Passing on the Legacy

Passing on the Legacy

When we learn life lessons, we have a desire to pass that valuable knowledge on to future generations.  And when that knowledge improves the quality of life for other people, sharing that information with others becomes of even greater importance.

Les Ostermeier and Clint Slater started a senior housing & care referral agency in 1993 called CHOICE Advisory.  The business helps seniors and their families know what options exist for retirement and assisted living as well as memory care.

When raising their two children, they included them in conversations around the household about what what the aging process is like and the challenges that elders face with health issues, family dynamics, finances and emotions.

In her teenage years, their daughter Naomi volunteered with the activity department of an Alzheimer’s & Dementia care community in Lynnwood, Washington.  “My dads instilled in me the importance of creating pleasant days for people, so it was a pleasure to make a positive impact on the lives of people living with memory loss.”

In 2009 Naomi joined CHOICE Advisory as a full-time employee.  Over the past seven years she has increased her skills of listening to the needs of people and supporting them in locating resources they need in the community.

Here is a sampling of what Naomi has from working with hundreds of older adults and their families:

We procrastinate, often to our own detriment and sometimes to the detriment of other people

We are blessed here in the Northwest to have thousands of senior care options for people who wait until they are forced to make a move.  There is an entire portion of senior living that is frequently overlooked by active older adults.  For some reason, people hold a belief that they have to wait until they are infirm before they give consideration to making a move to a senior living community.  The best time to make a move to a community is when don’t need care, and you are able to make all the necessary decisions on your future.  We should take responsibility and take action to make our own decisions earlier in our adult lives rather than wait for a crisis to arise.  If older adults don’t take action, they can lose complete control and family members have to step in to make decisions for them.  If the family is not in agreement, this lack of planning can cause the entire family to implode.

A basic human need is to interact with other people

Americans pride themselves on living alone in their own homes.  Living alone works fine as long as we’re able maintain the upkeep of a home and yard and as long as we’re able to get out to run errands and complete chores.  If a person becomes less mobile, or if driving becomes difficult, then isolation can occur.  Even people who aren’t very social and outgoing benefit from seeing other people and being acknowledged with a friendly greeting.  Our society incorrectly equates living alone as being a sign of strength and independence when in fact, it is more correct to state that living alone can lead to living a life of “selective isolation.”

Things are just things.

It can become difficult to age with grace if we become attached to material things.  If we no longer have the energy to entertain, do we really need a full set of china?  If we rarely have house guests, why do we feel the need to have an extra room for an occasional guest to stay?

People derive joy and satisfaction from being of support to other people.  Material items do bring back memories, but interactions with other people is what creates new memories and give purpose and value to our lives.

In our work, we see people become so attached to physical possessions that it can cause a person to be more focused on their “stuff” than on their own need for having a purpose in life.

Making a move isn’t giving up independence – it’s ensuring your independence into the future

We often hear people say that they avoid making a move to a senior living community because they feel they will be giving up their independence.  This belief stems from a fear of growing older, and from an unwillingness to admit that we are all frail beings who have lives that are short in duration.

Making a move to senior living is a means of creating built-in support systems and safety nets for our futures.  After people make a move to senior living, they invariably state “I’m not sure why I put this move off for so long – I should have done this years ago!”

CHOICE Advisory is a FREE service and provides guidance on senior housing and care options in:

Whatcom, Island, Skagit Counties
King & Snohomish Counties
Pierce, Thurston, Mason & Kitsap Counties
Spokane, WA and Coeur d’Alene, ID
Clark County (Vancouver, WA)
Greater Portland Metro, tri-county area

choiceadvisory.com
800-361-0138 – available seven days a week from 8:30AM until 8:30PM
Call us for free assistance and support