AgeSmart

09/08/2026

Ask ten caregivers about respite care and nine will tell you it's a good idea — for someone else.

Building in a real break, an hour, an afternoon, a weekend, isn't optional if you want to keep doing this well. It doesn't need to be elaborate. It needs to actually happen on a schedule, not just when you're already running on empty.

Never used respite care? AgeSmart can walk you through what's out there.

Be honest: when's the last time you took a real break? This week, this month, or "what's a break"?

09/07/2026

Social Security. Medicare. The 40-hour week that makes it possible for a family caregiver to also hold down a job. None of it showed up by accident — the labor movement fought for it, and older adults are still living on the foundation it built.

That fight isn't finished. Direct care workers, the aides and CNAs who show up for older adults every day, are still among the lowest-paid workers in the country, and low pay drives the turnover that makes it hard for families to find reliable, consistent care. Better wages and working conditions for direct care workers isn't a side issue from aging services. It's the whole ballgame.

Today, we're thinking about the workers whose organizing built the safety net older adults rely on, and the direct care workforce still fighting for the same kind of footing.

Know a direct care worker, CNA, or home health aide? Tag them. They don't hear thank you nearly enough.

09/06/2026

Cassandra didn't know respite care existed until a friend mentioned a place in Collinsville that would look after her mom for the day. That place turned out to be St. John's Community Care.

For nearly four decades, St. John's has built a network of programs that help older adults stay connected and supported, while giving family caregivers somewhere to turn when the weight of caregiving becomes too much to carry alone. They operate from three locations — Collinsville, Edwardsville, and Highland — making their services accessible across a wide stretch of the Metro East.

At the center of their caregiver support is the Adult Day Program, offering respite care five days a week for older adults living with early memory loss and other disabilities. In 2024 alone, the program served more than 100 participants across their Collinsville and Edwardsville locations.

Their caregiver education runs even deeper: roughly 25 support groups and courses every month, plus one-on-one caregiver support plans for people who need a more individualized, confidential space. For families navigating early memory loss, their Memory Cafe offers something a support group alone can't — a relaxed space where people living with memory loss and their care partners connect with others in the same boat.

And on the practical side, their Medical Equipment Loan Program loaned out 672 pieces of equipment in 2024, free of charge — wheelchairs, walkers, and other essentials exactly when families needed them.

Where AgeSmart connects families to information and resources, St. John's shows up with hands-on support: a place for a loved one to spend the day, a group where a caregiver can be honest about how hard this is, and equipment that shows up right when it's needed.

Learn more at stjohnscc.org or call 618-344-5008.

Tag someone who could use a program like this today.

09/05/2026

Bill had snack size bags of chips and Diet Coke for lunch every day for months. Not because he didn't like other food — cooking for one after fifty years of cooking for two just stopped feeling worth it.

This is Malnutrition Awareness Week, and older adults are at high risk for reasons that have nothing to do with appetite: mobility, medication side effects, dental trouble, and the exhaustion of eating alone.

Congregate meal programs fix more than nutrition. They fix Tuesday lunch feeling like something worth showing up for.

Know someone eating alone more than they'd like? It's time to take a trip to your local senior center for a great meal together.

09/05/2026

Somewhere in a room full of familiar faces every Thursday at 11 AM, a group of people is getting harder to knock over.

Our Tai Chi class in partnership with Senior Services Plus Inc. SSP is slow, low-impact, and shockingly good for balance, strength, and clearing your head. You don't need to be flexible. You just need to show up.

Tag the friend you're dragging along Thursday. Illinois Falls Prevention Coalition

09/04/2026

A man in our community spent three nights trying to leave his own house looking for a job he retired from thirty years ago.

Wandering is one of the most common, and most frightening, parts of caring for someone with dementia. Door alarms, ID bracelets, camouflaged exits, and a heads-up to trusted neighbors can all help.

It's not defiance. It's someone looking for something that used to feel safe.

Which of these have you tried?
Reply A, B, or C:
A) Door alarm
B) ID bracelet
C) Neighbor heads-up

09/04/2026

Mark it, set a reminder, tell a friend: Saturday, September 26th, Moody Park in Fairview Heights, the 2026 Walk to End Alzheimer's Belleville, IL kicks off.

Registration opens at 8:30, ceremony at 10, walk at 10:30. Whether you've lost someone to this disease or just want to stand with people who have, you belong there.

Team up or walk solo — just show up. Register at act.alz.org.

Who's walking with us this year? Comment your team name (or Solo and Proud!)

09/04/2026

Did YOU know?

09/03/2026

What's the last thing you did for the first time?

September is National Senior Center Month, and this year's theme is "Happier Birthdays Happen Here." Turns out the exercise classes, hot lunches, and card games aren't just nice to have — regular connection and activity measurably help people live longer, healthier lives.

If it's been a while since you or someone you love stepped inside one, consider this your nudge.

Tag someone who needs a reason to check one out.

09/02/2026

Check out this great virtual event by our partners up north!

Did you know that HIV is an aging issue? Thanks to medical advances, more people are aging with HIV and living long, healthy lives.

Join Thrive with Pride by AgeOptions, Silver Wellness Advocacy Group, and AIDS Foundation Chicago for a National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day panel featuring storytellers who are living this experience firsthand.

Friday, September 18
10 to 11:30 a.m.
Via Zoom, pre-registration required

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/mSdLjtoxTtSzCkL_14IxuA

Questions can be directed to Nina Orlowski at [email protected].