Apostles Village Dedicated:

Low-Income Housing for Elderly

Joint Project of Apostles Lutheran Church and LSF

30 June 2009 - TW

Nearly a year to the day after ground breaking, Apostles Village was dedicated on June 7 in Brandon, FL to provide low-income housing for the elderly.  About 225 people attended.

The building project was jointly planned and sponsored by Lutheran Services Florida (LSF) and Apostles Lutheran Church.  The new village is adjacent to the church property at 200 Kingsway Rd.

Apostles Village is a 55-unit apartment complex located near an existing community center and to extensive support services for senior citizens in the area. Additionally, the new complex will assist residents with other necessary services such as homemaking, respite, adult day care, transportation, home delivered meals and social activities. The goal is to help the residents live and age with dignity.

The project was made possible through a $5.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Grants were also received from  Hillsborough County to purchase the property and from the Florida State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program for other construction costs.

"LSF is proud to have partnered with Apostles to make this project happen," said LSF CEO Samuel Sipes at the dedication.

"We are excited to see the dream of providing affordable housing for low income seniors become a reality," said the Rev. Handlee Vige, pastor of Apostles Lutheran Church.  "This is not your typical affordable housing project. Apostles Village is absolutely beautiful. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development sees Apostles Village as a model of what affordable housing can look like."

Occupancy of the new housing facility is expected to begin in August, according to Pr. Vige.  As soon as residents move in, the youth of the church are planning a luncheon to welcome them.  Residents will also be the guests of honor at the church's annual Boars Head Feast on Dec. 3.  Other social events will be coordinated with the social worker on staff at Apostles Village, said Pr. Vige.

Applications for residency are available from LifeLink Corporation, an Illinois-based human services organization providing housing for seniors and the physically challenged in 24 communities in the Midwest and Florida.  For information and applications, call LifeLink at (630) 766-3570 or (888) 323-3038.

The dedication of Apostles Village was led by the Rev. Edward Benoway, Bishop of the Florida-Bahamas Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.  Also participating were the Rev. Dr. Raymond Hargrove, Northeast Regional Conference Minister;  the Rev. Timothy Rhodes, President and CEO of LifeLink and the Rev. Dr. John Syster of Lifelink Sarasota Area Housing Board.  The Honorable Al Higginbotham also spoke on behalf of the Hillsborough County Commission, District 4.

For more pictures of the dedication, click here.

For the 2008 report on the groundbreaking, click here.
 

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