EVERYTHING
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“One night, my 3-year-old asked me if she could sleep in my bed. I told her no. She said, “That’s not fair! Why does Daddy get to sleep in your bed?” READ MORE
Sandwich Generation
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For Mary, the three meals delivered to her home each weekday are more than a community service. They are her lifeline, one that has allowed the 102-year-old South Orange County resident to remain living independently in her home. Hundreds of other seniors rely on the well-known Meals on Wheels program, offered throughout the county. South County Senior Services, for example, delivers 400,000 meals each year to homebound seniors from Newport Beach to San Clemente. In addition, the Directory of Services for Older Adults and Caregivers, produced by the Orange County Office on Aging, lists about a dozen more organizations in the county that deliver meals to older, homebound residents. Some, however, because of the growing demand, have a waiting list. “We’ve actually seen this program double in the last five years. The reason being, people are simply aging in place,” says Dr. Marilyn Ditty, executive director of South County Senior Services, headquartered in Laguna Woods. “This would never have been the case 20 years ago without a family member there to take care of them.” The program not only is a godsend for elderly adults like Mary, who is unable cook or drive, but for their adult children as well. This holds particularly true for working adults who still have children at home. According to Ditty, 70% of the seniors served by the organization have family members living in the area. Of those, many are caught in the Sandwich Generation squeeze children who still need care at home and aging parents who now need some kind of assistance. “In Orange County especially, and in Southern California, there has never been a time (as now) where both the husband and the wife have to work to support the cost of living in the home, whether it’s an apartment or a single-family home,” she says. “For them to leave work and go home and fix lunch for a family member is a real burden. And even though they try to do it, they tell us that the pressure to be there by 11:30, let’s say, is very great. And it’s more pressure, more stress for family members.” As a result, many families rely on the service during the week and assist their elderly parent or grandparent on the weekend. For seniors who do not have family in the area, frozen meals are delivered on Friday for use on the weekend. To qualify for the service, recipients must be over the age of 60; must be homebound because of an illness or incapacitating disability; and must have little or no assistance to obtain adequate meals. Some recipients use the service on a temporary basis as they recover from a hospitalization. Most, though, rely on the program for a longer period, some for up to 10 years. At South County Senior Services, meals are delivered by volunteers each day of the week usually between 10 and 11 a.m. The recipient receives a hot lunch, cold dinner and breakfast for the following morning. The suggested donation is $5 for all three meals. “Without food coming to their home, they can’t stay in their home. It’s not like, ‘Oh, it would be nice if we maybe had maybe somebody come in and clean for mom and dad,” says Ditty. “When you talk about food, that’s their lifeline.” -Sandy Bennett is associate editor. For more information on South County Senior Services’ Meals on Wheels program, or to volunteer, call 949.498.0400. For other similar programs in your area, contact the county of Orange, Office on Aging at 714.567.7500. MORE MEALS Meal sites represent another option for older adults. Midday meals in a group setting are offered during the weekdays at more than 30 locations throughout Orange County. The low-cost program is open to adults age 60 and older as well as their spouses and dependent children of any age. While Meals on Wheels serves as a lifeline, this program offers an opportunity for socialization as well as a meal. For qualifying adults unable to drive, transportation is often available to and from the sites. Call the county of Orange, Office on Aging for locations at 714.567.7500. |
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