The Dawn of Day Care
From Working to Preserve Our Heritage: The Incredible Legacy of Greek-American Community Services:
"GACS had considered launching an adult day care center since its earliest days. It would be the first step toward a Greek nursing home and help prevent premature or unnecessary institutionalization of older adults. GACS established an Adult Day Care Task Force in 1987. In addition to GACS, the committee included representatives of the Chicago Department on Aging, Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, United Charities, and the Alzheimer’s Adult Day Care Center. The first meeting was held on July 6, 1987, at the Elysion Restaurant. Over dinner, we heard from Pauline Yoshioka and Rose Jordan who were with the Greater Opportunities Adult Day Care Center in Skokie. The task force met periodically and made site visits to several adult day care centers to see them in operation. The ADC Task Force established the following purpose statement for the ADC: The center will address the following needs both within the Greek community and the community at large:
- Reduce isolation and depression among vulnerable elderly.
- Provide respite to families and caregivers experiencing stress in caring for an older adult.
- Offer a cost-effective alternative to in-home services or nursing home placements.
- Provide participants with a safe, professional, and caring environment that respects their abilities, life experiences, and wishes; cares for them with dignity; is sensitive to the special needs of Greek-Americans, and offers socialization, health care, and companionship.
Ethel Kotsovos had worked in an adult day care center run by the North Shore Senior Center and was a passionate advocate for establishing a similar center in our community. I completed a college internship at the Greater Opportunities Adult Day Care Center in Skokie and thus also believed in the benefits of this program.
The idea of seniors being in a communal setting, socializing, and being cared for in a safe and caring environment was a priority for GACS. Adult day care enabled seniors to stay at home with loved ones and still gain socialization, health care, and other assistance while reducing the need to admit loved ones into nursing homes prematurely. The state saw this as a way to reduce the amount the state paid out through its Medicaid program to nursing homes for care needed by these patients. Researchers had determined that upwards of ten thousand adult day care centers would be needed nationally to deal with the large numbers of baby boomers that would come of age in the coming decades.
In May 1989, an Emergency Request for Proposals (RFP) for adult day care services on the northwest side of Chicago was issued by IDOA. The only provider in the region, Norwood Park Home, had recently closed its adult day center. GACS was based on the northwest side and had established a track record through CAN and our other programs. The deadline for submission was in June. There wasn’t much time to put it together.
When GACS received word of IDOA’s RFP, we scrambled to prepare and submit the proposal in short order. Frequent meetings were held at the GACS offices on Monticello Street. The non-air-conditioned offices were uncomfortable given the heat, humidity, and lack of air circulation. In addition to Elaine and myself, Evangeline, Dr. Kioutas, John, Toni, and Ethel attended the meetings to work out the details. The proposal was submitted on time, and there was a 50-50 chance it would be approved.
About eight weeks later, we were notified by IDOA that our application to offer adult day care services on the northwest side of Chicago as of September 1, 1989, had been approved. Our service area boundaries were the Chicago River on the east, the city limits to both the west and north, and Fullerton on the south. GACS immediately requested a three-month extension to January 1, 1990, since much needed to happen to open the center. Key to these tasks was to find a location and hire and train staff.
GACS would receive $30 per day/client from the state for each day a state-subsidized client attended the center. The reimbursement included the cost of transportation. Clients qualified for the program if they had assets of $12,000 or less, not including a house or car. Co-payments were determined using a sliding fee scale based on monthly income with the first $500 being exempt. GACS established the private pay rate for adult day care clients who did not qualify for state subsidy at $35 per day. A full day of care was four or more hours. If a client attended for less than four hours, GACS received $17.50 from the state. Private pay clients that didn’t attend the full day paid a prorated hourly rate.
It was estimated that GACS needed to raise $30,000 to launch this program and $100,000 to sustain the program over the first few years. This included rent and related costs, furnishings, training, and initial staffing. It was known that the state, which we expected would make up the largest percentage of the client mix, was a frequent late payer, so we needed a cushion to allow for delayed payments.
