The Project 100 Group recently completed the purchase of a group home residence for mentally challenged persons and, funding permitting, the charity's aim is to be able to purchase additional homes at least every three years.

With a mission "to foster and develop an awareness of the needs of the mentally handicapped persons in Bermuda and to raise funds for the sole use of alleviating or reducing their needs", Project 100 will embark on its major fundraiser for the year, its Gala Ball and Raffle. The "Phantom Ball" is scheduled for November 24 at Fairmont Southampton Princess.

In the 16 years of their existence, the Project 100 Group have been involved in meeting the needs of special needs persons by helping with:

The start up of Hope Homes;

Windreach;

The purchase of special equipment for St. Brendan's Hospital such as gym equipment and other needs not met by funding from the Bermuda Hospitals Board;

A specially equipped van for use by the Opportunity Workshop;

Educational training for caregivers and therapists;

Assistance with special persons who require overseas care; and

The purchase of a group home which will provide residential care for special persons.

"It was our first residential facility which was opened on October 4 and was my major project," said a pleased outgoing president Deborah Gillett of the centrally located home.

"It houses six full time clients and there is one room for respite care. Respite care is a care for people who normally stay at home with their family but at some point the family needs a break or has to go off Island for various reasons.

"Unfortunately, without extended families or someone to care for their loved ones, they would have to look to St. Brendan's or other assistance, but this room in a group home would be a respite room so that one would not have to institutionalise their loved one."

Most of the group homes for semi-independent persons are rented by Government, but the small group of dedicated women working hard for the betterment of the mentally handicapped and challenged persons of Bermuda have a goal to change that by providing permanent facilities for those in need.

"There are people still in need of residential care and that raises our objective of purchasing more homes," said new president Judy Panchaud White.

"There are numerous developmentally challenged persons residing at home with their families, but their mothers and fathers are getting older. Those dependents are in their 30s and 40s and ageing as well and there is a grave concern as to what is going to happen to those people when their parents die or can no longer take care of them.

"It would be a crying shame to then move from being in that home setting to an institutionalised setting. That's what we want to avoid as well.

"The home we just opened has six (persons) and can take up to eight, but ideally they like to put about six in a home."

Added Mrs. Gillett: "All individuals who are living in the five rented facilities and our residential care facility have benefited greatly from that freedom. Some also have part-time jobs.

"People confuse mental illness with developmentally challenged. People function at different levels, some function where they can hold down a job and contribute to society. Life skills are taught to these individuals as well, with a full-time caregiver there."

To help with the purchase of the home, the charity set up the Project 100 Property Trust to raise funds.

"The reason we've done that is the facility will only be used for the developmentally challenged and to safeguard the upkeep of the property," explained Mrs. Gillett.

"We want to make sure that it is kept up to a certain standard."

Based on the Phantom of the Opera, the Phantom Ball will be a black-tie affair, featuring the eight-piece Scott Romig Band from overseas. They are looking for a net profit of about $70,000, with the proceeds helping the mentally challenged.

One of the more touching moments for the charity came about three years ago when "Johnny", a wheelchair bound client of St.Brendan's walked for the first time in his life, thanks to the use of the Gait Front Motion Machine that Project 100 purchased.

A full-length mirror was brought into the room when Johnny first got on the gait trainer. He stood up and saw himself standing for the first time in his life. There was not a dry eye in the room that day!

The Phantom Ball promises a night of fine dining and entertainment ...all for a good cause.

"Tickets are $150 per person, but with significant corporate sponsorship, it allows us to keep the tickets reasonably priced," said Mrs. Panchaud White. Cost includes cocktails and dinner.

"We're very fortunate in that the majority of our funds come from the raffle draw that we have and the majority of raffle prizes are donated to us.

"There are a lot of balls in Bermuda, but generally the public finds our ball one of the better ones because we always have a unique theme, bring in a band from overseas and the attendees at our balls love to dance. As soon as the music starts playing people are up dancing and throughout their five-course meal they are up and down on the dance floor."

Friends of Project 100, the developmentally challenged, will attend the ball and this year there will be more than 20 there, their tickets provided by corporate sponsorship.

"Everybody less fortunate needs somebody to help them fight their fight and state their cause," said Mrs. Gillett who has been involved in the charity for 12 years, three as president and another three as vice president. She is still a member and trustee.

"It's something that I continue to care about, assisting them to have a similar quality of life that I enjoy. Everyone deserves a certain quality of life."

Said Mrs. Panchaud White: "My purpose for joining is I saw them as a silent minority, with nobody to speak up for them."

The raffle prizes include a Daihatsu Cuore car, a gold and diamond neckpiece, seven night Caribbean cruise for two, one-way cruise for two (Bermuda to New York) and a $600 travel voucher, two round trip airline tickets to anywhere in the Continental United States and two round trip airline tickets to London. Last year they won the Bermudian Magazine award as the best raffle in Bermuda.

Anyone interested in purchasing raffle tickets or ball tickets should contact Mrs. Panchaud White at 236-4082, 236-4347 (fax) or e-mail jfwhiteibl.bm.