11/30: Concluding Message From Executive Director Kathleen Kelly
November 30, 2015
Yesterday’s blog post (November 29, 2015) was a pictorial essay “I Am a Caregiver for my __________” with families filling in the blank with their relatives – wives, brothers, mothers, fathers, and others dear to them. Entitled Let’s put a face on caregiving!, it is the faces and stories of the families Family Caregiver Alliance (FCA) supports throughout the years by giving practical advice, teaching a skill, finding a resource, or just listening and acknowledging one’s caregiving journey. Throughout the month, individual caregiver stories have been threaded in between updates on policy, caregiving topics, and organizations that are working to better support caregiving families across the country. While FCA has a mission that embraces policy, research, and services, it really comes down to families doing their best to provide care and dignity to their loved ones.
But there is one more picture to share: our staff, which can be seen below. They are dedicated, hard-working, resourceful, smart, funny, and come ready to help families facing challenges on a daily basis. The staff has a sense of mission and purpose because we know that everyone will be touched by caregiving in their lives. While we can’t change the trajectory of an illness, we can make a difference by providing the best advice, support, and services to give control back to the caregivers and their families. So much has changed for the better for families in the past few years, but we are far from done. Now, as in the past 38 years, FCA will continue to push for better care, better services, and better policies to help family caregivers across the country. On behalf of the FCA Board of Directors and staff, we wish everyone a peaceful holiday season and a joyous New Year.
— Kathleen Kelly, MPA, Executive Director, Family Caregiver Alliance/National Center on Caregiving
(FCA Staff, 2015)
FCA is grateful to the guest bloggers who wrote for the 30 Days of Caregiving blog. We appreciate the time you took to share your knowledge, resources, perspectives, and personal experiences relating to family caregiving.
The following are all 30 blog posts featured throughout November 2015:
Day 1: What is Family Caregiving?
Day 2: I am still here
Day 3: Not Your Grandmother’s Caregiving
Day 4: Family Caregiver Alliance’s ‘I am a Caregiver for my ______’ Social Media Initiative
Day 5: FCA—A Lasting Legacy for Caregiving Families
Day 6: LGBTQ+ Caregiving: Advancing Rights for Care as We Age
Day 7: FCA Caregiver College Video Series: Self-Care
Day 8: Care Ecosystem Provides Personalized Help for Caregivers and Patient
Day 9: Family Caregivers Treated to 3 Days and 2 Nights of Relaxation and Rejuvenation
Day 10: Lifespan Respite–A Lifeline for Family Caregivers
Day 11: FCA is Grateful to Military Veterans and Family Caregivers of Veterans— Today and Always
Day 12: Straight Shot from Here to There
Day 13: FCA Fact Sheet Spotlight: Relocating Parents, Downsizing a Home, and Hospital Discharge Planning
Day 14: My Story About Becoming a Passionate Advocate for Family Caregivers Everywhere
Day 15: FCA Safe at Home Video Series: The ABC Method
Day 16: FCA Caregiver College
Day 17: FCA Family Consultant Christina Irving’s Experience With Caregivers of Veterans in American Samoa
Day 18: Who is a Caregiver at the Age of 20? Advice From a Young Caregiver
Day 19: Visionary Leadership, Dedicated Staff Help Grow FCA
Day 20: Jacqueline Marcell: My Experience with Alzheimer’s Disease
Day 21: Holiday Time, Siblings, and Parent Care
Day 22: From Daughter to Friend
Day 23: The Assisting Caregivers Today (ACT) Caucus Celebrates the Compassion and Care of Family Caregivers
Day 24: Holiday Gifts for Caregivers—Part 1
Day 25: Holiday Gifts for Caregivers—Part 2
Day 26: Former FCA Staff Member Monique Parrish on Honoring and Supporting Caregivers
Day 27: #GivingTuesday 2015
Day 28: Taking Care of YOU: Self-Care for Family Caregivers, Caregiving With Your Siblings, and Pathways to Effective Communication for Healthcare Providers and Caregivers
Day 29: Let’s put a face on caregiving!
Day 30: Concluding Message From Executive Director Kathleen Kelly