Purpose
The Normandale Center for Healing and Wholeness, based in Edina, Minnesota, is a nonprofit, faith-founded organization that “walks with” older adults and their family members to support them in body, mind & spirit. This community organization was founded in 1998.
The Center serves over 600 older persons and family members each year in Edina, Bloomington, and surrounding areas. The Center provides friendly visitors and rides through volunteers, health education, wellness classes, screening / prevention clinics, resource consultation, foot care, loaner adaptive equipment and other support services. Five part-time staff and over 100 volunteers come together to provide these services. The Center relies on donations and grants to operate.
Our founders sought to create a center that would support seniors and their family caregivers through holistic services and collaborative programming.
We strive to:
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Establish or maintain seniors' connections with their communities
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Alleviate isolation
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Maintain / improve health
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Extend independence
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Enhance quality of life
For family caregivers, we strive to:
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Alleviate caregiver burden
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Improve caregivers' capacity to continue in their supportive roles
For more information, contact the Director of the Center, Deborah Paone, at 952.929.1697, ext 45, or e-mail Deborah at deborah@normluth.org.
Who We Serve
We serve a geographic area consisting of Edina, West Bloomington, Eden Prairie, South Minneapolis, and other local neighborhoods. The great majority of our "clients" come from Edina.
Guiding Principles
The Board-approved values and principles for the Center are as follows:
• Focus on strengths/assets as we "walk with" seniors & family caregivers
• Accentuate vitality
• Be collaborative, innovative — find creative opportunities to work with others
• Be open to all — demonstrate purposeful outreach
• Replicate and teach — share models, lessons learned, technical assistance
• Learn from others — persons, organizations, programs, models, research, practice
• See the whole person (mind/body/spirit)
• Fill gaps, do not duplicate
• Link informal and formal services
• Proactively measure impact
• Make good use of Center resources
• Make good use of partner/other organizations’ strengths
• Enhance the community (defined many ways)
Our History
The Normandale Center For Healing & Wholeness began as a pilot project in 1998. Normandale Lutheran Church recognized that many of its older members were experiencing failing health and were increasingly unable to participate in the life of the Church or in the larger Edina community.
Seniors and caregivers from outside the Church congregation also began to contact the Center for help. To address those needs, we expanded the reach of our services and increased the types of support provided. A Board of Directors was appointed to guide our development as an organization.
The Normandale Center For Healing & Wholeness was formally incorporated in 2000 as a non-profit organization through a partnership between Normandale Lutheran Church, Fairview Health Services, Lutheran Brotherhood (now Thrivent), and Lutheran Social Services