Inside Aging Parent Care

Libraries are for Caregivers

By Bill June 8th, 2011

Caregiving Information

Monday evening I attended a public meeting at one of Denver’s branch libraries concerning proposed budget cuts for our library system. The great recession has hurt Denver’s sales tax revenue, forcing budget cuts for all City operations for the last three years. The library has reduced hours at all its branches, with most branches open only four days per week with open hours also reduced.

This year’s budget has cuts continuing, resulting in the library’s operations falling below minimum standards. There are several options to deal with the reductions, including closing several branch libraries. The most appealing option is for the voters approving creating a special library district with a property tax mill levy amounting to about $60.00 per year for a $200,000 home. This would provide a more stable funding …

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Signposts on the Caregiver’s Journey

By Carol May 24th, 2011

The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making by Viki Kind

At the same time we were preparing to host a family meeting to begin discussing end of life issues, I was reading Viki Kind’s practical and enlightening book The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making. This is a book that should be on every caregiver’s shelf or, even better, in every caregiver’s handbag or briefcase. It is one of those works that will help caregivers feel just a bit less alone and quite a bit more confident of the path at some of the toughest times on the journey.

But don’t wait until the road gets rough to read it.

Take a look at Viki’s book before deciding on care arrangements or filing out living wills and other legal forms. Viki covers the pros …

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Caregivers Consider–Who will Care for Us?

By Carol May 17th, 2011

As Dad looked ahead to the end of his life, he was very clear about some of his wishes. He definitely wanted to be cremated and to have his ashes scattered at sea. He was less clear about how much medical intervention he wanted and how he wanted to die. Years ago he made a living will expressly forbidding extraordinary measures. In his last years he frequently asserted that he planned to live to be “at least” 100 thus avoiding serious discussions about palliative care or hospice until the very end. As his caregiver and without his input, I became overwhelmed as death approached, unnamed and unacknowledged.

If l learned anything from Dad’s death, it is that the plain talk about end of life issues cannot begin too soon. And, it isn’t enough to …

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Spring Color and The Meeting

By Bill May 5th, 2011

Carol wrote about the spring blossoms we saw with Frank on one of his last outings last year. This year the color is not like last year – a dry winter – but I found myself remembering. Frank lived in Denver two years and I got to know him better than when we were long distance caregivers.

We became friends. We played poker, went on drives in the mountains and around the city, and visited Red Rocks City Park. He was awed by Red Rocks every time we went there. He loved nature, and the spring display of color was his last real experience of the turn of seasons. The color this spring brought back the memories. I miss the old goat.

This spring has brought a remarkable event for our family. We had …

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Caregiver Memories: A Moment of Unforgettable Beauty

By Carol May 1st, 2011

Maybe it’s because Denver is such a dry-land place, but the springtime sights seem especially touching here. For a few days in early spring our flowering ornamental and fruit trees erupt into bloom. Every year the beauty that seems to explode almost overnight from dead-looking tree branches takes my breath away.

This year when the trees came into full blossom, Bill and I experienced an odd sort of double vision. Driving around town soaking up the spring beauty, we both remembered one particular day from this time last year.

It was the day of what turned out to be Dad’s last semiannual visit to the VA geriatric clinic. I always drove the car, parking as close to the entrance of Dad’s assisted living residence as possible. Bill would go in and get Dad and …

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