County health

“Dave’s House,” a permanent supportive housing unit for those with mental illness, was created by Lin and Ron Wilensky. When the central Florida non-profit organization opened in August of 2008, it was named for Lin Wilensky’s brother Dave, who had battled schizophrenia all his life.

After Dave died of heart failure in 2007, Lin and Ron prepared Dave’s House in hopes it would be able to help people like Dave find stability and support despite the hardships that go along with mental illnesses like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Dave had a long battle with schizophrenia, yet he eventually found peace in a small home with two housemates and a mental-health specialist who checked on him periodically. There, he spent the final 15 years of his life, and after he passed his sister wanted to create a similarly supportive environment for others.

So the Wilenskys thus created their own supportive housing for patients with mental illness in a middle-income West Orange County neighborhood. At Dave’s House, Lakeside mental-health workers visit the four men and two women living there a couple of times a week. They make sure everyone is taking his or her medication, that people are getting along, and that the house is clean and in good repair. Additionally, they also screen residents to make sure they’re stable, nonviolent, and capable of taking care of their basic needs.

The place has been so successful in its first year, Lakeside officials say, they want to duplicate it. The next house should open by year’s end, and two additional homes in the next three years. The goal is to have a total of 20 or more by 2020, the goal of which is to provide housing for at least 100 people.

It is nice to read about such nonprofit initiatives in the news from time to time. As a disability attorney who sees many mental illness disability cases, I can not emphasize enough the importance of such supportive environments for those suffering from mental illnesses like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. I have recently created a Bipolar Disorder and Social Security Disability blog, and one of my goals is to feature articles like this from time to time. The Bipolar Disability blog can be accessed at http://www.bipolardisability.net

By: Jonathan Ginsberg

Tags: Bipolar Disorder, Brother Dave, County Neighborhood, Disability Attorney, Disability Cases, Four Men, Heart Failure, Housemates, Mental Health Disorders, Mental Health Specialist, Mental Health Workers, Mental Illness, Mental Illnesses, Permanent Supportive Housing, Safe Haven, Suff, Supportive Environment, Supportive Environments, West Orange County, Wilensky