Plans by The Pines Retirement Home to provide 12 independent living apartments for older people in the community have been given a boost by a $600,000 government grant.
The funds for the Silver Thatch Residences were approved by Cabinet through the Ministry of Social Development and Innovation and announced by Premier André Ebanks on a New Year’s Eve visit to the home.
The Pines is a non-profit charitable organisation that provides ongoing residential nursing care to the elderly, a need which has been evolving over the years with increasing demand for services.
The Silver Thatch Residences will expand facilities at The Pines, offering homes for older people who need minimal assisted living accommodation while also needing to easily access care services.
More fundraising needed
The total cost of the project is $6.4 million and The Pines has raised $3.5 million so far, with the government grant bringing the total to $4.1 million. The Pines will have to raise the rest of the funds needed from the private sector, with government saying it hoped the public funds will encourage “private sector philanthropy” to complete the project.
Ebanks and Finance Minister Rolston Anglin visited The Pines mid-December for the residents’ annual Christmas drop-in and heard how the board had agreed to the project, but that they were currently short on the necessary funding to complete it.
Subsequently, Ebanks, Social Development Minister Isaac Rankine, Anglin and the Social Development team visited The Pines on New Year’s Eve to deliver the news about the grant and wish staff and residents the very best for 2026.
Ebanks said, “We could not have done this without the entire [National Coalition for Caymanians] Caucus who supported this proposal and it went through Cabinet. There is no doubt that there is … an increased need for assisted living in this community.
“What we have done out of prudent savings is to provide The Pines Retirement Home with seed funding so that they can now go to market with private sector to be able to get the full amount of funding for what is critically needed within the community. We know they need more but this is a start, we have to start somewhere.”
Rankine added, “This supplementary funding is intended to be seed funding towards the expansion of The Pines Retirement Home. We hope this funding will further incentivise private sector philanthropy to complete this project.”
Lynda Mitchell, CEO for The Pines Retirement Home, said, “The Pines Retirement Home’s board of directors and management are most grateful to the MSDI and the Cabinet for providing The Pines with $600,000 towards the development of its new Silver Thatch Residences. The Residences will offer a nurturing environment for older persons who require minimal assisted living accommodation whilst combining care services in modern facilities.”
In 2021, older people made up 7.9% of the Cayman Islands population and are now the fastest growing demographic.
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