Chaparral House - Berkeley, CA

Chaparral House

1309 Allston Way
Berkeley, CA 94702
Ph: (510) 848-8774
Fax: (510) 848-2438

About Us: The Chaparral Story

Beginnings require the seed from which to grow and, with time, take root. For Chaparral House, it was Marion and Wally Johnson who first conceived of the idea to build a model non-profit intermediate care facility for the Berkeley area. It was an idea whose time had come.

In the early 1970s, after they had noticed an elderly family member required additional care, the Johnson's grew concerned over the lack of senior housing options in Berkeley. There were few viable alternatives.

Soon after, the couple evaluated the practicability of creating a home for aging seniors-but not just a home, a community, unique as the city itself. At the time, Wally was the Mayor of Berkeley, and Marion was a member of the Executive Board at the Berkeley Senior Housing Association. With Marion spearheading the idea, and with the backing of the Senior Housing Association, she was able to form a foundation in 1971 to attain such a goal.

But before the first set of blueprints was unfurled, there was the question of a name. Marion, the future President of the Board, gave it ample thought. Then, a spark lit her memory. In her youth, she had spent many wonderful summers in the Santa Cruz Mountains, at the first regional Girl Scout Camp on the West Coast. Its name was Camp Chaparral.

A Board of Trustees was organized that consisted of community-oriented volunteers, and over the next seven years they worked to bring the project to fruition. Ground was broken in West Berkeley on February 14, 1977, on property that borders Strawberry Creek, which daylights in the rear of the yard. At last, on November 1, 1978, Marion, Wally and the governing board opened Chaparral's doors to welcome the first twelve residents.

Over the years, the vision of Chaparral House has been cultivated from seed to living philosophy. In 1996, in response to new regulations and an aging population, the Board of Directors decided to upgrade the community from intermediate care to skilled nursing. Today, Chaparral is the only independent non-profit, skilled nursing eldercare community in the city. The building resides in a vital Berkeley neighborhood that includes, as neighbors, Berkeley Youth Alternatives, a Montessori school, artist lofts and studios and the senior independent living center Strawberry Creek Lodge.

To this day, Chaparral provides care for forty-nine frail elders in a dynamic, life-affirming, homelike environment where privacy and self-esteem are respected, freedom of choice and freedom of expression are encouraged, and opportunities for participation and contribution are encouraged.

As Chaparral approaches its thirtieth year, we look toward the future as we pay respect to our past. We are dedicated to upholding the values set forth by our founders, but we understand that ideas evolve, from seed to sapling to oftentimes things greater. We now find ourselves looking forward, where ideas merge with inspiration, and where the belief that a single idea can have lasting impact on a community is not only possible, but true.