Europe’s first LGBT nursing home opens in Berlin
In January this year Europe’s first gay nursing home opened in Berlin. The groundbreaking project culminates years of planning, fund-raising and public campaigning. Berlin’s mayor, Klaus Wowereit, has backed the project from its beginnings. The four-floor facility is built to accommodate 28 residents in its high-tech rooms with private bathrooms. The fourth floor is exclusively reserved for LGBT clients. Giving elderly gay people room to live in a safe and open-minded environment free from hate and discrimination is one important reason for the realisation of the project. “When you’re old, the last thing that you want to do is to hide. And you certainly don’t want to give up your identity and live in some hostile environment, possibly sharing a room with someone who despises you,“ said Christian Hamm, an architect and board member of the new nursing home. Many potential residents are already signing up or have expressed interest at the prospect of living out their twilight years in a gay-friendly environment. “I wouldn’t like to be in a heterosexual environment all the time,” one applicant said. “Elderly people like to talk about their children and their grandchildren, for instance. A large number of homosexuals do not have children and find it hard to join in. For us, talking about the grandkids is awkward.“
