The impetus for creating Del Mar Community Connections evolved from my great appreciation of the nurturing assistance given by the Senior Center in my parents’ town during the period of my father’s death. A counselor was dispatched to the hospital from the Senior Center because someone from the town was terminally ill. Even though we didn’t ask for the help, it made this deeply sad event much more meaningful and uplifting for all of us.

 

Upon telling my friends in Del Mar of this experience, they spoke about their own or neighbors’ needs, the difficulty of finding support and information in stressful situations, and the absence of local mechanisms to help.

 

I called a long-time Del Mar activist, Ann Silber, and shared my desire to form an organization dedicated to bringing support services and information to Del Mar's seniors and specific needs population. Since our City was too small to afford municipal Social Services, there already existed an informal network of many caring, active people in Del Mar who regularly and quietly reached out to help others.

 

Del Mar Community Connections was born in Ann’s living room where we had our first community discussions in September 1999. Everyone without hesitation said let’s get going. With the help of these energetic neighborhood volunteers, a 501 (c)(3) organization was developed with a Founding Board of Directors, all willing to roll up their sleeves and build programs making aging in place in Del Mar more possible for seniors and those with specific needs.