Jennifer T. Szakaly, MA, CMC, CG, founder and CEO of Caregiving Corner, LLC

Aging Gracefully

Caregiving Corner offers the best elder care management

BY » Jeff Winke | PHOTOGRAPHY BY » Lisa Crates

There appear to be three altering events in life when the aging process sucker punches us. Somewhere around 30 when staring in the mirror and recognizing that you don’t look as young and fresh as you think, is the first. Then, when you turn 50 and receive the invitation to join the AARP and you’re thinking how do they know my birthday and I can’t admit to anyone that I’m actually a half-century old. And then lastly, when you you’re in the drivethru getting a bag of to-go-food and the bright-face teen clerk kindly says “I already gave you the senior discount so you’re total is...” All of the above catch us off guard. Reality can be unkind.

Thinking positive about aging, is perhaps the goal for everyone. Aging happens and should be viewed as a wonderful achievement that should be celebrated, right? In a sense, aging with confidence is what all hope for or accepting aging as a natural progression in life.

There are challenges with achieving older age. According to the National Council on Aging, millions of older adults struggle every day with health and safety challenges such as chronic disease, falls, and mental health issues, which point to the need for greater care.

Involving an aging life care manager can be a positive first step.

“It’s always better to get an aging life care manager involved before you think you need one -- think of it as you would a financial advisor. You don’t wait until you are out of money to get financial advice,” stated Jennifer T. Szakaly, MA, CMC, CG, founder and CEO of Caregiving Corner, LLC, Cornelius, North Carolina. “We really want people to think proactively about aging so that they can make decisions for themselves. Older adults caught in a crisis (broken hip, death of a spouse, etc.) have far fewer choices and usually have to rely on others to decide things for them and that’s just not how it has to be if someone is willing to think ahead.

“Some of the signs we tell families to be on the lookout for are: changes in diet and hygiene, noticing more clutter in the home, and if the person’s world is getting smaller - if they stop going

to do things, stay in more, stop seeing friends as often. None of these things means you immediately move into a nursing home -- that’s what everyone fears they’ll hear from a professional. These are just signs that the person may be struggling to manage things cognitively and needs some assistance. Based on what we see when we assess the person, we will know what to do or what to put into place to help them.”

Being ahead of the game, so to speak, appears to be the smart place to be in. Caregiving Corner was created in 2005 specifically to assist caregivers of older adults in navigating the longterm care system and to arm them with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions when needing to deal with a crisis caregiving situation.

“As my grandmother got older, my mom became her caregiver, as often happens in families,” Szakaly said. “I watched my mom really struggle with not being able to get good answers to the hard questions as things got more complex with my grandmother. It was really frustrating to see that the long-term care system is so fragmented and complicated that someone can’t advocate for a loved one without a lot of obstacles.

“I went to graduate school to study gerontology at UNC-Charlotte, so that I could learn more about aging. I was learning about resources right after my mom needed them, so it was too late to help her, but I knew this is what I wanted to do. I wanted to simplify caregiving and simplify the navigation of the long-term care system for families so that they can spend their time and energy just being family to their aging loved one and not having to work so hard at the procedural tasks of caregiving.”

Szakaly continued, “Families and family dynamics are so interesting -- sometimes crazy, sometimes sad, but most times so rich with love. I always come back home at the end of my day and realize how lucky I am to have the family that I have. Family is just going to continue to get more diverse in the coming years, so caregiving will get harder for a lot of reasons, which is something people should plan for.”

Szakaly’s company, Caregiving Corner, provides care management and counseling services. Their main service, care management, is essentially about assessing someone’s situation and coming up with a plan of resources and services to help them fulfill the plan. For example, if someone has just been diagnosed with dementia pointing to Alzheimer’s and they want to live at home as long as possible, then that’s the goal. Caregiving Corner will help the family and older adult plan for the dynamics of the disease and choose support services based on the needs and budget for longer term care that will likely be required in the future.

Care management is useful for people at any point along the continuum.

“We have clients who have just relocated to the area who need new doctors and want to look at active communities and we have clients who are under hospice care and are easing to the end, and everyone in between,” Szakaly said. “Involving a care manager is really about choosing to have an advocate, who is an expert in the field of aging, so that you can plan for aging with the most dignity and independence possible.”

Everyone’s situation is different, but a care manager is expected to meet the person/family where they are and help them from that point. With current day family makeup having changed for many, they may not have the traditional family members -- spouse, kids, etc. -- who can step in to serve as their healthcare backbone. That’s where Caregiving Corner can help out. If authorized, a care manager can serve as their healthcare power of attorney, which can be critically helpful.

Caregiving Corner has been a part of the Lake Norman area for almost 20 years.

