The Winter Ball

Homestead Hospice is a proud sponsor of Homestead HOPE Foundation. The Foundation’s mission is to educate seniors and their families about all aspects of senior living and to help seniors who are in financial need.

Homestead HOPE Foundation has been helping seniors in our communities with every-day needs to help them stay independent as long as possible. We recently helped a couple locate electric heating units when they couldn’t afford to heat their home. We want to be able to help more seniors like the ones whose mobility has decreased and need to renovate their home to make it more wheelchair accessible. We also want to help the seniors whose stability has changed and need railings in their shower to keep them safe. With your help, we can all make a big change.

On February 25, Homestead HOPE Foundation is hosting its first annual Winter Ball: An evening of dinner, dancing to live music and auctions. Tickets are $75/each and organizations that purchase a table of 10 for $750 will get, not only an evening of fun, but also advertising opportunities:

Rotating slide show of sponsors throughout the night on 4 large screens
Sponsor mention in the printed program, the night of the event
Sponsor mention in our quarterly newspaper of 50,000 copies distributed throughout Atlanta
Sponsor mention in the March e-newsletter

This is also a great networking opportunity as we will have 350-400 people from the community, including local politicians. For more information or to purchase tickets, you can call Mickey Simon at 877-451-4443. We look forward to seeing you on February 25th for a night of fun and fundraising.

Keys to Successful Aging in Place

Written for Homestead Hospice by Scott Morrison, Certified Senior Advisor

President, BrightStar Lifecare

As a professional servicing the elder population, I can tell you that the majority of the people I interact with truly want to stay in their home as opposed to relocating to a facility.  The definition of Aging in Place is: the ability to live in one’s home, wherever that may be, for as long as confidently and comfortably possible.  Data from the US Census Bureau shows that 70% of older adults in the US spend the remainder of their lives in the same place that they live at the age of 65.

A successful “Aging  in Place” experience requires in depth planning centered around three general areas:  Person, Place and Support Network.  All three of these areas must be addressed or considered in planning. These areas overlap in many ways and one must have a measure of success in each area to age in place.  For example, if I am age 75 and experience mobility problems and have a caregiver but cannot get in and out of the house safely or take a shower safely, then this is not “successful aging in place” and I may have to relocate out of my home.

Person:  Personal healthcare records should be regularly updated and easily accessible. Regular exercise, healthy diet and updated immunizations will help with aging in place.  One must have an overall review of existing finances in order to successfully plan. Retirement assets, debts and insurance such as social security, long term care insurance and disability are keys to a good plan.  These reviews should be done with a reputable provider for security reasons. You must also plan for the day that you are not able to manage your own finances. Make certain that your will expresses your wishes and designate a power of attorney.

Place:  Does your “home” meet your needs both physically and emotionally now and in the future?  Are doorways wide enough for a possible wheelchair?  Are your kitchen, laundry room and bathroom “accessible”?  If you continue to live in a house, is it a one-level home or at least have the master on the main floor? For reasons mentioned previously, these issues should be addressed on average by age 65 for success with aging in place.

Support Network: One of the keys to a supportive network is to be active in your community. Volunteer at your house of worship, civic organizations and clubs.  Participate in life enrichment centers, technology, learning tours or cruises and health / wellness seminars.  Ensure that you have access to dependable transportation so that you do not become isolated.  In addition, stay connected with family and friends.  Have in-depth discussions about all of your options proactively with your family.

Although your actual plan will be much more detailed than this light treatise on the subject, addressing Person, Place and Support Network will lead to a more pleasant aging in place experience. If you have further questions, I can be reached at 678-646-5400, BrightStar Lifecare, North Georgia’s premier provider of private duty, medical and non-medical , in-home care.

Financial Fitness

Fitness comes in many forms. Physical… mental… financial… For the new year, a great way to get your mental fitness in check, is to get your financial fitness in check. Here are some great ways to help yourself mentally, by helping yourself financially.

http://financiallyfit.yahoo.com/finance/article-113831-11743-1-8-shortcuts-to-getting-richer?ywaad=ad0035&nc

Holiday Cheer and Fundraising

Manor on the Square in Roswell, GA is doing their first annual Festival of Trees. Several local businesses have donated a Christmas tree and decorated it. These trees will be for sale on Thursday, 12/15/11 and all the proceeds from the sales will be donated to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Homestead Hospice is proud to be one of the local businesses that has donated a Christmas tree. You can get more information by calling Manor on the Square at 770-993-8040. Happy Holidays!

Festival of Trees

Holiday Treats

During the holidays, it’s always harder to stick to your healthy diet. The cookies, the cakes, the salty treats – they are sometimes too much to fend off. So we eat them, but there are some that are less costly to your waistline then others. If you have to make a decision about which treat to eat, here are some suggestions.

Holiday Treat Decisions

Health Myths Busted

We’ve all heard them… we’ve all thought they were old-wives’ tales… we all wondered what is true and what is a myth. Dr. Oz has listed some of the common myths that we all grew up with. It might or might no surprise you what we thought was true, but either way it will help you live a healthier life.

Click here for Dr. Oz’s health myths.

Foods to Lower Blood Pressure

Is your blood pressure on the rise? Well, there are ways to lower that pesky blood pressure without medication. There are foods that naturally lower your blood pressure. But always consult your doctor before discontinuing medication.

Lower your blood pressure.

Aging and Your Immune System

Aging takes a toll on your immune system. Our body’s defenses are brought down simply by virtue of age. But why, is a good question. Below is a link to how the immune system changes as we age.

Aging Changes In Immunity

Heart Health and Playing Wii

As we get older, it is sometimes more difficult to get the physical activity that our bodies need. The American Heart Association has found that playing games like on the Wii console may be beneficial if that is the only exercise you are able to do. We see more and more assisted living facilities using the Wii console as a tool to get some physical activities in their seniors.

Read more here.

Stroke Prevention May Be Possible

Strokes are a mystery to many people. We may know someone who has had one. But do we really know what they are and what causes them? There are even warning signs and ways to help prevent a stroke.

A stroke is an interruption of the blood supply to any part of the brain. A stroke is sometimes called a “brain attack.” To read more about strokes, click here.