Association – Coeur Lavande

The departmental association Cœur Lavande has existed for 15 years and organizes all its actions around its associative project: Maison Cœur Lavande, of the same name as its premises located at 13, allée des Fontainiers in Digne-les-Bains.
The Maison Cœur Lavande is a warm and friendly place of welcome which is aimed at disabled, autistic and/or sick people, their carers as well as seniors, without any distinction.

How?
A physical and telephone reception will be set up to receive beneficiaries in a friendly manner. It will involve listening to them, taking into account their situation, their needs and their expectations, and directing them towards the range of systems, rights and actions intended for them. It will mainly involve physical, cultural and digital activities, prevention, respite offers, advice, support and training.

During the shifts carried out by Cœur Lavande volunteers, clear information will be given to beneficiaries concerning our partners in order to guide them effectively. The association's volunteers will also coordinate a network of local partners to optimize all the initiatives present in the territory.

They will present the schedule of activities organized in the premises of Cœur Lavande and will be able to contact partner structures directly for those concerning them.
Potential partners were all identified, listed and contacted individually, and all responded favorably to our partnership proposal.

In order to respond to and support this audience, we have set ourselves two main missions:
1. The organization of events:
The numerous cultural, sporting and solidarity events that we organize (Autism and Disability Days, Autis'Color Run, Fashion Show of Differences, Autis'Cimes Trail, Force du Cœur Races, Handi'Ville action, Telethon) aim to:

Participate in the animation of the town of Digne-les-Bains,
Develop actions that promote the participation of all,
Encourage the exercise of citizenship,
Promote volunteering and civic engagement,
To raise awareness among the general public about the cause of our audience,
Raise the funds needed to operate Maison Cœur Lavande.
In addition to these events, entirely managed by the Cœur Lavande association, we have been participating for 2 years in the organization and animation of the National Day of Carers (JNA). This participation allows us to strengthen our support for carers by contributing to the communication on their rights, while mobilizing the whole of society around the cause of family carers.

2. How the Maison Cœur Lavande works:
Activities
We offer multiple well-being, DIY and sharing activities through various workshops: yoga, naturopathy, sophrology, speech cafés, art'cailloux, hypnosis, digital, etc.
These activities aim to:

Promote social ties by offering physical and telephone support,
Fight against isolation,
Developing intergenerational links,
Offer an alternative to the digital world that many, especially our seniors, do not understand, and make it easier to use.
All these workshops are led by volunteers, civic service volunteers and professionals.

Additional service offer
These workshop proposals are supplemented by a range of services, including:

Support with administrative procedures,
The constitution of files,
The search for aid and funding,
The development of respite solutions adapted to the expectations of caregivers.
Our global action also aims to:

Publicize existing solutions, particularly in terms of material support (respite and training solutions to enhance experience) and psychological support through discussion groups,
Participate in improving the social fabric and proximity by creating or recreating links between different audiences (sharing of lived experiences),
Encourage civic solidarity by promoting exchanges and social mixing,
Support beneficiaries in the often complex administrative procedures to enable them to better understand their rights and the technical and financial assistance available,
Contribute to health prevention by raising awareness among the elderly about health behaviors and good practices, by promoting the adaptation of housing, and by facilitating access to technical aids,
Train and raise awareness among caregivers of the risks associated with their role.
In terms of prevention, we are partners in particular with the Mutualité Française, which we welcome free of charge into our premises for the ICOPE program.

A network of partners
We have listed all the social and medico-social actors in Digne-les-Bains and its surroundings, before meeting them in order to constitute and coordinate a vast network of partners.
Our goal is to:

Develop knowledge of the prevention and care offer,
Make visible the solutions available in our territory and guide our audience according to their needs and expectations.
We also carry out information monitoring to regularly update useful data and participate in the promotion of Atelier 7.7.

Aller vers
Our “Go Towards” action extends what we offer in the premises of Maison Cœur Lavande. It allows us to:

To ensure territorial coverage of the offer of actions promoting healthy aging,
To develop the participation of caregivers in prevention actions through better mobility,
To strengthen the support offer in all surrounding municipalities.
We recently acquired a 9-seater vehicle, which will soon allow us to transport beneficiaries to activities (local or close to their town) and then take them back to their home.

Expected results
Better coordination of actions and systems proposed by our partners,
The implementation of actions promoting intergenerational exchanges,
Better well-being for caregivers and the caregiver/care recipient couple,
Support for seniors in digital technology and promotion of their history and experience.
The Maison Cœur Lavande, which will open in 2024, needs public financial support to sustain this project. Aid is essential to cover operating costs, particularly salary costs, which represent an essential item.