“I love the new floor,” shouted a Jacobson House resident at the Orchard Place Residential Campus. For many children, Jacobson House has been a place of comfort and healing. Built in 1992 alongside Shiffler House, its floors had not been updated in over 15 years, showing significant wear and tear. Thanks to a generous $57,117 gift from Variety the Children’s Charity, Orchard Place was able to make these much-needed upgrades to both units, creating a safer and more welcoming environment for children.
For 34 years, Variety the Children’s Charity has partnered with Orchard Place to foster a safe environment for children and youth to overcome their mental health adversities. Their generosity provided the units with new vinyl flooring, making the units more safe, cleaner, and durable. “The flooring has really given the whole building a facelift,” stated Gabe DeJong, the Milieu Treatment Coordinator in Jacobson House. “Prior to the gift from Variety, we had some commercial carpet that had seen better days. Think years of knocked over arts and crafts, glasses of Kool-Aid, and salt and snow tracking in.” Grateful for the new updates, DeJong explained the space now feels more welcoming. “I wish we could have done it a long time ago.”
With the support of partners, like Variety the Children’s Charity, Orchard Place can successfully execute their mission of providing a safe environment for children and their families to heal, find hope, be empowered, and build resilience to overcome mental health adversity.
Read more about this generous gift here.
