For Immediate Release:

October 28, 2013

To help caregivers, the Monmouth County Office on Aging is sponsoring a free caregiver retreat from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 2 at the Sheraton Hotel in Eatontown. The program, designed for those who care for people over aged 60, includes a continental breakfast, lunch and access to caregiver resources. Registration is required due to space limitations. Register by calling 732-431-7450.

“Many people do not consider themselves caregivers,” Freeholder John P. Curley said. “But when they think about all they do for their loved ones and how much time they spend doing it, they realize that they are. They do it because that’s what families do for the people they love.”

“We teach caregivers how to care for themselves as they are caring for someone else,” said Colleen Smith, the county’s caregiver specialist. “That’s important because if you don’t have the energy or a good frame of mind to care for yourself, you’re not going to be able to take care of someone else.”

“It’s very hard to see your parents or loved one decline,” said Michael Ruane, director of the Division of Aging, Disability and Veterans Services. “Caregiving can be defined as around-the-clock care for someone at home, or someone who has already had to place a loved one in a facility and still visits them once a day or several times a week. Or, it could be someone caring for them long-distance and flying to see them every couple of months. It’s all caregiving and it’s all stressful.”
 
Keynote address will be given by Bernice Garfield Szita and Bob Szita, co-directors of GIERS (Grief Information, Education and Recovery Services), and Action Artz Training Institute, along with The Humanity Players, an educational theater arts group. They will present a vignette about the challenges and triumphs of caregiving.

Attendees will have access to two dozen local care providers and resources, including the Alzheimer’s Association, EZ-Ride, Visiting Physicians Services and a host of elder care centers.  

Also on the program are:

• Leah Hendrick, Caregiver Support Deputy Director of VA NJ Healthcare system;
• Diane Prochnow and Janet Zaranka, who will talk about Medicaid, and
• Lynn E. Staufenberg, Esq. and Linda Conroy of O’Brien Funeral Home.

Vendors that will be in attendance include:

• Alcoeur Gardens Assisted Living
• Alzheimer’s Association
• Assisted Transition
• Cancer Support Community
• Chapin Hill Nursing Home, Red Bank
• Elder Life management, Ocean Twp.
• Farmingdale Pharmacy
• Family and Children’s Services, Long Branch
• Fox Rehabilitation, Cherry Hill
• Homewatch Caregivers, Old Bridge
• Kensington Court, Tinton Falls
• Liberty Royal Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center
• Meadowlink Transportation, EZ-Ride
• Mental Health Association
• Monmouth County Care Centers
  • John L. Montgomery, Freehold
  • Geraldine L. Thompson, Wall
• MOCEANS, Long Branch
• Monmouth County Disabilities & Veterans Services
• National multiple Sclerosis Society
• Pharma-Care, Inc., Clark
• RJ Healthcare Services, Asbury Park
• St. Barnabas Health Care System
• Visiting Physician Services, Eatontown
• We Care Adult Care, Red Bank

“This is a day for caregivers to indulge themselves,” Smith said. “Quite a few vendors will be providing complimentary therapies, plus there will be raffles and gift baskets.” 

The program will connect caregivers with an array of service providers who will be able to distribute information about a variety of services involving care for the aged and how to access those services. Among the services included are adult day care, respite care and home health agencies.

The program is being funded through the National Family Caregivers Grant.

#     #     #