“What is happening here?” That question ran through Kris’s mind many times recently as life threw her a few curve balls. When Kris’s father, Leon, and stepmother, Marchita, began having health issues, her world was turned upside down. Though her parents died within one year of each other, the run up to this major life change was tumultuous. Kris turned to Council on Aging (COA) for help.
In 2022, Leon began having trouble caring for Marchita, who had cancer. Kris lived nearby and wanted to help but knew she couldn’t do it alone. “My dad wanted to keep her at home. They had a beautiful home and she loved being there.”
When Marchita was discharged home following a hospitalization, Council on Aging’s FastTrack Home program provided transportation, home delivered meals and, most importantly, an outlet for Kris. FastTrack Home provides temporary supportive services to older adults as they return home from a hospital or nursing home.
“As a nurse practitioner, I know how to do a lot, but I’m only one person,” Kris shared. “With COA on board, I didn’t have to be the advocate and I wasn’t the only caregiver; we had that with COA. As a caregiver, it doesn’t matter if you’re a professional, you feel like you’re carrying the weight of all the decisions and resources. To know I could call COA to help keep us as normal as we could be, to bounce things off of…that was a blessing.”
During the next two years, COA helped Kris and her family navigate a difficult caregiving journey. When Marchita’s FastTrack Home services ended, she was enrolled in the Elderly Services Program (ESP) for ongoing support, including home-delivered meals and referrals to community resources.
COA’s support meant the world to Kris. “Because we had COA, I got a break – I was able to be the daughter.”
During this time, Leon’s health also began to deteriorate. Just before he was scheduled for surgery, Leon passed away unexpectedly, leaving Marchita without a husband and a caregiver.
Grieving the loss of her father, Kris felt overwhelmed as she tried to support Marchita, who now needed around-the-clock care. COA provided resources for Kris to find housing for Marchita.
“It was a horrible situation, but I hold onto the good things – and COA was a good thing,” Kris said with a smile. “COA gave us two years that I didn’t think they had – and my father and Marchita were together, like they wanted to be.”