The Janaka Foundation Grant has become the seed money for our Building Fund–we are currently fundraising for our “garage remodel project” which will provide an additional bedroom, bathroom, that are greatly needed as well as an office space, a utility room, and storage space.
During our first year, our focus has been primarily on our residents: creating a comfortable and satwic living space for them, supporting them as they settle in to their new living environment, and attending to practical matters related to their care.
Now that those aspects of our lives have become more of a rhythm, we are ready to expand our focus to other projects that will enhance our work so that it can continue to grow. Our next step is restructuring the attached garage. There are several significant reasons why this will support Ananda House as a whole:
1. We have discovered that yogis in the 4th ashram need and appreciate their own quiet space. Currently, two residents must share one of the bedrooms. This remodel will allow us to add another bedroom in the garage, making the existing 5th bedroom in the house available for resident occupancy. Each person would then have their own private bedroom.
2. We need an office— it’s time to get our workspace out of the general flow of life here, so we can better concentrate, and finish office tasks in a timely manner. If these aspects of our work can move into a more efficient flow, it will open up more time for us to be with our residents!
3. An additional bathroom will be added, expanding the ratio to 5 bathrooms for 10 people.
4. The remodel will also include the addition of a utility room, which will house both a laundry space and food storage.
The Janaka Foundation Grant has allowed us to begin design work, preliminary plans and engineering needed to apply for building permits. The scope of this project has been estimated at $85,000.
In our first year, life at Ananda House has been inspiring, growth-producing, uplifting, challenging, and a lot of fun. We feel blessed to have such a wonderful family to share these teachings with on a daily basis, and we are impressed, daily, by how much we have to learn from each other! The Janaka Foundation Grant is very important to upgrading our physical space, to better meet the needs of our residents and staff alike.
