Lewis County Aging Director Follows Trend by Living with an Elderly Parent

Oct. 9, 2012 - PRLog -- There are several ways adult children show support for their aging parents and Lewis County’s Office for the Aging Director Brenda J. Bourgeois is intimately connected with at least one – living with her 79 year-old mother, Beverly.

Bourgeois joined the Lewis County area agency on aging nine months ago. Three years ago she started living with her mother.  Her father passed away a few years prior and when her mother was diagnosed with dementia it soon became evident that she could no longer live alone. Since that time, various aspects of her mother’s oversight and care has been provided by Bourgeois and her siblings.

“There has to be a greater cosmic plan because it gives you a perspective on what might be needed and what we’re doing well as an agency devoted to support the independent living of older adults,” the new Lewis County Office for the Aging Director said.

Bourgeois’ mother is still mobile with the use of a walker and mostly cares for herself but Bourgeois certainly understands the trend. The percentage of adult children providing personal care and/or financial assistance to a parent has more than tripled over the past 15 years, according to a recent employee benefits study uncovering the trends, attitudes, and use of employee benefits.

Lewis County is a rural county located in what's known as the North Country in New York State. Forty minutes from Canada, it’s very rural and transportation has been an issue for the county and the agency. The county recently merged their transportation services with The Arc, Oneida-Lewis Chapter NYSARC an organization dedicated to people with developmental disabilities.

And more recently, Lewis OFA also partnered with the Volunteer Transportation Center to further expand services. Bourgeois is familiar with The Arc, having worked for them as Lewis County ARC and later, The Arc, Oneida - Lewis Chapter, from July 1985 through February 2001.

Her entire career has been in the field of human services.  Working at The Arc, she gained vast experience in clinical coordination, program development, human resources, administrative, leadership, and management functions. For ten of her years with The Arc, she simultaneously worked part-time with children and adolescents in the Family Support Services program of the Lewis County Community Mental Health Center.

The majority of her time at the mental health center was spent assisting the Director of Community Services and the Mental Health Services Director with coordinating and managing a variety of administrative activities in support of the NYS certified community mental health center and the community support programs.  

Her mental health experience is a bonus for the area agency on aging, which has discovered that mental health issues are an issue for older adults, a trend that’s becoming more apparent within the aging community.

As with many people who grew up in rural settings she expected to leave but returned after graduating from the University at Albany, SUNY and never left, which has been a plus not only for her mother but for the Lewis County Office for the Aging.

About NYSAAAA

The New York State Association of Area Agencies on Aging represents the state’s local offices for the aging established under the federal Older Americans Act to respond to the needs of Americans age 60 and over. The Association provides professional development and education that includes the annual Aging Concerns Unite Us (ACUU) conference, webinars, regional caregiver forums and a fall Leadership Institute. The Association works to strengthen and expand long term services and supports to individuals so they may age in place in the community.  A core philosophy is to work in collaboration with other agencies, which is accomplished through the Aging Alliance, a coalition of organizations representing Older New Yorkers. Looking to the future, the Board of Directors has approved a new name, the Association on Aging in New York, to create a more cohesive and inclusive network to address the diverse needs of an aging population, as well as individuals of all ages needing long term services and supports. For more information, go to http://www.nysaaaa.org The new web site will soon be operational at www.agingny.org