EP#114: Senior Service Liaison with Shelley Littleton

Can bridging the gap between complete independence and assisted living transform the lives of seniors? Join us for an empowering conversation with Shelly Littleton, the inspiring founder of Senior Service Liaison. Motivated by her stepfather's battle with Parkinson's disease, Shelly created a business that offers vital services such as household chores, errands, and meal prepping, allowing seniors to maintain their independence at home. Discover the innovative ways her organization supports seniors and the significant financial benefits of avoiding costly assisted living facilities.

Later in the episode, Shelly discusses her organization, Live In Senior Service, and its impact on the local senior community. You'll hear about the vital role her services play in enhancing the quality of life for seniors and learn how you can connect with Shelly for more information or assistance. Shelly also shares her personal journey, including her daughter's activities and her love for golf, providing a complete picture of the woman behind this essential work. Don't miss this chance to understand the critical need for senior services and the difference it can make for families and communities.

Transcript

Senior Service Liaison

Speaker 1 0:00

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Lisa Swiftney.

Speaker 2 0:12

Hi everyone and welcome to episode number 114 of the Good Neighbor Podcast. Today I have with us Good Neighbor Shelly Littleton and she is with Senior Service Liaison. How are you doing today, shelly?

Speaker 3 0:27

I'm doing very well, thank you. How are you?

Speaker 2 0:29

I'm doing good, thank you. Let's first off by telling our listeners about your business. What do you do?

Speaker 3 0:38

Well, our mission is to help seniors remain independent in their homes as long as possible. So we bridge the gap between complete independence, but they're not quite at the point where they need assisted living. At that point we can do things like household chores, errands, transportation. We can do meal prepping. We can do meal prepping. Our goal is to keep the senior in their home as long as possible. That is great. Tell our listeners how did you get started? Why did you choose this profession?

Speaker 3 1:23

Yes, well, several years ago now, my stepfather was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and initially he was still able to do some things around the house and help.

Speaker 3 1:27

But as time went on and he got sicker, he was really unable to do any of the household chores or help my mom in any way. So it became, you know, trying to organize who's going to do what over at their house and then trying to get services to come in, someone to cut the grass, but that person doesn't pull the weeds in the flower beds. I mean, it dawned on me that it's the simple things around your house that make you not able to stay there, things like getting into the yard and doing yard work, like pulling weeds, or standing at the sink long enough to meal prep All of the things that my mom couldn't keep up with. So they ended up placing my stepfather in an assisted living facility and I just felt like you know, they work their whole lives for their home and then they have to leave it because you know things like pulling you know weeds and flower beds can't be done. So I figured there has to be something in between your independence and a nursing home or an assisted living. So I started this.

Speaker 2 2:34

That is great. So help me understand. So what you're saying is you will go out and help them do meal prep or do that yard work that needs to be done to help them a little bit more with their independence.

Speaker 3 2:50

Yes, so typically I will hire someone specifically for whatever task list the person provides me, so that may be indoor stuff, outdoor stuff, it doesn't really matter. I hire the person physically capable of doing whatever is on their list to be done.

Speaker 2 3:08

Oh, that is great. So tell us some any myths or misconceptions that you hear about in your industry.

Speaker 3 3:18

Well, you know, a lot of times you'll hear from the family that they you know the parent, it's usually the parent can't do A, b and C around the house, so they need to sell their home and go into assisted living. But if you actually speak to the senior, they have absolutely no interest in selling their home and going to an assisted living. So I think a lot of times we put them in assisted living sooner than they need to because we think there's no one out there that can coordinate all of these tasks. It would be five different people coming in to do five different things around the house, which I've tried to consolidate to one person. So I think that myth you know a lot of times. I think these people really could have stayed in their home longer, but the family's just unaware that there's a service out there that can do all of this stuff, not just one thing. And then you have to hire someone else to do the next thing.

Speaker 2 4:16

That is great, and we know with all the baby boomers what do they say. There's a million baby boomers turning 65 every day, or something like that.

Speaker 3 4:26

Yes, yes, really. And I mean, you know, as we get older, there's always something that happens that makes it difficult to do a chore. You know, you hurt your back, you have arthritis, I mean could be a million things. You walk with a walker, I mean, but all of those things are what take us out of our homes. Not usually people don't need the assisted living, they just need help around the house.

Speaker 2 4:50

It makes total sense. So tell our listeners when you're not working on your business, what do you like to do for fun?

Speaker 3 4:57

Yes, I have a daughter. She's 17, junior in high school, so I enjoy doing things with her. She plays a couple of sports that I enjoy watching, and I'm very much looking forward to her senior year. I play a little golf here and there. The weather's finally I'm able to do that now. So that's about it, really. Just I enjoy being around my house and my yard and hanging out with my daughter.

Speaker 2 5:24

That is great. So what is one thing that you would like our listeners to know about your business?

Speaker 3 5:34

We bridge a gap. So once you start noticing a parent, loved one or yourself for that matter you can't do one chore, and then you can't do two chores. And instead of jumping right to, okay, let's find a facility with 24-hour care, consider that there's probably a good two to five years in there that they could still be in the home. Think about that Instead of selling the house right away.

Speaker 2 6:02

Stay there as long as possible and it also helps with their budgets as well.

Speaker 3 6:09

Oh, absolutely absolutely I don't know if you've priced assisted living, but it really is unbelievably high and most of the money that they get from the sale of their house, that's what they use it for right and makes total sense that and it is.

Speaker 2 6:25

It's very expensive, so people are paying anywhere from $2,500 a month to $4,000 a month, and that's just for independent living. That's, yes, putting people coming in taking and every item costs more.

Speaker 3 6:42

So if you need your laundry done, there it's more. If you are on a food plan, there it's more. I mean, every item increases the cost.

Speaker 2 6:51

That is true. So what else would you like our listeners know more about your business? What else gap do you feel for them?

Speaker 3 7:01

You know it's all about communication. So the goal is is that I hire someone that sort of fits the personality and the interests of the person and it's all about the match. You'll find that they become friends and I become really extraneous. I'm just the background coordinator. It's all about the person and it's the same person every week that's there, so they really develop a rapport with the client and they end up becoming friends more than anything.

Learning About Local Senior Services

Speaker 2 7:30

That is great, so our listeners are now intrigued. So how can they learn more about you or contact you?

Speaker 3 7:40

Well, they could go to my website to learn a little bit more about us. It is wwwliveinseniorservicecom. Or they can phone me. My cell phone is 734-788-8462.

Speaker 2 8:02

That is great. Well, Shelly, you have a very strong need in the community and I'm so happy to be able to take a few minutes, talk with you and have you be a guest on our Good Neighbor podcast today.

Speaker 3 8:16

Thank you, I really appreciate the opportunity.

Speaker 1 8:20

Thanks for listening to the Good Neighbor podcast, rochester. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to GNprochestercom. That's gnprochestercom, or call 248-988-9640.