The Board of Chesterbrook Residences Inc. (CRI) prepared this whitepaper to assist others in the faith and/or non-profit community who desire to create assisted living facilities for the elderly. Thanks to generous financial support from the Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA), CRI can share the lessons learned so others won't have to "wander in the wilderness" for as long as CRI before realizing its goal of opening the doors to a marvelous community asset.

Development of this assisted living community, which began with volunteers from the Lewinsville Presbyterian Church and later expanded to include members of Temple Rodef Shalom and Immanuel Presbyterian Church, was long, hard and emotionally draining. It was a journey that was always "two steps forward and one step backward" as obstacles arose from every direction to test the will of the volunteers to persevere. Thanks to their perseverance Chesterbrook Residences opened its doors to residents in November 2007 after seven years in development.