In August, the Eclecteon Fine Arts Society hosted a benefit for the adult day care center at Ravinia. The event featured award-winning violinist Leonidas Kavakos and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. It was a potluck fundraiser on the Ravinia picnic grounds and was well attended. Over $1,000 was raised. The event was organized by Don Dadas, Sandy Ganakos, and Dee Tzakis.
Also in August, GACS organized a house party fundraising event at Nick and Elaine’s second home in Bridgman, Michigan. Modeled on our prior house party fundraisers they hosted at their Oak Brook home in support of CAN; this one benefited the new adult day care center. Both Elaine and John’s families had roots in southwestern Michigan dating back decades. Many Chicago area Greek American families maintained homes in Michigan or visited those who did. New Buffalo, Stevensville, Bridgman, St. Joseph, Union Pier, and Benton Harbor were popular destinations for many Greek families; some had vacationed in these parts since their youth.
Guests were greeted with a Tiki Torch-lit event featuring an assortment of homemade and locally donated food selections. Two Thomas R. Dawkins limited edition photographic paintings entitled “Blueberries” and “Raspberries” and plants donated by Nick Poulos were raffled off that evening.
In addition to the party, John planned an eventful weekend for those who wanted to make it a weekend getaway. All activities were optional. Among the activities that were planned: Lunch at Tabor Hill Winery, tomato, peach, and blueberry picking excursions, a shopping outing in St. Joseph’s, a beach day at Wako Beach, Dune climbing, peach picking at Shafer’s, and apple or pear picking at Johansens. A small group went to Sunday morning church services at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Benton Harbor while others gathered for breakfast at Bob’s Big Boy, a longtime local favorite. The event was well attended and both a fundraising and friend-raising success. Fatouros Greek Harbor (New Buffalo), Greek Islands Restaurant (Bridgman), Olympus Restaurant (Bridgman), J and J Truck Stop (New Buffalo), and Santaniello’s Glenlord Restaurant and Pizzeria supported the event by donating food and helping to publicize the event through their businesses. John prepared a five-page informational flier detailing the weekend schedule, area lodging and bed, and breakfast inn options, and travel directions from Chicago.
During a fall meeting of the Adult Day Care Committee, I remember us discussing ways to raise the balance of the money needed to open. John pulled out his trusty worn-out pocket-mini-sized address book and called Kay Valone, director of Phos Missions. During that call, Kay pledged several thousand dollars from her mission, putting us back on track. Kay also publicized the center in her “View from the Pew” columns in the Greek Press newspaper.
Although fundraising efforts were successful, the goal had not yet been reached. To address the shortfall, GACS held one final fundraiser before the year’s end. A cocktail reception was held on December 14, 1989, at the Neon Greek Village nightclub on Halsted Street. The tickets were $50 each, and guests were treated to a special performance by Vasilios Gaitanos. The event was well attended, and enthusiasm was in the air since the new center would be opening in three weeks. The cocktail party was coordinated by Alice Buzanis, GACS director of development, and Manolis Alpogianis, GACS special events coordinator. Alice and Manolis assumed these positions as volunteers. Alice was a good friend, who had been active in the Dukakis campaign and worked as the director of development for the Illinois Democratic Party. Manolis and his brother George would go on to launch America’s Dog, a local chain of hot dog restaurants. His family owned Kappy’s, a well-known pancake house located in Morton Grove.
Additional support from the community included over $1,000 raised by Fannie Manos and Venetia Papamichos, two elderly residents of Hollywood House who went door to door in their apartment building and approached fellow parishioners across the street at St. Andrew Greek Orthodox Church, to collect donations in support of this project. A few years later, their efforts were recognized by Illinois Governor Jim Edgar when he presented Fannie and Venetia with awards during a multicultural Senior Citizens Day event.
