Do you have an aging grandparent, parent, neighbor or friend? Does your work or personal life involve assisting an Older American who is experiencing difficulties related to aging and you assist them in navigating difficult choices related to care, shopping, transportation or just assisting with finding options for assistance? You may call this by another name like: Partner in Care, Long Distance Caregiver (if your location separates you geographically from your loved one) or maybe you feel you are just behaving like a good neighbor or lifelong friend. If you are helping someone you care about transition into their next phase of living well as they age – you are a Caregiver. This is one of the hardest roles you will ever face and often one of the most rewarding. We celebrate you and hope you take pride in this important role.

At the Office for Aging Services (OFAS) we rely on you and hope you will also rely on us. There are various ways we would love to assist you in this difficult journey you are navigating. As we all age, medical conditions, available programs and future planning needs can change daily and with all of the vital day to day tasks you are accomplishing we want to help. We will monitor up to date resources and assistance to take just one thing of off your plate. Please call us and allow us to be one of your partners in care.

Chautauqua County OFAS has a wonderful partnership with the Alzheimer’s Association of Western New York that allows us to offer collaborative assistance when you are in need of services related to any memory concerns, cognitive changes and any type of dementia. Together we provide support groups, education, respite care, safety services and care consultation.

We also work with Trualta, an online platform which assists caregivers in learning about various aspects of caregiving. This platform is extremely user-friendly and offers small bits of guidance through short articles and videos. We know that Caregivers are managing their own lives, families and careers while they are assisting loved ones. Trualta allows you gain information about one aspect of caregiving at a time, in just a few moments.

These are only a few of our resources. Please reach out to us though NY Connects, our information and assistance program (716) 753-4582 or e-mail us at CCNYC@chqgov.com and let us know about the amazing person you are assisting as they age. We want to get to know both of you and continue to work as a team to achieve their optimal level of comfort and joy, as we all age together.