Spirit on Lake Captures the Spirit of LIving Out

Entrance to Spirit on Lake

I'm a Midwest girl so I couldn't drive through Minnesota without visiting "Spirit on Lake" in Minneapolis, urban apartments on the corner of Lake Street and 13th Avenue South.  This place meets my definition of utopia.  They have carefully defined the community as "open to all in a setting where the GLBT elder community can feel fully welcome and secure."  This community is, by design, affordable and diverse.  What an ideal community!

We met with Kathleen Tully, the wonderfully welcoming property manager.  Kathleen calls this an "intentional community" and said that they think of themselves as a "laboratory."  The community opened on September 1st, 2013.  Approximately 70% of the residents are GLBT.  Most of the non-GLBT are Somali. There are four stories and 46 one and two-bedroom apartments here.  Seven units are reserved for CLARE Housing, providing housing and services for HIV positive individuals.  We had the opportunity to tour a one-bedroom apartment.  The proud resident was happy to show us his well-designed space with a wide entryway, beautiful kitchen with high-end finishes and bedroom with a large walk-in closet.  Besides a meeting space, the first floor also houses the the Q (Quatrefoil) Library, the GLBT community library with a large collection of over 10,000 books as well as DVDs, periodicals and sound recordings. 

The Quatrefoil Library

A Poster in the Q Library

Two residents are quite well-known.  Harvey Hertz, is a long-time gay activist and was the owner of the first gay bookstore in Minneapolis.  Barbara Satin, a transgender activist whom Kathleen describes as the matriarch of Spirit on Lake,  can be seen in this video produced by the BBC:  http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26533045

One of the things that makes Spirit on Lake a unique community, besides the fact that it is open to all, is that it was funded by a development group of investors who are dedicated to the ideals represented by Spirit on Lake.  This is a "for profit" enterprise but those who put up the funding must comply with the tax credit requirements.  The community also has the community support of the Living Table United Church of Christ fellowship that is "boldly inclusive." 

Spirit on Lake just received a great honor, Pride Twin Cities recently announced that the Community Champion of Pride award will be given to Spirit on Lake.  The representatives of the community will receive the award at the Grand Marshall Reception in June 13th.  

After we left the building and were heading back to the RV parked on the street just outside the entrance, we were stopped by two residents, (now they feel like friends) Judith and Joleen.  They were on their way out to Judith's storage unit (do we ever have enough room for all our earthly goods?).  What great women!  We talked about all kinds of things, including what it was like to live at Spirit on the Lake.  Both of these 70-somethings are very happy living there and we can understand why.

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Chicago, Chicago that Toddling Town

Chicago's New Housing

When I was in Philadelphia, Ed, who runs senior programs at the William Way Community Center, suggested I stop in and see what was going up in Chicago.  I'm so glad I did!  It was a thrill to see this new senior housing development going up in a neighborhood that is somewhat familiar to me as I grew up near Chicago and my grandmother once lived in an apartment close to Halsted Street.

 If you've every been to Chicago and know the area North of downtown on Halsted, you know what a great neighborhood this is for "toddling." Close to Wrigley Field, walking distance to performing arts venues and great restaurants, this area has a great vibe and proudly proclaims itself as an LGBT neighborhood.  There is beautiful signage on every block in the form of rainbow striped posts bearing plaques with the names of LGBT people who have made great contributions to our history and culture.  Here are a couple examples.

The new senior housing is going up just a block from The Center on Halsted, a beautiful building that houses the programs supporting LGBT in Chicago.  There is a Whole Foods Market right next to the Center with a connecting entry to either facility from within the buildings. I was impressed with the way the two entities have blended the community by having the lobby of the Center also function as a gathering spot with table and chairs for those who want to eat their Whole Foods Deli lunch or have coffee and conversation with a friend.  

The new LGBTQ friendly senior housing under construction

The Center on Halsted

A map of the neighborhood

After leaving the Center, we drove to Oak Park to tour the Unity Temple, a wonderful Unitarian Church designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.  Guess what was on the sign outside? And at the church across the street?  If this simple symbol can be used announce to all that LGBT are welcome there, why not use it to welcome us to a senior housing community?

 

A Turning Point

Maine Coastline

The purpose of a sabbatical is to give one time to rest, reflect, travel and do research.  We've been on the road for three months and have three months left to travel so we're at a turning point.  Yesterday we left Maine and the point of the trip where we were the greatest distance from our starting point, our home in San Diego.  We've put on 10,000 miles, seen some incredibly beautiful sites and met many wonderful people along the way.  For the last week or so, I've been collecting my thoughts about my research work.  It seems preliminary to make any strong statements halfway through the trip but I do have three things that are churning in my brain that I'd like to share.  

First, it seems that the work being done to support housing for LGBT is focused in urban areas.  This is no great surprise but it does make me wonder about the work that needs to be done for LGBT in smaller cities, towns and rural areas.  About 70% of my survey data has come from LGBT living in urban areas.  I hope to increase the data from non-urban areas as we cut across the northern tier of the US, heading for Seattle.  

Second, LGBT-only or gay-friendly housing in urban areas has been developed or is being developed with the notion that we want to live separately.  One of the reasons for this separateness is because we don't believe we can be out of the closet in general population senior housing communities.  Certainly, we've all heard about this issue and know it is a possibility.  However, the data I've collected so far indicates that most of us would prefer to live in senior housing that is welcoming and accepting of LGBT, and not LGBT only.   There is a disconnect here that may have to do with the age and socioeconomic status of my subjects.  

