“In peace and dignity”

A plush and spanking new home for senior citizens will soon open its doors on the sylvan grounds of the B. D. Petit Parsee General Hospital (PGH).

The three-storey Pallonji Shapoorji Home for Senior Citizens of The B. D. Petit Parsee General Hospital donated by philanthropist and billionaire businessman Pallon S. Mistry and his family will consist of around 70 to 80 beds of which 22 will be free, 22 to 33 subsidized and separate rooms (11 with attached toilets on the second floor) and six flatlets on the third floor both at higher rates.

"The surplus income from the second and third floors will go towards subsidizing the ground and first floor residents,” said Pallon Mistry in an informal chat following a jashan at the center on Khordad Saal, August 25, 2006. Any shortfall in income will be borne by the Mistrys.

Scheduled to open around end 2006, the Home will have separate wings for men and women on the lower floors. The terms and conditions and charges for the center are still to be finalized, said PGH president Homa Petit. A garden with some medicinal plants affronts the colonial styled cream colored structure. The garden pathway is paved so that the elderly can move with ease, noted PGH vice-president Aban Petit. A room for visiting relatives has also been provided on the premises for the convenience of outstation family members, she adds.

Mistry’s wife "Patsy was the main person in overseeing the needs of the center,” notes Aban. "She spent a lot of time,” on the details. Patsy said she had read up on senior citizen centers and visited some to obtain ideas.

The Home will be administered by four members from the Mistry family (Pallon, Patsy and sons Shapoor and Cyrus) and four from the Hospital (Homa, Aban, Hector Mehta and Zarir Bhathena). "I was looking for a long time for a suitable place and was most fortunate the Petit Hospital trustees permitted use of this lovely plot,” said Pallon Mistry. The center’s architect is Hafeez Contractor and the contractor, Cyrus Unvalla. With elegant lighting, a stained glass window, plush bathroom fittings and large windows, occupants will reside in comfortable and serene environs. Only individuals who are mobile will be permitted.

The Mistry family had also funded a senior citizens center in Deolali. Among other centers for the elderly are two in Navsari run by the WZO Trust (of which one was donated by Behram and Rene Baxter of California), the F. S. Parukh Dharamshalla in Bombay’s Khareghat Colony managed by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet and the Nariman Home in Surat run by the Surat Parsi Panchayat.