The Blue Butterfly Family Grief Program is going “Back to the Future” with its new location.
The popular 1985 film took moviegoers on a time travel journey to 1955. That era is still alive and well at Town Square Sarasota, a 1950s-themed adult day care center.
From left, Blue Butterfly Children’s Grief Educator Lendy Chapman, Blue Butterfly Counselor Ashley Nolan and Town Square Sarasota owner Michael Finn.
At first blush, the 1950s and the children and teens of today seems like an odd combination. But Town Square Sarasota and Blue Butterfly are thrilled by the possibilities.
When Blue Butterfly leaders were seeking a convenient location for families and program volunteers in south Sarasota, Town Square Sarasota owner Michael Finn was happy to show off his facility.
“They said, ‘Well, we’re looking for a place that looks like it could be for kids and lots of rooms.’ I said, ‘Well, you came to the right place,’” Finn said. “Even though it’s a ‘50s theme, it’s just super fun the way it’s decorated. It’s got pool tables and Skee-Ball and cornhole and putting contests and all sorts of things.”
Town Square Sarasota, 3882 Central Sarasota Parkway, is a 12,000-square-foot center opened almost three years ago for seniors affected by aging, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. Seniors enjoy socialization and programming while families and caregivers get welcome respite.
The interior looks like a main street out of the 1950s with a 50-person diner, a 50-person theater and eight other rooms, including a city hall, park, library and more. A bright yellow 1957 Thunderbird convertible is the showpiece in the middle of it all.
Between 40 and 50 seniors visit Town Square Sarasota each weekday.
“We love what we do,” Finn said, “but this place sits empty after 4:30 in the afternoon Monday through Friday and on the weekend. Any opportunity to help another organization seems to make a lot of sense.”
Tidewell Grief Care’s Blue Butterfly Family Grief Program, a member of Empath Health, began more than six years ago as a safe space for children ages 5-18 and their caregivers to grieve and process after a significant death in their lives. The program employs clinical mental health professionals leading age-based peer support groups. It is free to all participants, thanks to grants and charitable donations to the Tidewell Foundation.
Blue Butterfly Children’s Grief Educator Lendy Chapman, MS, CCLS, got her first look at Town Square Sarasota during a recent open house for families and volunteers. She said the Blue Butterfly families will love the facility, which is slated to begin hosting Blue Butterfly meetings in mid-January.
“I think they’re going to be so excited. It’s so bright and open. There are so many new areas for them to explore. This is beautiful,” Chapman said.
Each Blue Butterfly group meeting begins with a communal meal before participants break into smaller groups of Littles, Middles, Teens and Caregivers.
Blue Butterfly holds meetings at Empath Health facilities in Lakewood Ranch and Palmetto in Manatee County and at the Lighthouse Baptist Church in Port Charlotte in Charlotte County. Previously, families from the southern part of Sarasota County had to travel to Port Charlotte or a former site in north Sarasota.
“We have had such a massive population growth of young families in this area of south Sarasota, Venice, Osprey, Nokomis. To be able to offer this resource to access more of those families is important,” Chapman said.
To find out more about Blue Butterfly or to request an assessment, call (941) 893-6610 or visit BlueButterflyCenter.org. If you are interested in volunteering with Blue Butterfly, visit EmpathVolunteers.org.
Recent Comments