Having someone to help means Tri-City residents in their 80′s and 90′s can maintain their independence.

January 9, 2012 by

Virginia, 86, was widowed in 1993 and has lived in her Fremont home for 43 years. She currently lives alone. Her five children live out of the area, the two closest in Marin County. She maintains her independence by taking advantage of three LIFE ElderCare programs: VIP Rides, Friendly Visitors, and Meals On Wheels.

After reading about the organization in the newspaper, she mentioned it to her daughter who lives in Denver. Her daughter called Bernie Thien, Friendly Visitors Coordinator to get more information on how her mom could sign up. Bernie delighted Virginia by matching her up with a Friendly Visitor from her home state of Rhode Island. The two have been meeting every Friday for the past year to take short walks, play Scrabble and enjoy each other’s company.

She uses VIP Rides for grocery shopping and started receiving Meals On Wheels last March after coming out of a rehabilitation center for a fractured vertebrae. Her back problem makes it hard to stand long enough to cook meals or to buy groceries without assistance.

“I highly recommend LIFE ElderCare and often suggest it to people in my arthritis support group at Washington Hospital. Without the services that are available in my community I would probably be forced to sell my home and move into a much more expensive nursing home or assisted living facility.”

For fun, Virginia is part of a birdwatching group and has bird feeders in her backyard, and she watches movies on Netflix. “Politics are dismaying and depressing,” she says, “and I worry about my children not being able to afford health coverage if cuts are made to Medicare.”

Filed Under: Meals on Wheels, Senior Transportation Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

LIFE ElderCare can help older adults meet the new 2010 Dietary Guidelines.

February 1, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Meals On Wheels

Meals On Wheels provides one nutritionally balanced, healthy meal a day.

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, issued yesterday by the US Department of Agriculture, focuses on balancing calories with physical activity, and encourages Americans to consume more healthy foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fat-free and low-fat dairy products, and seafood, and to consume less sodium, saturated and trans fats, added sugars, and refined grains. LIFE ElderCare’s Meals On Wheels program, along with the Fall Prevention program, can help get older Tri-City residents get on track to meet these goals.

Meals delivered through our Meals On Wheels program are specifically designed to meet the nutritional parameters set by the Older Americans Act and the Alameda Area Agency on Aging. Every fresh cooked meal provides one-third of the minimum daily requirements for older adults and includes food that is high in Vitamin A and Vitamin C. The entrees are low fat, contain no added salt, and are delivered with a pint of milk and fresh fruit.

Our Fall Prevention program helps seniors by enrolling them in a 12-week, personalized, in-home exercise program that includes a weekly support visit from students enrolled in Unitek College’s LVN program. Through the use of resistance bands, gentle stretching and strengthening exercises, participants are able to gradually improve their muscle strength, balance and gait. This leads to greater mobility, enhanced functioning and less fear about falling in the future.

Here are some of the tips that will be provided to help consumers translate the Dietary Guidelines into their everyday lives:

  • Enjoy your food, but eat less.
  • Avoid oversized portions.
  • Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
  • Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk.
  • Compare sodium in foods like soup, bread, and frozen meals – and
  • choose the foods with lower numbers.
  • Drink water instead of sugary drinks.
Filed Under: Fall Prevention, Senior Health Concerns, Senior Meals & Nutrition, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Kind and gentle, 90-year-old woman is a favorite with volunteers.

January 25, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Just signed up a new client. She is 90 years old, a retired teacher who lives on her own in a mobile home in Fremont. Because she has a speech impediment I went to her home to do the initial interview/assessment. Her name is Myrtle and she learned about VIP Rides from a friend that lives in the same mobile home who had used VIP Rides and was pleased with the service. Myrtle greeted me at the door with a hug and she led me into her kitchen where she had milk and cookies ready for me.

After explaining the program to her she was eager to set up her first appointment. She had a doctor’s appointment later in the week and was concerned that she might not have a ride. I assured her that a volunteer would be available for the appointment. After her first ride, Myrtle was delighted with the service and set up two more appointments. So far, every volunteer that has helped Myrtle would like to do so again. Her kind and gentle ways are a gift.

Lori Vogel
VIP Rides Coordinator
510-574-2096

 

Filed Under: Positive Aging, Senior Transportation, VIP Rides, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With VIP Rides, an active, 82-year-old woman now feels safe and confident about getting out in the community again.

