Business Profile: Senior Helpers

– Courtesy Photo

By J. Shadé Quintanilla

Whenever an elderly person is in need, Senior Helpers is at their service. A company that serves seniors in the San Gabriel Valley and throughout the country, Senior Helpers aims to maintain and better the quality of life for the elderly by providing them with the best in-home care services.

Many seniors do not want to move to assisted living or independent living facilities, said Kathryn Erskine, president of the Senior Helpers Arcadia. As the elderly age and require assistance for everyday tasks, many of them want to stay in the homes where they watched their children grow up and where they created some of their best memories. By providing the elderly with caregivers who personally come to their homes, Senior Helpers is a service that allows the elderly to remain in their homes while assisting them during the aging process.

Seniors and families who need assistance can first call the company’s office and speak with a consultant, free of charge. Through an interview process, the consultant will come up with a customized care plan that best fits the senior. Senior Helpers then matches the individual with caregivers who have similar interests and are trained to support his or her specific needs. The in-home service provides the elderly with care that includes anything from companionship and help with hobbies and housekeeping to walking assistance, diet planning, and transportation to medical appointments.

– Courtesy Photo

Senior Helpers also provides care for the elderly with dementia and Alzheimer’s. By using a classification system called Senior Gems, developed by occupational therapist and dementia expert Teepa Snow, the homecare provider is able to identify which stage of dementia and Alzheimer’s the senior is in. Through the Gems method, caregivers and family members of seniors with these disorders can recognize the characteristics associated with the stage of dementia and use strategies that best serve the individual.

Founded in 2001 by Tony Boncuse with the help of Peter Ross, Senior Helpers started after the two noticed that many senior care companies were not providing the elderly with sufficient care and services. Both previous caregivers for their own aging family members, they created the company with the aim to deliver top-notch senior care with a high level of professionalism. In 2002, Bonacuse opened the first office in Baltimore, and a couple years later, Senior Helpers expanded to the West Coast by adding an office in Orange County. Today, the company now serves thousands of seniors across the country through its many franchises in different states.

The Arcadia franchise of Senior Helpers serves the elderly in Arcadia, Pasadena, West Covina and the surrounding area. Currently in a new phase with Erskine as the new president of the local franchise, Senior Helpers Arcadia is now looking for caregivers in the San Gabriel Valley with previous experience to hire and train. Erskine also plans on working towards making Arcadia and the San Gabriel Valley a more dementia-friendly community. In the near future, the local franchise will offer free workshops for family members of the elderly with dementia and Alzheimer’s and local health workers. These workshops will aim to give community members the necessary tools and information on how to interact with and approach individuals suffering from the disorders. But, the upmost importance for the Senior Helpers Arcadia is the well-being of elderly in the community.

“[Seniors] have so much to give us because of their life skills and all that they’ve experienced in their life,” Erskine said. “They’re very valuable to the community and the value they give needs to be embraced and they need to be supported.”

To sign up for care from Senior Helpers Arcadia or to apply as a caregiver, call the office at (626) 241-1348.

For more information about the company, visit www.seniorhelpers.com/arcadia.

– Courtesy Photo

More from Arcadia Weekly