Senior Living Information Blog

Little Brothers 50th Anniversary Benefit

In honor of half a century of relieving loneliness and isolation among Chicago’s elder population Little Brothers are throwing an intergenerational bash at Rockit Bar & Grill THIS Saturday, May 2 from 1-4 p.m. There will be food, drink and games from generations past and present (think 80 year-olds playing Wii and 20-somethings playing checkers). 

cost: $35 per person

Saturday, May 2, 2009
1:00 - 4:00 pm
Rockit Bar and Grill
22 W. Hubbard Street, Chicago (btwn State & Dearborn)

for more information just click here to go to Little Brothers, Friends of the Elderly's website.
Or you can call 312-455-1000

What to do when you get the call that your parent is sick?

On May 5th at 1 pm (central time)  Dale Carter will be telling her story from the moment she got the emergency call about my mother through her 10 day visit there.  She wants people to hear it because it is a positive story and her mother found a new life in a retirement community 5 miles from her original home.  I referenced Dales story in one of my previous blog posts because I liked it so much

The show is on Blog Talk Radio and will be hosted by Viki Kind.  There will also be a recording of Viki's interview with Dale after the show in case you can't make it and would really like to hear a great story.  The topic title is "When you get the call that your parent is sick"

I read about the her story on her blog, but I am looking forward to hearing about it on the 'radio'.

1000 Years of Wisdom

Yesterday I was fortunate enough to visit a very special memory care unit.  The program focuses on women in the early to mid stages of dementia. The day is filled with purposeful programs that are especially meaningful to women.

The ladies made breakfast and invited some friends from the community in to share.  There was a lovely host, Dottie who made sure you were happy and not without food and drink.  The ladies peeled a lot of bags of oranges so we could enjoy some fresh squeezed juice in addition the the ham&cheese and chocolate croissants that they made.  I really shouldn't have but I had a chocolate one.

They figured that between all of them, they had over 1000 years of combined wisdom that they could share with the rest of us.  They picked their top 15 words to live by and I want to share them here as they are so special and right on!

1. If you don't succeed, try try again.
2. Be nice to everybody and help other people
3. Never say never
4. If you don't use it, you lose it!
5. You got to have faith
6. Find the right man
7. What goes around comes around
8. You don't hate people because they're a different color
9. It's not polite to point
10. Pray for everybody before yourself
11. Don't sass your mother back!
12. Have a good time, but don't do anything I wouldn't do
13. Always tell the truth
14. Have good behavior and be a good listener
15. Love everybody

I did not bring my camera, but I am hoping that someone does send a photo from the event that I can post up here. 

The ladies made the place cards and the thank you cards with the words of wisdom on them for each of us to take home.  They wrapped up the day by singing two songs for us.  It was truly an honor to be welcomed into their home.

Pet Support for Seniors

Pet Support for Seniors (PSS) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization in Chicago dedicated to helping low-income seniors keep and care for their companion animals. 

Currently, PSS has partnered with several social service agencies in and around the Chicago area to distribute pet food to the seniors they serve.  They are providing food for cats, dogs and birds. With your help, they can expand our work to other agencies and provide grooming and veterinary services in the future.
  
Pet Support for Seniors is 100% volunteer run and supported by generous donors who share a dedication to their mission.

All financial donations assist our program in covering overhead costs, purchasing pet food, assisting with veterinary and grooming services and assisting in expanding our services.

Donations can be mailed to: P.O. Box 300114, Chicago, IL 60630-0114.  On-line donations are also welcome.  Donations are tax deductible.

To date PSS has delivered

1,827 pounds of dry dog & cat food

2,144 cans of wet dog & cat food

60 pounds of bird food

50  pounds of cat litter

Other Assistance They Have Provided

$400.00 in vet care assistance.

Transportation for 10 round trips to vet appointments.

In-home dog walking and pet feeding

Chicago area to add new supportive living facilities

Article in Sunday's Chicago Tribune about one of our partners, Pathway Senior Living!

Several new, affordable assisted-living buildings are set to open in the Chicago area as Illinois expands its program to provide a low-cost alternative to nursing-home care. That's good news for seniors who need some help but who don't need round-the-clock supervision.  Click for the rest of the article.

What is a Geriatric Care manager and why would you need one?

In February I had a chance to tour a local assisted living community with Marianne for one of her clients. 
Marianne Kwiatkowski, MSN, APRN-BC, GNP is Vice President and Care Consultant for MDM Care Management in Chicago.

I had a chance to sit down after our tour and ask her why a family might need to hire a geriatric care manager.

In Remembrance

I know this has nothing to do with senior living, but I am proud to be a Hokie from Virginia Tech.

Assisted living demand limits discounting - but incentives still exist

Timely article I found.  Having some issues with this in our business.  Some communities we work with are able to offer a bunch of move in incentives because of the amount of people they currently have living there. 

Some of the communities we work with are doing better than they were at the same time last year.  Our business has been up for 09 so I can understand.  These properties are less willing to "negotiate" or even give an incentive that they were able to offer last year.

So while I still think its good to ask what they can do - do not expect or assume that every property needs to offer the discounts.  Some of them are full enough (since assisted living is a need driven business.)

Here is a related article I found online "Demand for Assisted Living Limits Discounts, but Incentives Exist"

Not that I am trying to give my company a shameful plug, but it is nice to work with a senior placement referral service.  We are up on who has what offers, and our service is free, so that is a win win situation. But we aren't going to suggest you go with the one with the free month's rent if the other place really is a better fit for the type of care that you need.

Transition Aging Parents Blog

I was so excited to stumble upon this blog today.  It talks about one daughters experience with transitioning her mother into her home of 30 years to a retirement community.  The changes that she talks about with her mother are the changes we often see first hand.  I wanted to share one post in particular that I really enjoyed.

It is a list of the top 10 changes she has seen in her mother since her move to the retirement community.  Awesome!

15th Annual Alzheimer's Day at Northwestern

Alzheimer Day showcases Alzheimer’s disease research at Northwestern, with nearly 50 poster presentations by Northwestern researchers in basic, clinical, and social sciences. An internationally renowned expert in Alzheimer’s disease research and treatment will open the day. Attendees will have the opportunity during lunch to meet the poster presenters and discuss the latest in Alzheimer’s research and treatment. At day’s end a panel of clinicians will offer concluding remarks and take questions in a town hall–style meeting.

Friday, May 8th

Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Feinberg Pavilion
251 East Huron Street
Third-Floor Conference Center

AGENDA
11:30 - 1:00 PM
Keynote Address
"Alzheimer's Disease Treatment Development: Opportunities and Challenges"
Jeffrey Cummings, MD
Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry
Director, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center
University of California Los Angeles

1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Lunch and Scientific Poster Viewing

2:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Panel Presentation and Town Hall Meeting

RSVP CNADC-Admin@northwestern.edu or 312-503-5068