Our Name
A bridge line is the first and strongest thread a spider spins to anchor its web. From that beginning, it connects its web to other points from which the web draws strength and resilience and the spider’s network grows in scope, stability, and effect. As the name suggests, The BridgeLine is a place where program participants can begin creating connections that strengthen and sustain them over time.
History
The BridgeLine was formed in January 2015 when two non-profit organizations, Building Bridges Charlottesville and Virginia Neurocare Foundation, merged.
Building Bridges Charlottesville was a local non-profit organization, founded in 1991 as an offshoot of the Innisfree Community near Crozet that serves adults with various mental and physical disabilities. It was recognized that people with brain injuries have distinctive needs because their ability to participate in their familiar community and home environment is suddenly and often significantly disrupted. Three homes within Charlottesville were established as a community where residents and staff share their lives.
Virginia Neurocare Foundation was a non-profit organization established in 2000 as the John Jane Brain Injury Center. Later, the name was changed to Virginia Neurocare Foundation. The staff at Highstreet Clubhouse supported and facilitated innovative evaluation, vocational training, residential living and successful community re-entry to enrich the lives of persons impacted by acquired brain injury.
Both organizations shared a commitment to supporting adults with brain injuries as they adjusted to life after injury, helping them build meaningful connections within the Charlottesville community and rediscover purpose and fulfillment.
Despite moments of struggle, life at The BridgeLine is filled with hope, tenacity, optimism, and joy. The scale of dreams may have changed for our members but the wonderful feeling of achieving them has not.
By merging into The BridgeLine, we were able to streamline services, expand our impact, and build a stronger foundation for long-term sustainability.
We organize and support…
- volunteer work in our community
- cognitive retraining including speech, reading, and memory support
- expressive therapies including art and music therapy
- group problem-solving sessions
- individual recreational outings
- group recreational outings
Guiding Principles
Our guiding principles are centered around mutual support and personal growth. We stand by each other as we realize our potential and contribute to the community in which we live. We celebrate the human spirit, affirming the dignity and worth of every individual.
Encouragement is at the heart of our approach.
We help each other move from injury toward wholeness, discovering and utilizing our unique gifts for a fresh start in life. We are committed to assisting persons with brain injuries and their families, and we extend our help to other programs that serve people in need. Through our actions and attitudes, we strive to serve as a model for hope and change within our community.
Our Guiding Principles
We, members of The BridgeLine:
- support each other as we realize our potential and contribute to the community in which we live;
- celebrate the human spirit and the dignity and worth of each individual;
- encourage each other to progress from injury to wholeness and to discover and use our gifts for a second beginning;
- assist persons with brain injuries and their families, as well as other programs that serve people in need;
- serve as a model for hope and change.
Equal Opportunity Policy
The BridgeLine prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, citizenship status, national origin, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, age, religious opinion or affiliation, political affiliation, physical or mental disability, marital status, veteran status, and other classes protected by law.