That vision is edging toward reality, thanks to a federal grant – totaling $837,000 over three years – for innovative efforts to help foothill seniors “age in place” – meaning, to remain independent and in their own homes for as long as possible.

The federal focus anticipates the impending tidal wave of aging Baby Boomers. By 2030, 20 percent of the U.S. population will be 65 or older, compared to 13 percent now, the Census Bureau projects. The numbers are higher for California. By 2050, nearly 25 percent of Californians will be age 60 and older, the state Department of Aging reports.

Kathie Toepel

In Tuolumne and Calaveras counties, among the state’s “grayest” regions, the projections are higher still. Already, nearly 30 percent of Tuolumne County’s residents are 60 or older (16,769 people out of an estimated 58,156 total population), according to Pauline White, assistant director of the Area 12 Agency on Aging, citing California Department of Finance figures. About 3,000 of those older residents live alone, according to the CDF.

Slightly more than 30 percent of Calaveras County’s population is 60 or older (14,230 people out of an estimated 46,658 population), says White.

The growing demand for senior services, cutbacks to mental-health and other programs serving older people, and the high cost of long-term care make this grant especially welcome.

“It’s a godsend,” says Toepel, Director of Senior Services for the Mother Lode office of Catholic Charities, the Stockton-based nonprofit that won the U.S. Administration on Aging grant last fall.

Toepel, who wrote the grant application, has run the nonprofit’s East Sonora office for five years and oversees the Mother Lode Long-Term Care Ombudsman, in which 18 state-certified ombudsmen advocate for residents in 27 foothill long-term care facilities, spanning Amador, Calaveras, Mariposa, and Tuolumne counties.

Toepel also oversees a senior legal aid program and a small “outreach and engagement program” – about to get much bigger – that provides support for seniors who are lonely or depressed, often due to grief, loss, isolation or health issues.

The new grant totals $279,000 a year for three years, combined with $40,000 of Mental Health Services Act money, awarded to Catholic Charities from Tuolumne County Behavioral Health funds. It is for “unserved and underserved” residents, Toepel says, to avoid duplication of services among various agencies. In fact, the grant is fueling a collaborative effort spanning the two counties. It involves each county’s behavioral health department, the Area 12 Agency, which serves seniors in a five-county region, and Catholic Charities.

The effort has four facets:

• A new Home Share program (see separate story)
• “Case management” by Area 12 staff, helping assess seniors’ overall medical and safety needs and matching them with services
• In-home, short-term counseling
• Support, companionship and activities through the expanded outreach program

Toepel has hired new staff to implement the programs, which will serve people 60 and older regardless of income. Many volunteers will be needed for the planned outreach. She hopes to recruit caring adults who understand the value of supportive contact for those struggling with depression, isolation and other challenges.

Participating seniors and volunteers will be called “partners.” Seniors can sign up for the program themselves, or may be referred by friends, doctors, social service workers or others. A key focus will be “socialization” – simply put, the partners enjoying time together. That may involve meeting for coffee, going out to dinner, playing cards or seeing a movie, Toepel says. Volunteers can be reimbursed for mileage if they provide transportation to doctor appointments, and will have access to activity supplies – including games, books and movie tickets – to share with their partner elders.

Youth groups, service clubs and other organizations will be invited to participate in two community “days of service,” one on April 24 and the other in September, to help seniors with minor home maintenance. Other activities are planned for the coming year, including a free lunch on March 24 at four area senior centers, to draw seniors to a central gathering place and out of isolation.

Her hope, says Toepel, is that such a broad-based community effort will not only help seniors retain their independence “but also regain their sense of self-worth and value. Then, maybe, they can go on and help someone else.”

Contact the Mother Lode Office of Catholic Charities at 532-7632 for more information.

© 2010, Friends and Neighbors Magazine

Seeing Fewer Friends, More TV

“The proportion of leisure time that older Americans spend socializing and communicating— such as visiting friends or attending social events—declines by age, from 13 percent in those ages 55 to 64 to 10 percent for those 75 and over. The proportion of leisure time devoted to sports, exercise, recreation and travel also declines with age.

On an average day, most Americans age 65 and older spent at least half of their leisure time watching television. Americans age 75 and older spent a higher proportion of their leisure time reading, relaxing and thinking than did those ages 55 to 64.”

Source: Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics

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