January 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I recently got a call from a man who was looking for a way to help his mom get to her monthly appointments. After researching transportation options on the Internet, he thought VIP Rides sounded like a good choice. I explained the program to him and he said it was just what his mom needed. I then called his mom, Claire, to tell her about the service. Because she has a slight hearing problem we decided to meet at her Fremont home where she has lived for over 40 years and raised both her children.

While her children now live out of the area, she enjoys good communication with them and finds that they are happy to help her find the resources she needs to continue living independently in her own home. Her limitations are similar to many women her age, she can no longer drive and finds it difficult to do the simple things she once enjoyed.

After I explained the program to her she didn’t hesitate to get started. Her first adventure was a trip to the grocery store. She was so comfortable with the volunteer that after getting home she called and said VIP Rides was just like having a friend take her.

In addition to regular trips to do her shopping, she has also scheduled twice a week physical therapy appointments. “I now feel safe and and confident about getting out to do I what I need to do,” she says. “I attribute this to to the VIP Rides program.”

Lori Vogel
VIP Rides Coordinator
510-574-2096

Filed Under: Senior Transportation, VIP Rides, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

For some, living longer can lead to loneliness and isolation, Friendly Visitors can help.

January 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment

The idea of finding dating partners on the Internet is becoming increasing popular and is, for some, also leading to marriage. But not all people who are looking for companionship are interested in dating or marriage. A rapidly growing number of older men and women are finding themselves isolated and alone. In many cases this occurs because family members move away to take jobs in other cities, or long time friends stop driving because of illness or safely issues.

One service in the Tri-City area that excels at matching older, homebound adults with companions is the Friendly Visitors program at LIFE ElderCare. Started in 1985, this program has helped thousands of people find stimulating companionship as well as life long friends. Our experienced “friend-maker,” Bernie Thien, has developed a keen sense for putting the right people together. From a tentative first visit, he has watched friendships blossom that have led to both volunteer and Visitor developing a deep appreciation of the joys and challenges of aging. In addition, many of the Visitors provide a much needed respite for weary caregivers who desperately need a few hours during the day to recharge their batteries.

While there are a number of for-profit companies in the Tri-City area that offer a similar service, Friendly Visitors is the only nonprofit, community-based option. All volunteers go through a background check and a comprehensive training session.

Here are a few of the Tri-City seniors in the program who are currently looking for a friend:

NANCY - 77, lives alone in Newark senior apartment complex. Alert, friendly, humorous, she is eager for a new friend. Plays cribbage and backgammon. Born and raised in Pennsylvania, she worked 40 years in credit collection. She is a very active person who would enjoy going out for lunch, shopping or a movie.

KWI – 76, lives alone in Union City home. Born and raised in Seoul, Korea. Friendly and conversational, she would love to meet a new friend. She is experiencing some chronic arthritis pain but still enjoys being outdoors, gardening and walking.

GLORIA – 84, lives with son and daughter-in-law in Union City home. Born and raised in New York, she came west in 1945. Very active for her age, she watches PBS, plays board games, reads mysteries, and enjoys taking walks in the neighborhood. Son Eric is her caregiver and would welcome a Friendly Visitor to give him a much needed break.

MARIA – 67, lives with husband in Union City home. Born in the Philippines, she came to the US in 1966. She has a B.A. in nutrition and has traveled extensively in Europe, Israel, Alaska and Hawaii. She is currently getting dialysis 3 times per week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and really needs a good friend for visits, conversation, phone calls, possible car trips for groceries, lunch, and visits to mall. She is a very deserving person trying to make the best of a difficult situation.

To view all of the seniors looking for a friend, please visit our website.

Bernie Thien
Friendly Visitors Coordinator
510-574-2097

Filed Under: Friendly Visitors, Senior Friendship, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Meals On Wheels helps homebound, obese woman get one healthy meal a day.

January 24, 2011 by 1 Comment

We all know how hard it is to lose five to ten pounds. But what if you needed to lose 300 pounds? Where would you start? One woman in our Meals On Wheels program is starting with one healthy meal a day. At close to 500 pounds she is unable to shop or cook, and has not left her home in two years. While she does have friends who bring food to her every week, it is not the kind of food that contributes to healthy eating habits or losing weight.

