Skies cleared for the Clear Blue Sky Clubhouse this week when the organization closed on the purchase of 8A Catherineberg, the fabled Villa Fairview, overlooking St. Thomas harbor.
The historic property was built in the 1840s as a private residence and saw several owners, most recently becoming a guest house. It dwarfs the clubhouse’s current location on Frenchman’s Hill.
Arlene Monaghan, the organization’s founder and executive director, was filled with gratitude Friday morning. "We closed Wednesday," she said. "We’ve been in negotiations for about two years, and it’s finally come to fruition."
The local clubhouse is a part of the International Center for Clubhouse Development (ICCD). There are more than 300 clubhouses internationally. This is the only one in the Caribbean.
The clubhouses provide a place for people suffering mental illnesses to come each day and work together.
The members work with the staff, preparing meals, doing clerical work, learning how to rejoin the world of employment. The clubhouse offers something for members to fill their day, a place to come where they are welcomed, have duties, are respected, kept busy, and where they learn something
"The members are guaranteed a right to a place to come, to meaningful work, to meaningful relationships, and a right to a place to return," Monaghan said.
"Everyone is equal," she said. "Staff and members work together every day. It’s a community of men and women of all ages, who come together to assist each other. We don’t offer counseling. We put people to work so they gain self-esteem."
Monaghan and club secretary Luz A. Moron were clearly thrilled the wait had come to a happy end. The mental health organization was able to purchase this property through a $250,000 appropriation sponsored by Sen. Louis Hill last August.
In thanking Hill for his continuing efforts to support the program, Moron wrote, "With Villa Fairview, we can now expand our services in line with the Clubhouse International."
The local Clubhouse is the brainchild of Monaghan. Using a $6,000 Venture Grant from the United Way, Monaghan wanted to serve five people in half of her house while she lived in the other half. After Monaghan contacted the ICCD about her program, they offered a one-week scholarship in their training program. One of the stipulations for being a part of the ICCD program, however, required that she could no longer live in the clubhouse facility.
"It was move out or get another location," Monaghan said, "We had no budget, so I moved into an apartment in my sister’s home." The Clubhouse was opened in 2005 and incorporated in 2006 at the Frenchman’s Hill location.
To return more people to mental wellness, Clear Blue Sky Clubhouse now aims for full certification in the international organization. To qualify for certification, Clear Blue Sky Clubhouse needs to increase staff and meet other standards, which the new location will facilitate.
Speaking at a mental health forum sponsored by Clear Blue Sky and the University of the Virgin Islands earlier this month, Evan Gerrard of the ICCD said the program offers an identity. "People with a mental illness don’t belong. They have nowhere to go," he said. "Our program empowers them. We offer a place to come where they are always welcome, where they have duties, where they will be respected. We have a work program where we place members in a job that the clubhouse sponsors."
Friday morning Monaghan said the members are "all excited" about the new location."This is a big deal for them," she said. "We’ve all been waiting so long for this. We keep the members well informed. They all know what’s going on."
The group has its work cut out for it. The property hasn’t been occupied for several months, and it shows. Monaghan said. "First, the board will take a walk through to look at the space. It will need cleaning. We must be very careful because it’s an historical property and its integrity must be maintained. We will need advice from the Historical Trust on that.
"The whole intent," she said, "was to have a flatter location where members could access it more easily. We’ve outgrown the other space. We needed to get a bigger space to increase capacity and it’s not easy to find the right location. This is almost right downtown."
The current location is on Frenchman’s Hill, which is a steep walk, with almost no parking.
"It’s a beautiful campus," she said about the group’s new digs. "We will have so much room for growing things now, vegetables for our kitchen. It’s amazing. It’s just the kind of space we’ve been looking for. I’m just so happy for everybody."
