Christmas Wish: Helping Seniors Come Home For The Holidays

In August 2024, the Board of Directors announced, to the shock and dismay of residents and their families, that they had filed a plan with the NYS Department of Health to close Vassar-Warner Home due to a stated lack of funding, after over 150 years of serving the community. This decision was unexpected and extremely troubling, as residents were informed they would need to leave their home and find alternative care by October 2024. This has caused significant fear and distress for residents, families, and staff alike, especially given the dire housing crisis for older adults in need of assisted living in the Hudson Valley. Residents, who have come to cherish Vassar-Warner, its staff, and other residents as family, now face the imminent loss of this vital support and care—a crisis situation for anyone, but particularly for the older adults who depend on it.

In response, families, staff, and community members have formed the Save Vassar-Warner Committee (SVWC) to make it clear that we reject the notion that Vassar-Warner must close its doors.

As the SVWC, we are imploring the community to come together and contribute all resources available to address budgetary, leadership, legal, and public relations challenges in order to save this historic institution and continue supporting our community’s older adults. We have begun forming multidisciplinary subcommittees to address these issues in both the short- and long-term, aiming to help Vassar-Warner survive and thrive.

As this news has been relayed to us by the Board in the eleventh hour, we are in desperate need for your help now, however you are able to do so, whether it be donations of time, money, ideas, or skills. In this critical hour, your support is not just appreciated—it is essential for the preservation of a beloved institution that has been a cornerstone of our community for over 150 years. We urge you to join us in our fight to ensure that Vassar-Warner Home continues to serve those who depend on it, safeguarding its legacy and securing a compassionate future for all its residents.