In 1986, a small grant was awarded to the Christian Service Center for Central Florida, Inc. The source of the grant was the State of Florida's newly created Alzheimer's Disease Initiative. The purpose was to provide respite care to families caring for someone with AD or other types of dementia. At the time this was an innovative idea. In fact, the Orlando project was one of only four in the State and it was funded as a model.
Would caregivers choose to use respite if it was made available? If they did access services would it provide any true benefit?
The answer to both questions turned out to be an overwhelming yes! Over the years the Alzheimer's Respite Care Program (ARCP) of the Christian Service Center continued to grow. In the first years, ARCP offered in-home respite provided by volunteers. As demand increased, and additional funding was realized, the program grew.
The first respite center
Caregivers expressed a desire for a respite center, somewhere they could take their family during the day. Funding was secured from the Brookdale Foundation to set up a center in a local church that would be open one day per week.
Overnight care was also an expressed need. ARCP worked with a local hospital to offer a weekend each month where the patient could be cared for while the caregiver got a much needed break.
Multi centers and in-home respite
Over the years, the community became more aware of ARCP services and demand continued to grow. Services expanded to include five licensed adult day care centers open five days per week, one neighborhood center open on Fridays, case management and 53 active volunteers.
Local provider for The National Family Caregiver Support Program
Caregivers need support regardless of the illness affecting their loved one. In 2000, the Alzheimer's Respite Care Program became the local provider for The National Family Caregiver Support Program. This federal program provided the resources for ARCP to become Share the Care™, widening the scope of services to include any family who is providing care for an older adult at home.
Additional services were added as well, including: in-home mental health counseling for caregivers, non- durable medical supplies (such as adult under- garments and nutritional supplements), care- giver training and outreach and the Annual Caregiver Forum.
In 2001, Share the Care™ partnered with Orlando Regional Healthcare to begin providing the social work component of the State Designated Memory Disorder Clinic.
Share the Care™ Inc.
In December 2002, Share the Care became an independent, separately incorporated non profit entity.
Recent milestones also include Share the Care being recognized by the Southern Gerontological Society in 2002 with their Best Practices Award for innovative programming.
In 2003, Share the Care™ received the Chairman's Award from the Area Agency on Aging for outstanding implementation of the National Family Caregiver Support Program.
Over 1,000 families served in 2005
The future will bring even more opportunities to expand and grow based on the expressed needs of family caregivers. From humble beginnings, the Alzheimer's Respite Care Program has grown to serve over 1,000 families per year.
With one-in-four households actively involved in caregiving, Share the Care™ can only grow.
Our Mission:
Share the Care™ is a non-profit agency providing services and support to family
caregivers, enabling them to maintain their family member at home and delay
or eliminate the need for institutional care.
If you are a family caregiver who lives in Orange or Seminole County, Florida, we invite you to email or call us to learn how we can help you.
©2010 Share the Care™ Inc.
