If you are the long-term caregiver of a sick or elderly relative then you know that as much as you love them, it can be a challenging and sometimes thankless task. For many caregivers it is hard just finding an hour to themselves to relax.That’s why a pilot project is being launched at the Windreach Recreational Facility that will give caregivers an hour or so a week to sit and chat and have a cup of coffee, alone or with their care recipient. They can chat with others about their experiences or just enjoy the view from Windreach. The project is called ‘Hilary’s Place’ in memory of the late Hilary Soares, founder of Agape House and PALS.“Hilary’s Place is a new concept in Bermuda,” said organiser Marian Sherratt. “It is a caregiver resource centre. We named it after my good friend, Hillary, because her name was synonymous with care and compassion. There has been a need in Bermuda for quite a long time for a caregiver resource centre to support the family caregiver, but it has not been something easy to fund. I have been working on it for quite a few years. When the plan came together to create this in Hilary’s memory we thought to link it with Windreach. We have the full support of her widower, Earl, and their grown children.”Erica Fulton, executive director of Windreach, said the facility was excited about hosting the new initiative and looked forward to seeing it develop.“We are pleased to be part of it,” said Miss Fulton. “Windreach is a facility for the community. We recognise that the role of the caregiver is often a very difficult and thankless task and we look forward to being able to welcome caregivers and their care receivers to Windreach to enjoy our all accessible facility.”The programme will take place for two hours on Wednesdays. The family caregiver can visit on their own or bring the person the care recipient with them to Windreach. The organisers want to stress that this is a drop-in programme, not a drop-off. This means, you can’t drop off the care recipient and then leave.“When I say care recipient we are talking about anyone who is in any way dependent on family members for support. They could be in a wheelchair, mentally or physically challenged,” said Mrs Sherratt. “Windreach is fully accessible and fully set up to have programmes and activities for anyone with special needs, including older people. An example might be someone who is caring for a parent who may have had a stroke or may have some form of dementia.”She said often caregivers would like to go out for a cup of coffee but many restaurants are not easily accessible to people with physical challenges, such as being in a wheelchair.“We thought if they could come to Windreach, our Hilary’s Place volunteers would support the caregivers while Windreach exposes the care recipients to all their programmes and activities.”Mrs Sherratt has been interested in caregiving for some time, and wrote a masters thesis at Dalhousie University on the topic in 2006. In her thesis she looked at women who are caregiving and also working in Bermuda.“It was quite a revelation,” she said. “My conclusion was, in a nutshell, was that women as family caregivers, the majority of whom are also in paid employment and raising families, carry a disproportionate burden of care for elderly family members and as a result put themselves at physical, mental, financial and social risk. Furthermore, without the invaluable contribution of these silent heroes the entire health care system would, quite simply, collapse.“I have been passionate about that subject now for about ten years. I spent quite a bit of time with the Bermuda Council on Ageing. I set that up. That wound up a few years ago due to the funding crisis. Since then I have been looking for an opportunity to do something for family caregivers.”Mrs Sherratt said she has had personal experiences as a caregiver. Her own mother, Ivy Maycock, died three years ago at 92-years-old.“Her grown children supported her as best we could,” said Mrs Sherratt. “She was a fiercely independent lady. We had to be very careful about how we supported her. I have always taken phone calls from people who are caregiving and tried to direct them and support them. There is this whole notion of respite for the caregiver. We are learning in the field that respite can be as simple as a cup of coffee or a phone conversation.”She said often family caregivers can feel alone. While a professional caregiver is legally entitled to vacations and sick leave, this is not so for the family caregiver. Many caregivers also often have to make sacrifices such as giving up their jobs or personal time. Sometimes they don’t like talking about their feelings, because they feel it would be wrong to complain.“We are starting this out as a pilot project, by learning to walk before we can run,” she said. “We have to start somewhere. We are starting with a zero budget. This is all volunteer driven. We have had a response to the project so far. Everyone we have spoken to has said what a fantastic idea, an idea whose term has come. Everywhere we have turned we have had positive response.”Mrs Sherratt believed that her friend Mrs Soares, was looking down on the project with a smile and nod of agreement.“She was passionate about quality of care,” said Mrs Sherratt. “Of course, she died in Agape House that she founded. Her husband, Earl, took care of her up until two weeks before she died. The family has very real experience of long term caregiving with Hilary’s illness. She died from Lou Gehrig’s Disease. I think it is a wonderful living memorial to a wonderful lady.”Hilary’s Place will be launched at WindReach on January 25. Family caregivers and their care recipients will be welcomed from 10am to 12pm. It will then be open at Windreach every Wednesday morning from 10am to 12pm on February 1.