Other donations came through special fundraising appeals made by board members and supporters. Several Philoptochos societies and organizations contributed in support of the center. The Hellenic Medical Society, American Hellenic Society of Berwyn, Martin L. and Wyleen T. Coyne Foundation, Walgreens Foundation, and the Assumption Women’s Club come to mind but there were others as well.
After suggestions from several people to check out the old Alvernia High School building, the committee found an adequate (but not ideal) space. Ethel Kotsovos advocated for this location over the others under consideration. Some ADC committee members had concerns about the complexity of accessing our space but given the strict timeline we needed to adhere to, this became our most viable option. The space was on the fourth floor and required an elevator ride and a long walk down a hallway to get to the center. Wheelchairs were placed by the elevator for anyone who required assistance.
Since time was running out to meet the state deadline to open, a decision was made to locate the adult day care center there, at least temporarily, until a permanent facility was chosen. The building, located at 3901 N. Ridgeway Avenue/3900 N. Lawndale Avenue (near Irving Park and Pulaski) had been Alvernia High School, a girls’ high school that opened in 1924. Like many Catholic schools with dwindling student enrollment, the school was forced to close in 1989. The School Sisters of St Francis, the Milwaukee-based order that operated the school, renamed the building Alvernia Place and envisioned turning this building into a community center that would serve as a “non-profit incubator,” housing organizations that provided services to the community, with the vision that the tenants would complement each other and work together to strengthen and enhance their collective efforts.
GACS signed a three-year lease at Alvernia Place. New neighbors included: Northeastern Illinois University Teachers Center which shared the third floor with GACS, Search Developmental, Kid Watch Child Care, Outward Bound, and Call to Action. Dominic Lobello was the enterprising manager of the building who worked to maximize the building’s financial potential to cover the exorbitant costs of operating a large and aging building. A devout Catholic and a member of the Knights of Columbus, Dominic represented the order and mentioned that the sisters were particularly excited to have an adult day care program as part of the building’s mix. Alvernia Place now had organizations that ranged from infants to senior citizens.
The space the center occupied was formerly the school’s arts and crafts room. The room was bright with a row of windows that emitted plenty of sunlight. The cheerful green space was filled with built-in wooden cabinets that were perfect for storage, two sinks, and ample space for seniors to gather collectively as well as breakaway space if some quiet time is needed. GACS also rented the adjacent band room to provide office space for the staff. It had been leveled off, but one step remained and during our time there, many of us tripped over it, forgetting that there was a step in the middle of the room.
Ethel and I went shopping for furniture at used office furniture warehouses where we purchased many of the furnishings at very good prices. This included 30 colorful green and blue side chairs and a matching sofa as well as tables and chairs for the activity area. Pol donated cases of water and juice glasses, silverware, and dishes from his restaurant. A community member donated a hospital bed which we maintained in the nurse’s office in the event a client needed to rest or did not feel well. Donations of a refrigerator, television, stereo equipment, electric piano, and arts and crafts supplies were also received. Bill LaMagdelein obtained a donation of a new exercise bicycle.
The main issue with this location was that it was on the fourth floor. Despite the elevator, it was a bit of a walk to get to the room. A wheelchair was available to assist clients as needed. Other drawbacks were that we did not have street visibility, and new visitors would sometimes get lost within the building trying to find the center. Eventually, a building directory was placed on the corner of Lawndale and Byron Streets with a listing of occupants and arrows directing guests to the appropriate entry doors."
COMING SOON: The adult day care center opens its doors.
GACS Fundraising Committee meeting in the adult day care center at Alvernia Place. Pictured (L-R): Evangeline Mistaras, Manolis Alpogiannis, Alice Buzanis, John Psiharis, and John Rassogianis. Circa 1990-1991. John Psiharis collection.
The Greek Press, August 27, 1989. Elaine Thomopoulos collection.
Top: Entrance to Alvernia Place from Ridgeway Ave. Bottom: ADC room at Alvernia Place. Circa 1989. John Psiharis collection.