cfa lgbt housing guide updated-4 (1) - Flipbook - Page 18
HOUSING GUIDE
Feature: Community Champions
THE POWER OF COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS
John
Villapando
From left to right: Brian Price, John Villapando, and Robert Emery at
Abba Care Assisted Living in Garland, for their community site visit.
In working with senior housing
communities, the Coalition
for Aging LGBT relies heavily
on “champions” to advocate
for better LGBT care, and to
lead their communities to full
LGBT competency. Champions
can hold any position within
a community, from marketing
director, to events coordinator,
to chief administrator. They
provide invaluable partnerships by
coordinating with, and advocating
to, fellow staff members.
John Villapando, director of
business development with Abba
Care Assisted Living in Garland,
is one such champion who has
taken the cause of LGBT-friendly
housing for seniors as a calling
18 cfa.lgbt
for his professional journey, and
as a priority for his family-run
community. John’s dedication
has led Abba Care to become the
first community in North Texas
to score a 100% on the LGBTFriendly Senior Housing Metric.
John’s parents founded Abba
Care Assisted Living when he
was in High School. At the
time, he was more interested in
becoming a minister than working
at his parent’s community. After
attending college, however, they
suggested he work in the family
business. After all, during college
breaks he was happy to do odd
jobs for the residents at Abba Care.
Beginning in 2013, he discovered
Abba Care is where he belonged.
Feature: Community Champions
A moment of clarity came to
John in 2015. He attended a
Summit produced by the CFA
LGBT, where he deeply and
authentically connected to
the mission of serving Seniors.
When the CFA LGBT’s housing
team approached John to
participate in the LGBT-Friendly
Senior Housing initiative, the
industry “suddenly began
to make sense to me, in a
personal way,” he thought.
“One day I’ll be old. I feel as
if I owe something to these
brave pioneers who lived their
lives openly and honestly,
who brought us to this place
in history, who gave us the
rights we all enjoy today. These
people fought so I don’t have
to. I owe them a safe and
comfortable retirement.”
John believes CFA LGBT
Summits are much more
empowering than a typical
marketing conference. At
a CFA LGBT Summit, John
witnessed the sharing of
productive discussions and the
creation of real solutions.
In regard to the policy
changes required by the
LGBT-Friendly Senior Housing
Initiative, John encountered
fewer obstacles than are
faced by larger corporateowned communities. John
explains, “Abba Care is a
small, family-owned-and-
HOUSING GUIDE
operated business, so it’s a lot
easier to make the necessary
changes.” The biggest
challenge that concerned
him was the conservative
backgrounds of his residents
and his employees. John was
delightfully surprised when
his employees responded
positively to the training
sessions, and when his
residents, as well, responded
positively to their LGBT film
and discussion event.
John believes the retirement
care industry is becoming
more receptive to the LGBT
population. He encourages
other communities to open
their hearts and their doors to
LGBT seniors.
“It’s not nearly as
overwhelming as you may
think,” John assures. “You
may be met with fear at first
but your worst fears are
unfounded. It’s a lot of work
but absolutely worth it.”
John is grateful for the CFA
LGBT-Friendly Senior Housing
Initiative and happily concludes
that “being open-minded and
welcoming to all is good for
business.”
John Villapando
Director of Business Development
Abba Care Assisted Living
www.AbbaCares.com
972-840-1515
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