Her weight started ballooning after a serious car accident in which many of her bones were broken. After going through many surgeries she has struggled to adjust to the changes in her body. Being unable to walk for many months, she gradually stopped participating in activities that she had previously enjoyed and started relying more and more on friends for her basic needs.

Obesity can lead to a number of chronic health problems but one problem that is rarely discussed is clothes. While there are stores that specialize in clothes for overweight people, they are of no use to those who cannot leave their home to shop, or who need to have their clothes custom made. Recently, she found someone who has sewing skills who has agreed to help her design a few new dresses. I put her in touch with a City of Fremont case manager to discuss the many programs that are available to help Fremont residents who are disabled and she was very grateful.

Notes From the Field
Barb Proctor, LIFE ElderCare Meals On Wheels Assessment Coordinator

Filed Under: Meals on Wheels, Senior Health Concerns, Senior Meals & Nutrition, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

LIFE ElderCare Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon

December 27, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Mary M. Anderson, Executive Director

Every year in December, LIFE ElderCare hosts a grand party at the Fremont/Newark Hilton to honor and appreciate their volunteers. This year’s theme, “Come Rain or Come Shine,” acknowledged the heartfelt commitment each volunteer makes to ensure that meals, transportation, exercise and companionship, are available to every homebound senior in the Tri-City area. During the past year, over 500 volunteers gave 35,500 hours to the organization.

Judy Zlatnik, Board President and Janice Futch-Claridge, Board Member

The celebration filled the ballroom to capacity with close to 300 guests that included Mayors Bob Wasserman of Fremont, David Smith of Newark and Mark Green of Union City. David Smith proclaimed the luncheon to be the one he looks forward to the most during the year. “Despite exceeding their contracted agreements every year, this organization has never put people on a waiting list to receive meals, he said. Janice Futch-Claridge, the event sponsor said, “Never in my long years of doing community work have I found more generosity, commitment and love than in LIFE ElderCare.”

Some of the volunteers shared their stories with each other during lunch. Jane Lotz and her husband Stewart have been volunteering with Meals On Wheels for twenty years. “I have delivered meals to 426 different people, she said. “I keep doing it because the people are so wonderful and the need is so great.” A group of four volunteers from the Dawn Breakers Lion’s Club talked about how they have enjoyed alternating first and third Friday meal deliveries for the past five years.

Mary M. Anderson, LIFE ElderCare’s Executive Director presented Gabrielle Chow, Director of Food and Nutrition Services at Valley Care Hospital and Bill Stewart, CEO of RGW Construction the organization’s Friends for LIFE Award. Chow was acknowledged as a model partner for keeping food costs down and for working collaboratively with seniors in the Meals On Wheels program to create delicious, healthy meals. Stewart was commended for his company’s longtime dedication to the organization. “RGW is truly the wind beneath our wings,” said Anderson. “For the past fifteen years the annual RGW Golf Tournament has raised $40,000 - $50,000 to help Tri-City seniors.”

This year marks the 35th year of operation for LIFE ElderCare. In 1975 the organization delivered 350 meals a year. Last year they delivered over 95,000 meals. During the past six years, they have expanded services to include senior transportation and in-home exercise. Their friendly visitor program started in 1985. For more information, or to volunteer, visit their website at http://lifeeldercare.org.

This post was published in the December 24, 2010 issue of the Tri City Voice newspaper, as ”LIFE ElderCare celebrates 35 years of community commitment.”

Filed Under: Meals on Wheels, Positive Aging, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Cal State East Bay nursing students bring enthusiasm, skills and caring into educating seniors about hypertension.

December 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

For the past six years, under the leadership of Marty Fraga, Cal State East Bay nursing students have been making a difference in the lives of our Meals On Wheels clients. Through her CSUEB course, Public and Community Health, Clinical, Marty’s students conduct in-home quarterly assessments that include health, medication and home safety checks. In July 2010, we added a new component to the assessment, a pilot program that helps seniors learn about hypertension and the importance of monitoring their blood pressure. People who enroll in the program are given a blood pressure monitor and receive training on how to use it.

Of the 200 people who have been told about the program, 53 have agreed to participate. A few people have initially said no to joining because they get their blood pressure checked when they visit their doctor. But a person’s blood pressure goes up and down during the course of a day. To demonstrate this, the student takes their blood pressure at the beginning of the visit and again at the end so they can see the difference.

