Category: News

Dear friends, families and fellow supporters of Building a Bridge,

Happy New Year 2011 to all of you.
The year 2010 was exciting for us in so many aspects. For instance in June, we received a wonderful donation, a Toyota seven-seater van, as we reported earlier. At that time, I told Charlottesville’s The Daily Progress the van was “more than I could have hoped for.” Little did we know at the time just how fast our Bridgers would take to it — kayaking in the Chesapeake Bay, visiting a farm in Staunton, and touring Washington DC and the National Zoo, the Mall, and its monuments.

So, too, the spirit of Building a Bridge has been on the move as we have expanded our outreach with Celebrity Bartending, VSA Art Show, 10-10-10 Loving the Arts, the Day of Caring, Celebration of Community and the Heritage Holiday Parade, while welcoming new volunteer residential counselors from as far away as California and Germany.
Our dedicated staff has provided reliable support and — in addition to what I mentioned above— many happy and fun moments for our residents: bowling trips, birthday parties and the Halloween party, just to name a few.

The year then ended with our Belmont Christmas party, where we welcomed families and many friends from the Charlottesville community.

I am glad to report that, as our economy continues to rise up from the Great Recession, the year 2010 has proven to be one of the most fulfilling years in Building a Bridge’s recent history. Thanks to your year-end donations, we have a good start into 2011 to keep up the momentum and hope to make 2011 the best year yet.
Thank you to all our wonderful and committed supporters.
Best wishes to all of you.
Daniela Ghaida – Executive Director

‘The Daily Progress was able to say “the folks at Building a Bridge are an above average family” because people like you make us a part of yours.’

Photos provided by Amber Critchley and Joan Bullard

We are currently accepting applications for our program. Individuals who

1. have sustained traumatic brain injuries,
2. are between the age of 21 and 55 years, and
3. are able to function in and benefit from a supported living environment in a small community of similarly disabled individuals under the guidance of experienced counselors,

or their representative(s) may apply for admission to Building a Bridge by requesting an appointment with the Executive Director. Referrals may be made from any source, including, but not limited to self, family members, trustees, guardians, and agencies supporting such disabled individuals.

Upon receipt of such request, the Executive Director will schedule a meeting at a day and time convenient to the applicant to initiate the application process. The Executive Director will assist the applicant or the applicant’s representative in completing the application material.

Please contact Dr. Daniela Ghaida at (434) 989-1274 or for further information.

Last weekend the “Belmonters” went to Carter Mountain Orchard to pick pumpkins. The weather was beautiful and the group enjoyed the warm temperatures at the outing. See for yourself!

Thanks for checking into our website to read the fall news of Building a Bridge.
Our event “Lovin’ the Arts at 10-10-10” last Sunday at Random Row Bookstore was a great success, a lot of fun and a good opportunity to introduce our organization to people who did not know much about us. It was also great to see old friends and the families of our residents. We have amazing supporters.
Our residents showed some of their art work, and they played two of their newly composed songs. Local artist Robin Hoffman drew caricatures of anyone who was not afraid to be portrait with a big head, and two musicians, Blue O’Connell and Michael Jones, played the guitar jammed to entertain.
Towards the end, Todd introduced our fun “Wednesday-after-dinner” dance routine.
Thanks so much to all our guests and friends for coming that afternoon and for your contributions. Residents and staff equally enjoyed the day greatly. Here are some shots of the afternoon.

Organized by Health South from the University of Virginia, Heinz received an award in recognition for his dedication and support of the brain injured persons in our community.
A barbecue and music was arranged on a warm sunny afternoon, and most of us could be there for the ceremony. Enjoy the photos.

Congratulation Heinz!

…to everyone who made the “Siips event” possible, fun and intersting, in other words a success:
to George Benford, owner of Siips, who is a wonderful supporter of non-profit organizations in Charlottesville; to our celebrity bartenders Mayor Dave Norris, Peter Kleeman, Tom McCrystal and Charles Weber, who dedicated their time and talents behind and in front of the bar; and to everyone who came and joined us that evening and helped us raise money and awareness for Building a Bridge.
Thanks!

Please join us for an evening of fun and fundraising. August 12, 2020, 5:30pm -7:30pm at SIIPS on the downtown mall.

As you might know, not too long ago we purchased a house in the Belmont area of Charlottesville. One of our residents, John, had lived in that house, who sadly passed away over two years ago. His wife has continued to be a wonderful and committed supporter of our organization that had helped her family over so many years.
We are very grateful to have her still as a friend.
A few weeks ago, we had a lovely and very moving celebration, when the new house received a plaque with its new name in memory of John. It is now called “The John Gordon Hopper House”. It also says “Never quit…”, words that were guiding John through his often difficult but also joyful life.
We all still miss him.
Enjoy photos of the celebration.

Recently, we had a couple of extremely heavy storms in the Charlottesville area. They were just short lasting, but yet stopped the traffic, cut power and dropped trees on cars and homes throughout the area. Here is a photo of a tree that fell down close to our Park Street house. We were glad that none of our properties suffered from the winds and rain.