Marty’s House

A Multi-Use Independent Living Home and Retreat Center

We are a:

• High Tech Residential Institute
• Caregiver and/or Client Respite Program
• Hawaii Accessible Retreat Center
• MiniIntentional Community

Synopsis

     Marty’s House is a 2000+ square foot home on 1-acre that serves as a respite house, accessible retreat center, institute and mini intentional community. As the culmination of his life’s work, Marty Mimmack, M.Ed. has opened a facility that welcomes persons with disabilities and/or their personal assistants, family members and other professionals to come, stay, contribute, exchange, visit, teach, learn and enjoy East Hawaii.  Filled with inspiration, motivation and innovative solutions, Marty’s House provides a wide range of low-cost or no-cost services, products and programs that support independent living principles and goals while creating solutions that keep people out of long-term care facilities.

Statement of Purpose

     Organized to motivate and care for the disabled, seniors, professionals and the community by teaching courses and providing services related to independent/assisted-living, healthcare, adaptive products, physical, transportation, economic, recreational, social and other activities of daily living.

     We do this at a residential community/home/institute/laboratory/retreat center where teachers, students and other interested parties research, develop, learn, furnish, promote, and/or receive low-cost ‘quality of life’ skills, products, services and guidance based on intentional living models.

Executive Summary

4 Primary Operations

Cross-Disability High Tech Residential Institute

• Marty’s House runs a residential laboratory where independent living assistive technology and other gadgets are used, demonstrated, tested, evaluated and available for try-out to people with a bona fide need. We offer low-cost professional development in-service or pre-service workshops and family training courses on the principles and practices of independent living, compassionate care, human motivation, problem-solving, disability leadership, sensitivity training and universal design.

Respite Program

• The Respite Care Program provides low-cost caregiver and/or client respite retreats in Hawaii. Dovetailing with our accessible travel retreat center, this program is designed to “give back” making available accommodations to parties having economic disadvantages or other barriers to getting a period of relaxation, rejuvenation, healing and sightseeing.

Travel Retreat Center

• The Travel Retreat welcomes Hawaii visitors and residents that have a serious need for our services.  Marty’s House travel retreats can include short appointment visits, recreation activities, accessible travel plans, ground transportation, lodging, some meals, free time and private/personal island-wide tours. Additionally, the center houses a disability resource service where low cost business services, in-home support options, a newsletter and website, adaptive device development/procurement, assisted care facility evaluation, caregiver consulting, social gatherings and support groups are available to interested parties.

Mini-Intentional Community

• Marty’s House staff, volunteers, friends and guests strive to live a happy, motivated, trustworthy, productive life-style. We maintain a peaceful cooperative team/community that is hip to reducing our carbon foot-print, minimizing consumption of fuels, food, goods and natural and human resources, supports organic and free-range practices.

Physical Facility and Property Grounds

     The home is a single-family dwelling 2000+ sq. ft. in size. Located in the Hawaiian Paradise Park subdivision on 1 acre of land, the fully permitted home features 3 private bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, a living room, dining room and a 624 square foot multi-use Great Room.  Currently, the bathrooms are standard with no accessible features. Plans are to add an accessible composting toilet and outdoor private roll-in shower. This will be located immediately adjacent to the Great Room. The Great Room has excellent natural light, open space and will nicely accommodate high technology independent living demonstrations and trials as well as indoor/outdoor hobby projects, institute classes and social/recreation activities. It can also accommodate “bunk-house” style sleeping quarters if all of the private guest rooms are occupied. Additionally, the house is big enough to accommodate more residents in the event more people qualify/want to become a staff resident or a beneficiary resident.

Major Features Of The Home and Property:

Located 17 miles south of Hilo and 2.5 miles from the Pacific Ocean

House is positioned on property away from the road

Less than 130-feet elevation above sea level

Paved road, high-speed internet, cable television, and long-distance landline telephone

2.5 miles from Maku`u Farmer’s Market and Orchid Land Estates General Store

Less than 3-inch elevation changes for entrance and egress

85% of the property is flat with only minor undulations

Green-belt privacy barrier shields view around 75% of perimeter of 1-acre lot

Colorful tropical ornamentals are interspersed with some fruit trees

A variety of palm trees decorate the wide open park-like landscape

312 square foot rear lanai at same elevation as house

1 Story, on cement slab

5 sliding glass doors, 2 - 36 inch width exit doors

Easy access kitchen cabinets

Asian-motif decor and Polynesian ambiance

Teak wood furniture

Master bedroom has private bath and semi-private lanai

Flow through gourmet kitchen with dishwasher and 2 prep areas

Indoor Laundry Area

Financial Resources

I will send letters to Arnold Palmer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Neal Armstrong and Jimmy Carter requesting endorsement and financial or fundraising support. I have photographs with each of these living legends as well as fundraising film footage with Arnold Palmer and believe these celebrities will support the Marty’s House training institute and compassionate services. Marty’s House will also seek relevant government and private grant funding, submit RFPs for federal disabled/low-income housing assistance, and bid for healthcare industry professional development service contracts. Additionally, Marty’s House will engage in local community fundraising activities such as the “edu-tainment for dollars” fair booths. As the founder and initial Executive Director, I am pledging part of my personal cash on hand and a percentage of royalties from Armless in America: how does Marty Mimmack do it? There will also be a number of other creative, fun and motivational fundraising activities.

