Young Love Vs. Old Love
Kate Zernike of The New York Times has a fascinating article as a follow up to the Sandra Day O’Connor story we blogged about last week. The Times' story 'Still Many Splendored: Love in the Time of Dementia' sheds new light on love in old age. Here’s an excerpt:Former Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s husband, suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, has a romance with another woman, and the former justice is thrilled €” even visits with the new couple while they hold hands on the porch swing €” because it is a relief to see her husband of 55 years so content.What culture tells us about love is generally young love. Songs and movies and literature show us the rapture and the betrayal, the breathlessness and the tears. The O’Connors’ story, reported by the couple’s son in an interview with a television station in Arizona, where Mr. O’Connor lives in an assisted-living center, opened a window onto what might be called, for comparison’s sake, old love.Of course, it illuminated the relationships that often develop among Alzheimer’s patients €” new attachments, some call them €” and how the desire for intimacy persists even when dementia steals so much else. But in the description of Justice O’Connor’s reaction, the story revealed a poignancy and a richness to love in the later years, providing a rare model at a time when people are living longer, and loving longer.“This is right up there in terms of the cutting-edge ethical and cultural issues of late life love,” said Thomas R. Cole, director of the McGovern Center for Health, Humanities and the Human Spirit at the University of Texas, and author of a cultural history of aging. “We need moral exemplars, not to slavishly imitate, but to help us identify ways of being in love when you’re older.”Historically, love in older age has not been given much of a place in culture, Dr. Cole said. It once conjured images that were distasteful or even scary: the dirty old man, the erotic old witch.That is beginning to change, Dr. Cole said, as life expectancy increases, and a generation more sexually liberated begins to age. Nursing homes are being forced to confront an increase in sexual activity.And despite the stereotypes, researchers who study emotions across the life span say old love is in many ways more satisfying than young love €” even as it is also more complex, as the O’Connors’ example shows.Read the full article here.
The Millenials, The Age Wave and How We Work
Posted by Robin Krause, Vice President of Human Resources At Ecumen, like most companies, our workforce is made up of multiple generations. We often talk about the impact that 78 million baby boomers will have on the workforce as they age. Boomers make up the largest portion of Ecumen’s 4,000-member team, just over a quarter. But almost just as large are the Millennials, those born between 1980 and 1995. There are 80 million Millennials in the U.S.I enjoyed watching this recent 60 Minutes segment on the Millennials. Do you think its depiction of Millennials is accurate? Another question: Do you think the retirement of baby boomers is going to have a huge impact on the workplace, or do you think that is largely overblown? Share your thoughts.We’re developing a workforce planning tool that will break down the demographics of each of our work sites and allow us to model what the future will look like, especially as boomers hit their retirement years. Have you heard of companies that are examining what their demographic future is going to look like so that they can plan ahead and not find themselves short on experience and skills? We’d love to hear about such examples.
If you’re ever looking for a speaker on this generational topic, I’d suggest checking out David Stillman, a generational expert, who we’re fortunate to have serving on our board of trustees. A Gen Xer, he’s a fantastic speaker and author of the book: When Generations Collide: Who They Are. Why They Clash. How to Solve the Generational Puzzle at Work.
In Sickness and In Health, Until Death Do Us Part
Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor brought a great deal of awareness to breast cancer when she went public with her story. Today she’s shedding new light on Alzheimers disease and caregiving. Her husband, who was diagnosed with Alzheimers 17 years ago, has moved into an assisted living community in Arizona for memory care. He’s also begun an intimate relationship with a girlfriend, who also has Alzheimers. It’s a heartwarming, and likely very difficult story to tell of a family who adores a father and a husband and want to see him happy. If you get a moment, watch the story here at MSNBC.I’m curious if any of you have heard or experienced a similar story?
Changing Aging and Back to the Classroom
Could you see yourself doing a completely different job when you retire than the one you’re currently doing? Many boomers in our Age Wave study said they’ll be doing something very different when they hit their 'third age.'In Maryland and California, they’re connecting the generations by bringing seniors and baby boomers back to the classroom as paid teachers or volunteers. You can read more at this stateline.org story.According to stateline.org, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger this summer launched a statewide program that partners with high-tech companies to recruit, train and place retiring employees in the state’s public schools. Virginia and other states use federal money to train retirees for volunteer work in classrooms and with students who need extra help. A similar program in Maryland has has improved teacher retention, raised student scores and boosted the overall health of the senior volunteers.Nationwide, public schools are expected to lose about a million teachers over the next decade, according to the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future. What an opportunity to tap new sources of expertise in new ways.
