"When she's not working at an East Bay grocery store, she's tending a garden, honing her music skills and learning recipes to cook. An athlete who's medaled in track and field and javelin throwing, she helped her bocce team snatch bronze at the Special Olympics Northern California Summer Games in 2024. And when she's not doing all that, she's kicking back with her friends at Irby Ranch, an affordable-housing community in Pleasanton for people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (I/DD)."
"Irby Ranch is a 30-unit complex loosely designed on the model for senior homes, providing independent living to Tri-Valley residents with conditions like autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and epilepsy. It's run by the Pleasanton nonprofit Sunflower Hill, whose mission is to provide affordable apartments and social programs to folks with I/DD. These things are in great need. Just look at Sunflower Hill's plans for the near future: The organization hopes to soon shepherd through two other similarly designed residential communities -"
Jennifer Thomas, 38, balances work at an East Bay grocery store with gardening, music, cooking and athletics, winning medals in track, javelin and a bocce bronze at the 2024 Special Olympics Northern California Summer Games. Thomas lives at Irby Ranch, a 30-unit affordable-housing complex that offers independent living and resident-led activities like jam sessions. Irby Ranch serves people with autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and epilepsy. The complex is operated by Pleasanton nonprofit Sunflower Hill, which develops affordable apartments and social programs and plans additional similar communities in Dublin and Lafayette, with Lafayette receiving a $19.5 million award.
#affordable-housing #intellectual-and-developmental-disabilities-idd #independent-living #special-olympics
Read at The Mercury News
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