RESIDENT SERVICES

Mission Statement:

“We are committed to connecting residents to their community through partnerships with families, resources, and community agencies—Creating comfort at home.”

The Resident Services Team at Beacon Residential Management (BRM) is an integral part of the Property Management staff at Beacon Communities. Resident Service Coordinators (RSCs) serve as the bridge between property management and residents. As a liaison between management and residents, RSCs make referrals to resources such as health care providers, home health agencies, family support services, employment opportunities, youth development, and community social service agencies that support residents in maintaining their residency. Resident Service Coordinators also promote resident well-being by developing programs specific to the needs of each community.

Program development is the cornerstone of Resident Services. Resident Service Coordinators are instrumental in developing partnerships within local communities to serve Beacon residents. Examples of such partnerships and innovative programs are:

• The Pines in Brockton, MA where The Corporation for Public Management provides job training to residents in its Computer Lab. Chatham West also in Brockton, partners with local hospitals and community agencies to provide residents with health and wellness programs.

• Blake Estates in Hyde Park recently introduced The Wellness Program which features a clinic staffed by the Visiting Nurses Association (VNA), a bistro, hair salon, and a computer center run by Connected Living that trains residents in the use of computers and social media.
  
  

• Georgetowne Homes in Hyde Park, MA has partnered with the Hyde Park Arts Association to bring art instruction to young residents.

• Dominion Place in Richmond VA is an independent living senior community. The resident programs include literacy classes; health workshops on diabetes control, nutrition, mammogram screenings, home health agency presentations, monthly birthday parties, and an orientation from the Welcoming Committee to inform residents about programs at the community. There’s a group that uses computers on site to learn how to do on-line banking and rental payments. There’s also a pet owners club and a men’s group and both meet monthly.

• Treehouse at Easthampton Meadow in Easthampton, MA is a unique multi-generational apartment community for families and seniors designed to provide support to families who are adopting children from the foster care system. Seniors participate in the lives of the children as surrogate grandparents. The residents recently held a community-build and constructed a playground for the children. Homework assistance is provided through a partnership with Smith College. An Elders Forum is held weekly to discuss resources, opportunities and ways to support seniors and the foster care families at Treehouse. The children are involved in the Easthampton Cable Access TV Workshop to learn how to report and broadcast local programming. The “Saturday Cafe” is a potluck brunch that is run by residents to keep in touch with one another and to build community by sharing meals. The parent’s forum is coordinated by the Berkshire Children and Families with on-site staff to support parents in the process of adopting foster children.

• Southwood Square in Stamford, CT where Domus, a non-profit youth development agency, provides excellent afterschool programming for our residents. The programs include: 175 youth participants in daily after-school “Study Zone”, free martial arts and belt promotional classes for the family; computer lab with internet access open to the public; a 5000+ book library collection with a part-time accredited librarian; Joint Roxbury/CACC Scholars Enrichment Program (nearly 60 Southwood elementary students participate in this enrichment program on-site), Summer Academic & Recreational Camp (no charge) in conjunction with the Stamford Public Schools and Stamford Achieves, Two and a half (2 ½) FTE Educational Advocates that work directly with schools and youth at school and at CACC on educational achievement and progress.

These are just some examples of our commitment to making Beacon Communities welcoming. Providing such comprehensive programming enriches the lives of our residents and helps them to thrive putting our mission statement into practice.