Market Demand

Marty’s House is a response to a demand by old and young alike to have more opportunities to share resources, heritages, and principles among people who want to live, work and care for themselves and others as a “co-livelihood” way of conscious understanding. World population is soaring, people live longer with more disabilities. Natural and man-made catastrophes, war, social disenfranchisement, economic alienation, the healthcare crisis, pollution, crime: These are just a few of the sociological trends that point at an unmet set of needs. More palpable is the need to provide high quality enrichment opportunities to a diverse target market. Doctors, nurses, psychiatrists, psychologists, physical and occupational therapists, various counselors, health care interns, social workers, rehabilitation professionals, people with disabilities, elected representatives, spiritual leaders, families with seniors, ADA workers, war injured, government personnel, hospice staff, gerontology personnel, faculty members, massage therapists, and business owners working with related services and devices will be especially interested in these services. Provision of care-giving services, motivating people to action and giving inspiration to youth are all in desperate need right now. Unmet or too costly healthcare/equipment and youth/school shootings are indications that ADMI is an idea whose time is now.

Research and Development

     Adaptive gadgets that disabled people need include vehicle modifications, personal hygiene devices, kitchen access and various robotic mechanisms. Some are low-tech others extremely high-tech. These devices, many related to healthcare, will be engineered and tested in an experiential, community-based laboratory. Other organizations, individuals and companies can use Marty's House resources and guidance to develop and market their gadgets through an institute of learning, compassion and dedication.

Outreach Networking

     Staying interconnected locally is integral to our mission. Staying active nationally is integral to our livelihood. Marty's House leaders stay informed about all the related ‘local’ activities, services and unmet needs. ADMI then uses that information to give self-help guidance when called on the phone, in journal/newsletter format, online, via community panel forums, street festivals, business and healthcare fairs as well as during institute course offerings.

Operations & Locations

Location

Private single-family dwelling in Hawaiian Paradise Park on the Island of Hawaii

Detailed Descriptions of Programs and Services

In short, Marty’s House:

• Demonstrates independent living skills, solution strategies and problems.
• Conducts product trials, testing and reviews of adaptive equipment.
• Runs outreach programs including publishing a newsletter, an interactive website, operating a telephone hotline and a referral program.
• Hosts and/or participates in community festivals, public forums, panel discussions, professional development workshops, street fairs, health care industry expositions and other consciousness raising events.
• Evaluates assisted living facilities and help families make choices with their loved ones.
• Conducts product and practice research, engineering, development and testing to keep people living independently and motivated to work when they can.

• Offers a full range of professional development, family communication and disability leadership related training modules.
• Publishes a journal/newsletter, answers an information hotline and appears at street festivals and business expositions to keep all service providers and individuals in need informed about community activities, commercial services and individual skill-sets.
• Runs a compassionate care program where disabled individuals and groups receive low cost or no cost personal valet services while attending an educational retreat. 
• Writes assisted living facility assessment standards, transportation availability guides and “ADA The Easy Way” to connect providers and businesses with families and interested parties.
• Assists in (disability-owned) business development to help create a more sustainable society.
• Maintains a retreat center where hands-on, eye-opening, mind-changing classes are taught, services are provided, problems are solved and people are cared for.
• Promotes assisted and independent living opportunities using co-housing and intentional living models.
• Offers vacation rental rooms to interested professionals and family of persons with disabilities.

Target Professions, Individuals and Groups

• ADA/Civil Rights Leaders
• Attorneys
• College Professors
• Compassionate Individuals
• Doctors & Nurses
• Elected Representatives
• Families with Ageing Loved Ones
• Families with or without disabled members
• General Health Care Staff
• Government Employees
• Helping Professions Interns
• Hospice Caregivers
• Large Corporations
• Mental Health and Guidance Counselors
• Motivational Speakers
• Non-Profit Foundations
• Peace Activists
• People with a Disability
• Physical and Occupational Therapists
• Psychiatrists
• Psychologists and BodyWork Practitioners
• Rehabilitation Industry Clinics
• Small Business Owners
• Social Workers
• Special & General Education Admin. and Faculty
• Spiritual Leaders & Life Coaches
• Summer-camp Counselors
• Travel, Tour and Food Service Providers
• War, Natural Disaster, Accident and Crime Injured
• Youth Leadership and Recreation Groups

Assisted or Independent Living

     Using Co-housing and Intentional Communities models Marty’s House promotes and provides assisted/independent housing and retreat facilities for the disabled and seniors. We believe intentional living is a good way to address the increasing need for “in-home” support. These, often ‘semi-healthcare,’ needs are expanding at an alarming rate. Marty’s House seeks gifts and grants to establish a cooperative village community where responsible, compassionate people demonstrate caring for one another in the areas of food, housing, social activities and transportation in an effort to elevate consciousness and assist government in planning for the future.