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Ely’s non-profit senior-citizen service and resource provider, Northwoods Partners, will be moving out of their space in the hospital and moving into the old Revenue Building off Miners Drive.
The new location will provide Northwoods Partners with more space to host classes and accommodate the growing number of seniors who use the non-profit.
“We’re really excited about having that space where people can come together for our different classes,” said Lisa Porthan, executive director of Northwoods Partners. “Now, we will be able to have everything under one space and be more organized and more efficient.”
Porthan hopes to be in the new space by July, but is contingent on when the renovations to the old revenue building are completed, which is out of their control.
In the meantime, Porthan has been planning what activities and events Northwoods Partners will offer out of their new 900-plus square foot space.
“We want to do a lot more intergenerational programs. We have talked about different art classes, different types of music, dances, a lot more nature-based things, trying to really get people engaged right there in that space,” said Porthan.
A new activity Porthan wants to introduce at Northwoods Partners made possible by the new space is what she is calling a “human library,” where people come and listen to each other’s stories.
“It’s an opportunity for people to come together, and instead of reading a book or checking out a book, you actually sit and take turns talking to different people and hearing their stories,” she said.
While Northwoods Partners provides a variety of resources seniors can utilize in the Ely area, their main goal is to provide seniors with resources to be able to live independently and safely.
“For a lot of people, it’s simply being able to get that ride to their medical appointments, get their groceries delivered, have someone who stops by once a week and visits with them and checks in with them,” said Porthan.
Porthan said Northwoods Partners gets a lot of people that come in who are unsure where to go or what to do because of their age.
“We get a lot of people coming to us for resources because they don’t know what that next step is,” said Porthan. “I think that’s really something we can expand on in our new space. Getting people the information they need is one of our top priorities, and the space will allow us to have speakers to give presentations.”
“Everything will be under one roof now, and I think that will be a lot more efficient and effective in reaching more individuals,” Porthan continued.
While Northwoods Partners is happy to be moving into a new, bigger space, they are sad to be leaving their old space located in the hospital.
“Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital has been incredible to us and allowed us to have this space for free,” said Porthan. “We have benefited greatly from this space and are super grateful for them.”
A service Northwoods Partners is proud to provide and one which Porthan wanted to highlight because she said it is underrated, is transportation.
“Providing transportation for those individuals to folks who need to go out of town or to the grocery store is critical to the community,” she said. “We are kind of rural and have minimal options for transportation, so getting these seniors to where they need to go makes them a lot more confident.”
Northwoods Partners is currently proud to have 90 volunteers who assist in the various needs of the community.
“My goodness, for this little community, it’s pretty amazing that we have that many people who are looking out for friends and neighbors,” said Porthan.
The new space will be more expensive than their old office in the hospital (free), but Porthan is confident Northwoods Partners will be able to pay through fundraisers and grants.
“It’s very important that our community supports us at these fundraisers, and they do so well,” said Porthan. “We’ve got lots of amazing businesses in this town who contribute items for our fundraisers. It’s fantastic.”
Lisa Porthan
