live in an environment of support and acceptance. Although Callahan, who uses a walker and says she "has to go slow," checked in on Friday, residents officially made Valley Horizons home Monday.
"Being in a place where you are accepted, being in a place where you are loved and where you are cared for, is the essence of life," Royo-Snarr said. "And we're going to be here to help them."
That is exactly what Callahan says she needs.
Diagnosed with schizophrenia after her husband died in the mid-1970s, she has been unable to work. As she has aged, other health problems have made it harder to get around. The result has been more and more time alone. Her children live outside of Utah and visit infrequently, she said.
"In my other (apartment), I was isolated a lot. I didn't know very many people, and I was uncomfortable talking about my illness," she said. "Here, I think, it will be better. People will understand."
Still, Callahan and other residents will be able to maintain their privacy and independence. Each one-bedroom apartment, which comes complete with furnishings for those who need them, has a kitchen and bath and two call buttons for emergencies. A laundry room is shared and there is a communal living area on the second floor for gatherings.
Built with grants from state and local government entities and supported by tax credits, the units are also affordable. With housing vouchers, residents will pay rent that equals just 30 percent of their individual incomes.
"I'm very proud — tickled to death — that we were able to do this," Dangerfield said. "I'm also very impressed with West Valley City. Siting a mental health facility is never easy. Everybody always thinks it's a good idea, just 'not in my backyard.' But here, from the city planning office to the local churches and neighbors, it's been, 'We encourage you to be there.' "
As her new home slowly began to take shape Friday, Callahan relaxed and began directing the moving traffic from a spot on the couch.
Her brown easy chair fit snugly into a corner of the living room. Artificial-flower arrangements and pictures of her grandchildren were temporarily set up on the kitchen table. A dresser fit perfectly in the hallway next to the front door.
One staff member got busy stocking the refrigerator while Royo-Snarr helped the moving crew decide how to arrange the bedroom furniture.
"Ooooh, Marge, you've got a lot of stuff, but I think it's going to fit!" Royo-Snarr called out.
Callahan grinned.
"These people are so good to me," she said, with obvious affection. "I feel at home already."
E-MAIL: dobner@desnews.com