“What Home Means to Me”: A Resident Art Gallery
Home can mean many things: safety, belonging, community, healing, joy, peace of mind, and the freedom to be yourself.
At Century Villages at Cabrillo (CVC), residents recently had an opportunity to explore what home means to them through art.
CVC’s Occupational Therapy (OT) team developed “What Home Means to Me,” an art gallery featuring residents’ work at the Harte Neighborhood Library in Long Beach.
Through different artistic mediums, residents transformed their experiences, feelings, and perspectives into pieces they could share with others. The gallery created an opportunity not only to celebrate their creativity, but also for residents to have their voices heard and for the greater community to see the meaning of home through their eyes.
Last month’s event extended beyond the artwork on display. Interactive activities invited attendees to reflect on their own ideas of home, while a panel discussion gave residents another opportunity to share their experiences and perspectives.
For the participating artists, creating and sharing their work provided an opportunity for connection, confidence, and self-expression.
As one resident describes in our video, home can be as simple—and as meaningful—as “joy, happiness, peace of mind.”
Another reflects on what it means to feel comfortable being yourself:
“It feels like you could stop hiding. It’s okay to…be me.”
Their words are a reminder that home can represent much more than a physical place.
Hear directly from CVC residents and see some of the artwork they created in our “What Home Means to Me” video:
The gallery is one example of the opportunities CVC’s Occupational Therapy program creates for residents.
Through meaningful activities and experiences, the program helps residents develop skills, build confidence, strengthen connections, and foster a greater sense of stability and belonging.
During Long Beach Gives, our community can help make opportunities like these possible.
Your support of Century Villages at Cabrillo helps us continue creating spaces where residents can express themselves, connect with others, and thrive.
This Long Beach Gives, join us in supporting CVC residents and the programs that help build connection, confidence, and belonging.