“I love the fact that being here we can enjoy several small towns with all their celebrations and events without having to go far, but we are still close to Charlotte,” Szakaly said. “My grandmother used to live in Huntersville and I remember coming here as a child LONG before things got developed. An outing to Tastee-Freeze or the Huntersville Family Restaurant was a big deal. It’s been fun to see the area grow, but I love the older buildings and homes that are still prevalent all around. I like that we have a good diversity in age in this area too.”

For more information please contact: Jennifer Szakaly 704-945-7170 Jennifer@caregivingcorner.com ?

Fried flying fish— a definite favorite

Whenever we get to Barbados, I dine on the island’s national dish as often as I can

A beautiful vista, waves crashing on rocks together with a favorite dish—perfection

serving Lake Norman!

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BY » Trevor Burton | PHOTOGRAPHY BY » Trevor Burton

My wife, Mary Ellen, and I like to hang out in various parts of Barbados. On the west side of the island you’ll find lots of high end resort hotels, some with rather nice restaurants. We tend to avoid them. I have a long-time friend who lives part-time on the island. We like to link up with him and his wife, find some off-the-beaten-track restaurant and dig in to some local dishes. I stay really local. Invariably, I go for Barbados’ national dish, fried flying fish and cou cou. Cou cou is similar to polenta, it’s made from ground up corn meal and okra. My favorite preparation is with a creole sauce. Delicious.

More often than not, we would head to the Waterfront Cafe, close to the Marina in downtown Bridgetown. To our great disappointment, the Cafe has closed, permanently. It used to be a great place to people-watch and to see boats as they come in and out of the marina. To be honest, the Waterfront Cafe was definitely on the touristy side. The upside of that is there was a decent selection of wine. The last time we were there, we went for a French wine, La Chablisienne from, unsurprisingly, the Chablis region. I went for my dish of flying fish, a creole version. I have no idea why but our server was surprised and raised her eye-brows when I placed my order. I must not look like what the average creole flying fish and cou cou eater looks like. I don’t care, I like flying fish!

So, this time around I relied on my buddy for a restaurant recommendation to replace good old Waterfront. He came up with Champers on the southern tip of the island. A short taxi ride from Bridgetown took us to a beautiful spot. Quite a different atmosphere to the one at Waterfront, this is really a high end restaurant. To me it seemed like we got the best table in the place; a stunning view. The restaurant is in a renovated house that was built in 1860. It’s on top of a small cliff and overlooks the eastern end of Accra Beach. It has a panoramic view of the sea with waves crashing into the rocks just below our table. And, yes, there was flying fish on the menu.

I ordered it and was delicious. But, then again, it might have been the view that made the dish taste so good. Mary Ellen went for linguini and a topping of chicken. No surprise, given the quality of the restaurant, wine was widely available at Champers. I opted for a glass or two of Côte du Rhône. So, it’s a proven fact; creole style fried flying fish and Côte du Rhône pair well together, at least they did at Champers.

Looking around the restaurant, I was struck by the seeming lack of tourists. Barbados is a huge tourist destination but I guess they all head to those fancy resorts on the west of the island. We asked and found out that Champers gets a lot of local clientele, unlike most other upmarket restaurants on the island. Champers is comfortable. The menu is quite simple, just really good, tasty food—including my fried flying fish. All of that is a huge hit with me.

This was an absolute delight. The location is stunning, the service is superb and I got to indulge in my favorite dish and a few glasses of good wine. Perfect.

protecting our LKN community includes UNDERSTANDING MEDICARE »

• What is Medicare? Medicare is made up of two parts; Part A, which covers inpatient needs and Part B, which covers outpatient needs like office visits, medical testing, and procedures. Part A and Part B are commonly known as “Original Medicare” • Can I delay Medicare? Maybe! Those over 65 who continue working or are enrolled in employer health insurance have the option to delay coverage. If you have “credible coverage”, you can delay enrollment in Part B. Get with your employer to see if your plan is considered credible, if not, you could pay a penalty. • Can I get more coverage? Yes! There are two main paths you can take. One, a Medicare Supplement AKA “Medigap” plan that works along with your Original Medicare and a separate Prescription Drug plan. Or two, you can enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan that contracts with Original Medicare and provides Part A and Part B coverages, most include prescription drug coverage – many offer more benefits like dental, vision, and hearing! • Am I stuck with my choice? No! You can make changes to most plans during the Open Enrollment period, October 15 – December 7 every year.

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This is where Laura Finan, Benefits Consultant, and Pam Powers, Benefits Consultant Assistant at Fogle Insurance Group come in! We sit down with every client to assess their needs, budget, and eligibility.