Residents, staff members and organizational leaders at Brighton, MA-based 2Life Communities were on hand to welcome Gov. Charlie Baker (R) Oct. 27 at 2Life’s Golda Meir House in Auburndale, MA.
They thanked him for his leadership on issues important to older adults and their families and celebrated the governor’s upcoming birthday with cake and music. In turn, the governor thanked 2Life and its residents for their years of support and friendship.
“Thank you for reminding us that there’s a lot of great life and possibility ahead as we age,” Baker said, addressing 2Life’s residents in front of a “Thank You Governor Baker” poster signed by dozens of them.
2Life Communities President and CEO Amy Schectman, a 2022 McKnight’s Women of Distinction Hall of Honor inductee, highlighted some ways that the Baker-Polito administration has demonstrated a commitment to increasing affordable housing opportunities over the past eight years, including the signing of a bill in 2021 that changed the zoning process for housing and the investment of $1.5 billion in the production and preservation of more than 24,000 housing units.
“There is so much we admire and appreciate about your administration,” she told Baker.
With support from the Baker-Polito administration, 2Life built 123 new affordable apartments, modernized 408 apartments and currently is constructing 210 apartments, with 218 new affordable apartments in the immediate pipeline. At Golda Meir House, the current waiting list would take 63 years to clear, according to the organization.
Schectman also thanked the governor for establishing the Governor’s Council on Aging in 2017 with the goal of making Massachusetts the most age-friendly state in the country. Schectman is a member of the council along with several other senior advocacy leaders.
“Thank you to Amy and everyone at 2Life for the love, the care and the generosity that they bring to the job every day,” Baker said. “It’s folks like you that make Massachusetts unique and special.”
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