To the great joy of everyone involved, the official inauguration of La Maison de Tara took place at 18.30 on 15 September.

Official inauguration of the Maison de Tara in the presence of the Mayor and officials of the commune of Chêne-Bougeries will take place on Thursday September 15th at 6.30 p.m.Representatives of numerous medical, health and social welfare related organizations attended the event.

Anne-Marie Struijk, Founder and President of the Maison de Tara spoke of the long gestation period of eight years that were needed to rally the necessary financial and operational support to open the house. And she mentioned her personal links with the commune where her grandfather had been Pasteur of the Temple of Chêne-Bougeries and where her father had passed his childhood. She thanked the many people and organizations whose support had made this venture possible, in particular the Commune of Chêne-Bougeries, the donors, the medical associations and home help agencies, the governing board of the foundation, the new director and, most importantly, all the volunteers and the professionals who had trained them.

M. Jean-Michel Karr, Mayor of Chêne-Bougeries, then made the opening speech on behalf of the Commune. He said that it was an honour for the Commune to be able to participate in the start up of La Maison de Tara, a project that was innovative and gave cause for reflection on the meaning of life in our society. Noting that the team of volunteers was international, he broke into English, hoping that they would find the strength ' to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse" to accompany the patients with commitment and humanity. M. Karr highlighted that this would not always be easy, but he wanted to give an assurance that the Communal authorities would always be with La Maison de Tara in heart and in spirit not just now but in the long term. He then declared the house officially open. The ribbon was cut by Mme Béatrice Grandjean-Kybury, Conseillière administrative.