Visitation Home continues to build its mission in serving as a haven for adults with developmental disabilities one house at a time.

And, if all goes according to plan, the Yardville-based ministry will open its third home and welcome its newest residents in January.

To celebrate the opening of the new home that’s still under construction, the residents and staff were thrilled to have Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., pay them a visit and bless their new facility.

“It was Bishop O’Connell’s first visit to Visitation Home” since becoming diocesan bishop, said Denise Reil, founder and executive director of Visitation Home. “And we were so happy he came and spent some time with us. He truly has a heart for those who are poor and hurting.”

Visitation Home’s history began more than 10 years ago when Denise and Jeff Reil were inspired to establish a Catholic home for persons with developmental disabilities based on their own experiences as parents an autistic child, Scott.

Denise Reil recounted how devastated her family was when Scott, who was born a normal, healthy baby, began to develop seizures following a vaccination he received at 18 months old and later became autistic.

While raising a disabled child presented its share of challenges, Reil still considers it a tremendous blessing “to have Scott in our lives.”

Scott is now 23 and “we are blessed that God has entrusted us with Scott’s life. Scott came to our family and to our community with a mission just like everyone else. Even though he can’t express himself verbally, or share the kind of talents that society admires and values, he too has a mission. It’s a mission of love,” she said.

As Scott got older, his parents became increasingly concerned about his future and the care he would need if either of his parents had become sick or died.

In 1999, when Scott was 10, the Reils inquired about housing for mentally disabled adults and were astonished to learn that there were more than 7,000 persons with disabilities waiting for housing in New Jersey. At the time, the Reils were advised to submit Scott’s name on the emergency waiting list for housing and “hope” by the time he reached adulthood, housing would become available.

“Then we started thinking about other people in similar situations,” Reil said, such as the aging parents or elderly widow caring for a developmentally disabled child.

Those questions led the Reils to try and find a solution to the problem, and their efforts resulted in the establishment of Visitation Home.

Located on Yardville-Allentown Road, a stone’s throw away from the Mercer County CYO and St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Visitation Home was incorporated Sept. 15, 2000, and within a year was granted non-profit status by the Internal Revenue Service. The first Visitation Home opened in November, 2003, and currently houses five female residents with disabilities and live-in staff. The second home opened in December, 2005 and houses four male residents and staff. The third home is currently under construction and will house six residents and their live-in staff.  Because of the structure of the third house and the fact that each of the bedrooms will have a private bath, the residents will be a mix of both women and men.

“Our homes are not just group homes or institutions – they are places of peace and belonging. It is a community that is concerned for those who have no voice – who suffer loneliness – and for those who have time to live in God, to experience the joy of God and who experience the presence of God!” Reil said. “In these homes, the residents’ dignity is respected, their gifts are celebrated and they live in acceptance in a family-life setting. Many of our residents have experienced the painful loss of their parents and other family members and it is so beautiful to see how they have become ‘family’ here.”

To be eligible for housing, male and female residents must be 18 years of age or older, have a mental disability, receive low to moderate income and be enrolled in a day program. Most of the residents attend the day program that Visitation Home began in 2006 in which classes are held in the religious education office of St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Yardville. The residents currently range in ages 22 to 61.

Along with Reil and a board of directors, the staff is comprised of live-in assistants who tend to the residents and their needs as well as a strong core of volunteers who usually work in the evening to help the residents with preparing meals, getting them settled down for the evening and praying with the residents.

The staff and volunteers are to be “true friends to the residents,” said Reil, noting that all of the residents receive training through the Mercer County Advocacy and Resources for Citizens.

“True friendship is something we all need. People with developmental disabilities often suffer from rejection in society. They have a difficult time making lasting friendships because they speak a different language and live in a different world. The only language they truly understand is the language of love.”

“Visitation Home’s mission is to be a Catholic community where people with developmental disabilities and those without live together as family, called by the truth of the Gospel that human life is sacred at every stage and every situation,” said Reil.

Reil said that Visitation Home is in need of additional live-in assistants. Prospective candidates are asked to contact Reil at 609-838-1187 or e-mail:[email protected].