Third, many independent and assisted living communities want to know how to welcome us and make us feel accepted.  They are asking for help but don't seem to know where or how to get that help.  We can't assume that the reason they aren't hanging out a rainbow flag is because they don't want us.  There is so much work that needs to be done with these facilities but so little is being done to assist them.  Why?  I've got some thoughts on this but will save it for a later post.  

New York State of Mind

I've visited New York City during every season of the year but I love this city most in the springtime.  The trees are just budding, the sky is blue and the air is warm and fresh.  We had a lovely four days here just being tourists.  I did manage to connect with Will who is the contact for an LGBT "baby boomer" group.  They weren't meeting while we were in town but Will said he would try to get me connected to the group through the on-line survey. 

We stayed in Jersey City, at a "campground" next to a marina.  It was really an eighty-dollar-a-day glorified parking lot but it provided easy access to public transportation.  On our first day in New York, we took our bikes and got on the ferry that ran from our marina to Battery Park.  We biked from the Battery to the Cloisters and back to the ferry dock.

On our return trip, I saw this sign in the Chelsea neighborhood.  Loved it!  It advertises a storage facility.  

City of Brotherly Love

Believe it or not, it is possible to drive a 25 foot motorhome through downtown Philadelphia on a weekday morning.  After dodging potholes the size of a bathtub, we found a parking lot across the street from the William Way Community Center.  I stopped here on a whim on our way to New York City.  I had read about the new LGBT friendly apartments that just opened and I wanted to take a look.  I walked into the Community Center without an appointment and asked for the person responsible for programs for senior LGBT.  "Oh!  That would be Ed and he's just down the street at the John Anderson Apartments on 13th."   

I left Jane in the parking lot with the RV and walked two blocks to the Apartments.  When I entered the foyer, I noticed how new the building was.  Everything was clean, fresh, and contemporary.  The employee that had just freshly mopped the tiled floor asked me if I needed any help.  I said I was looking for Ed and he pointed to a glass-walled room where there were  about 15 people sitting around tables.  I couldn't hear what they were saying but everyone was engaged in lively conversation, laughing, smiling and showing ease and comfort with each other.  A woman standing in front finished saying something to the group and came out into the hallway where I was standing.  She asked if I needed help and I said I was hoping to talk to Ed but didn't want to interrupt him if he was busy.  She said, "I'll go get him."  Ed came out and I quickly explained what I was up to and that I hoped to see the facility and perhaps, have residents complete my survey if they were willing. Even though Ed was supposed to be back with the group facilitating, he spent a few minutes showing me around answering my questions about this LGBT friendly community.  

Courtyard with new plantings

Apartments overlooking the courtyard

This is a beautiful space!  Imagine having a new one bedroom apartment overlooking this courtyard.  Other apartments face the street in this gay-friendly neighborhood.  Residents have access to activities at the William Way Community Center just down the street and the Mazonni Health and Legal Clinics close by.  The Avenue of the Arts is within walking distance. There are currently 46 residents so it is close to capacity.  If you want to know more, check out this web site:  https://pennrose.com/properties/john-c-anderson-apartments/  I am so grateful to Ed for taking time away from his morning to talk with me and I'm SO glad I made it here.  What a great model this is for San Diego!

 

Utopia

Thanks to my good friend, Rebecca, for connecting me with her friend, John, who has lived in D.C. for 30 years.  We had a good phone conversation today about LGBT housing in the city.  John has been thinking a great deal about this topic.  

We began by discussing the notion of villages.  How wonderful it would be to live with friends in close proximity, in a cooperative community where people help each other, share their talents and provide the spiritual and emotional support which define community in it's finest sense.  John said he tried to forward this idea with friends but everyone seemed so happy with their current homes they were unwilling to move.  Perhaps the risk factor is too great.  What if it doesn't work?  What if you aren't happy there?  What about the financial commitment to a concept that is unfamiliar to most of us?  John also said, "We need to relate across the generations."  Multi-generational communities just make sense.  So much can be gained from this way of living, especially for LGBT without children or relatives close by, this would be an ideal housing situation.  Utopia?  Haven't found it yet but if you have, please share. 

Reflections

Washington D.C. is such an amazing city.  It was beautiful on Sunday so we walked around Arlington National Cemetery, visited several monuments and then had a wonderful walk under the blossoming cherry trees circling the Tidal Basin.  

During our four days here we've visited the museums on our bucket list:  National Museum of American History, National Museum of the American Indian, National Museum of Women in the Arts, and the Holocaust Memorial Museum.  Today we started with the "Changing America" exhibit at the American History Museum.  This was a wonderful documentation of cultural change from the Emancipation Proclamation to the March on Washington in 1963.  One of the displays covered the marches on Washington for other groups that experienced discrimination, including this poster from the march for gay rights in 1979.

During our visit, I was struck by the fact that we, LGBT, have a limited presence here in the museums of our nation's capital.  There was no mention of the lesbians who served our country in the Women in Military Service for America Memorial.  Doesn't our friend Grethe Cammermeyer deserve to be recognized for her struggle challenging the anti gay policies of our military?  In the American Indian museum I could find no acknowledgement of the "two spirit" people, the androgynous or transgender tribal members held in high regard as spiritual and specially blessed.  Where are we in American history?  Will we ever have our own museum exhibit in DC to document our history and culture and our contributions to this country? 

Holocaust Museum