The nursing students have found a surprising number of people who have purchased a blood pressure cuff in the past but rarely use it. They may have done a reading once or twice when they first got it, but then never bothered to use it again. Other people have the cuff but don’t want to use it because if the reading is high, they think they will feel too stressed. A few people have said they don’t think it’s important to know what their blood pressure is. But like diabetes, high blood pressure can easily go undetected, and the complications from not knowing can be deadly.

The pilot program helps older adults see that monitoring can be both simple and affordable. Participants are initially asked to record three readings per day - morning, noon and evening, and then choose the time when it is highest to check their blood pressure every day. By keeping logs of their daily readings, the participants can give their doctors a much closer look at how their blood pressure varies throughout the day.

“Blood pressure monitoring should be an integral part of every older person’s health routine,” said one of the students. ”It’s easy to do, affordable and it puts you in control of managing your own health.”

Filed Under: Meals on Wheels, Positive Aging, Senior Health Concerns, Senior Meals & Nutrition, Volunteer Opportunities Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

LIFE ElderCare’s Campaign to End Senior Hunger

December 6, 2010 by Leave a Comment

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCAzOPnusoU]
At this very moment, someone you know or love may be at risk for malnutrition. California now ranks 18th nationally in senior hunger and statistics reveal that those at greatest risk are individuals 60-64 years of age. Many of these older adults are unable to shop for or prepare meals. Our Meals On Wheels program knows first hand how tastes mature and how medication, loneliness and fixed incomes can lessen the joy of eating. Malnutrition in seniors means increased hospital stays, increased health complications and early entry into long term care facilities, as well as premature death.

Our End Senior Hunger Campaign needs your help to: 1) create an understanding of the importance of good nutrition for older adults, 2) help family members and neighbors be more aware of the signs of hunger and malnutrition, 3) keep meals going to the people who need them. Currently, close to 70% of seniors receiving meals are unable to contribute toward the cost of their meal. But since we started in 1975, there has never been a waiting list. With your help those in need of a meal will never go hungry.

A senior receiving meals recently called to say, “I always wondered what real angels look like and now I know — they look exactly like Meals On Wheels drivers. They all have those wonderful traits — unselfishness, helpfulness, dependability, kindness and heartfelt concern. My life would be filled with daily survival problems if it weren’t for my crew of angels. For a moment in time, I am reminded that I am important.”

You can help us End Senior Hunger in Fremont, Newark and Union City by donating generously to our campaign. By doing so you will be saying, “I am here for you and I care.” For further information on how you can help, please visit our website.

Thank you and Happy Holidays,
Mary M. Anderson, Executive Director

Filed Under: Meals on Wheels, Senior Meals & Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A big thank you to the children who made Thanksgiving a little brighter for our Meals On Wheels clients today.

November 24, 2010 by Leave a Comment

We received about 300 brown paper lunch bags that were decorated by Brownie Troop, #33030. Here is what one of the girls wrote on the bag: “Happy Thanksgiving. I made this bag for you. My name is Esha. I am in Brownie Girl Scouts 33030. WE WORKED REALLY HARD ON THIS PROJECT, I hope you enjoy what’s inside.”

Arlene Paxton at Graham Elementary School in Fremont asked students to get involved in a project related to their character trait for November which is compassion. About 300 cards came in from different grades. These were distributed to our seniors today along with their Thanksgiving meal. Here are a few of the greetings inside the cards:

If Turkeys Thought

If turkeys thought they would run away
A week before Thanksgiving Day.
But turkeys can’t anticipate
And so there is turkey on my plate!!

Five Fat Turkeys

Five fat turkeys are we
We spent all night in a tree
When the cook came around
We were no where to be found
And that’s why we’re here you see!!.

One student drew a man boxing with a turkey

I hope you have a great Thanksgiving with your family.
I just don’t hope that the turkeys don’t fight back!

Dear Food on Wheels:

I’m a student of Graham School Elementary wishing you a good evening and
Happy Thanksgiving. My grandpa I think needs food on wheels, but he still can drive. P. S., Thank you for helping our world.

Barb Proctor
Meals On Wheels Assessment Coordinator

Filed Under: Meals on Wheels, Senior Meals & Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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