An ELCA Senior Housing Partnership
The Minneapolis Star Tribune had a nice article yesterday on Luther Park, a senior housing development that we are very excited to be part of in Sandpoint, Idaho. The first project of its kind in Idaho, it’s a great example of collaboration among Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) partners to help people live for a lifetime in communities that they love.First Lutheran Church of Sandpoint will be the owner of Luther Park which will be physically connected to First Lutheran Church. Ecumen will develop and manage it. The Mission Investment Fund of the ELCA is the primary financing partner, and Thrivent also contributed financing. Pastor Dave Olson is the visionary behind the project and bringing the various ELCA partners together to make it a reality.Below is the Star Tribune story:Sandpoint, Idaho, has become one the most desirable retirement destinations for active seniors. At the base of the Selkirk Mountains and just south of the Canadian border it provides scenic beauty, outdoor recreation and an arts community.Shoreview-based Ecumen, one of the country’s largest nonprofit senior housing services and development companies, was also attracted to the area.It joined with First Lutheran Church of Sandpoint and other Evangelical Lutheran Church in America partners to break ground on Idaho’s first catered living senior housing development in Sandpoint.Called Luther Park at Sandpoint, it will be connected to First Lutheran Church of Sandpoint and will open in November of 2008.Ecumen’s development plans integrate independent living with a suite of assisted-living services on one site. The catered living design allows seniors to be as independent as possible in a community they were drawn to, while providing assisted-living and memory-care services when needed.The apartments include one- and two-bedroom floor plans and common areas will include a grand fireplace gathering area, library and media center, community meeting rooms, a salon and barber shop and outdoor walking paths.
Thank You to Our Veterans
At Ecumen, we have the honor of serving many people who generously served their country. On this Veterans Day, we say Thank You' to all those who have served America and are doing so today.[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1B81kW814qA[/youtube]
How Information Impacts Perception
It’s amazing how our perception can change with just a little more information. Check out this video. Have a great weekend![youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k08yxu57NA&NR=1[/youtube]
Most Baby Boomers Think They Have Long-Term Care Coverage
As we face the nation’s age wave, there’s a big disconnect between fact and reality for the country’s 78 million baby boomers when it comes to who they think is going to pay for their long-term care. What an innovation opportunity for policymakers. Without innovation, government-funded long-term care is going to eat up billions of dollars of state and federal budgets. In fact, here in Minnesota alone, long-term care could cost the state $20 billion by 2050. (If you get a chance, read the Minnesota Department of Human Services Transform 2010 report/blueprint here.)Of the 34% of Baby Boomers in our Minnesota Age Wave Study who said that they would pay for long-term care with government funding, 29% said that Medicare would pay for it. It won’t.In a new survey by StrategyOne for America’s Health Insurance Plans 54% of the country’s boomers said they will think Medicare will pay for long-term care. The survey found that 30 percent of baby boomers think they have long-term care coverage, but the National Association of Insurance Commissioners says only some 5.2 million U.S. adults have long-term care insurance -- even if all those covered were boomers, which they are not, that would only account for 6.6 percent of the U.S. boomer population.Do you think the percentage of people who know the difference between Medicare and Medicaid was much better?
The University of Wisconsin’s Great Resource
A couple of thanks' here from Changing Aging at Ecumen.Ric Shafer, a Changing Aging reader, recently put us on to the Center for Demography of Health and Aging at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jack Solock of the UW’s Center sends out a daily digest of aging and retirement news from around the globe. It’s absolutely fascinating. If you’d like to sign up to receive their daily email updates, go here.Thank you to Ric for notifying our readers and thank you Jack for the updates.
25 Visions of Successful Aging
Posted by Kathy Bakkenist, Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President of Strategy and Operations
Recently I blogged about several intergenerational focus groups we recently did of members of the Baby Boom Generation, Silent Generation and Greatest Generation.
How would you answer this question?: If you could create your ideal future, how would you describe it?Here are answers from our focus group participants:- Close friends nearby, a strong sense of community.- Comfort, safety, good health.- Balance of being independent and having a community around you.- Stimulating community that allows me to expand my horizons as I age.- Friends, health. But I want some key things to be easy - computer repair, plumbing problems, etc.- Lots of things I can walk to. To live a pedestrian life.- Health and vitality.- Health support, so even if I’m at home there are resources I can tap into - like coming home from the hospital and not having to go to assisted living.- Friendships, connections with people.- An environment that fosters friendships and connectedness.- Continuous learning.- Staying in my home, being healthy and vitality.- Living in a community that’s working toward the common good. Companions and resources readily available.- Not having to reinvent the wheel. Being able to ask someone for advice who can direct me to resources.Good health.- Living where I am now.- Having the same neighbors in my building.- Six months here, six months in a warm climate.- Knowing all the neighbors in my building.- Sense of neighborhood.- Good restaurants and grocery store.- Less car dependent.- Ongoing learning/educational opportunities.- Be in a safe community where you feel comfortable on the streets.- Youth, age diversity (many nods)- Neighborhood gatherings.It’s fascinating how often 'community' pops up in responses. In aging services we’ve traditionally been so focused on the 'medical model.' Those that are the best companies will be those who listen to what their customers want and deliver it. I love one of the statements from another focus group member who said, 'It is not about aging. It is about building communities and people helping each other.'