The Village Project welcomes the community to its new home

Barb Harrell, executive director of the Village Project (center in green T-shirt), and members of the board of directors and the leadership team pose in the kitchen of the organization’s new facility on West Oviatt Road.

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The Village Project hosted an open house on the afternoon of Sunday, Sept. 15, to give the community a look at their new facility at 27378 West Oviatt Road in Bay Village.

A crowd of 300 people enjoyed touring the newly renovated space, getting the opportunity to talk with Village Project volunteers and learning more about this growing, grassroots, community organization.

The Village Project (formerly Village Food Project) was founded in early 2011 with a mission to serve the community by providing meals and extended care and service to cancer patients and their families.  In its relatively short existence, the VP has already provided more than 6,000 nutritious meals and extended services, such as house cleaning and yard clean-up, to approximately 55 families in Bay Village and Avon Lake. The new, larger facility will now make it possible to serve Rocky River, as well.

For the past two and a half years, Bay Presbyterian Church graciously allowed the Village Project to use their kitchen to prepare meals for VP clients. However, requests for help from neighboring communities necessitated finding a larger facility to be able to prepare more meals and organize increased services to provide a bigger outreach.

Bay Presbyterian Church senior pastor, Garnett Slatton, expressed his feelings about the move. “We’ve really enjoyed our relationship with the Village Project, and while we’re excited for them to have a new, larger space, we’ll be very sad to see them go.”

The new facility includes over 3,500 square feet, encompassing a large kitchen, administrative offices, a community gathering space, and an activity room that provides space for volunteers to paint vases to fill with flowers to be delivered to VP clients.

Besides viewing the new accommodations, guests at the Village Project community open house guests were able to share their stories, complete applications to volunteer with the organization and offer donations to support it. In addition, guests could purchase quilt squares in memory and honor of friends and family. The squares will be assembled into a quilted wall hanging, which will be displayed in the VP community room.

Beginning Oct. 2, Village Project business hours will be Monday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday and Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The facility will be closed on Saturday and Sunday.

The Village Project is seeking financial support to cover renovation and ongoing operating expenses. Donations and pledges can be made on their website at www.ourvillageproject.com, or by mail at Village Project, P.O. Box 40023, Bay Village, OH 44140. Naming rights are available for specific spaces within the facility. For more information, please call 440-348-9401 or email info@ourvillageproject.com.