S10 E217 - Next Steps 4 Seniors

Navigating senior care be easier when you have the right support system by your side. In this heartfelt episode, host Wendy Jones welcomes longtime friend Kristi Kirschmann and Spiritual Support team leader Roz Burns to discuss the journey families face when caring for aging loved ones and the importance of supporting seniors both physically and spiritually.

The conversation explores the mission of the Next Steps for Seniors Foundation and its Spiritual Support Team, which provides companionship, prayer, encouragement, and comfort to seniors after they move into care communities. Through powerful stories of faith, connection, and compassion, Wendy, Kristi, and Roz highlight the profound impact that emotional and spiritual support can have on seniors during life's later chapters.

Whether you're caring for an aging parent, exploring senior living options, or looking for meaningful ways to serve your community, this episode offers hope, practical guidance, and inspiration.

Key Highlights in this Episode:

Navigating Dementia Care:
Kristi shares the challenges her family faced as her mother's Lewy body dementia progressed and how professional placement guidance helped them make informed decisions.

The Value of Senior Placement Services:
Learn how placement specialists help families identify the right senior living communities based on care needs, finances, location, and personal preferences—at no cost to the family.

Support Beyond the Move:
The conversation emphasizes that care doesn't end once a senior moves into a community. Ongoing guidance and advocacy help families navigate changing care needs over time.

The Spiritual Support Team:
Roz explains how trained volunteers visit seniors, offer companionship, prayer, and meaningful conversations, helping reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation.

The Blanket Ministry:
Hear touching stories about the Foundation's gift blankets, which provide comfort, connection, and a tangible reminder that seniors are cared for and valued.

Finding Peace and Purpose:
The team discusses the importance of helping seniors explore spiritual questions, strengthen their faith, and find assurance and comfort during later stages of life.

Volunteer Opportunities:
Learn how churches and community members can partner with the Next Steps for Seniors Foundation to serve seniors and make a lasting impact.

Resources & How to Contact Next Steps for Seniors:

Website: nextsteps4seniors.com

Podcast Schedule: Tune in to Next Steps for Seniors with new episodes dropping twice a week at 7:00 AM!

Every Tuesday: Educational and insightful content to help you navigate the practical steps of aging.

Every Friday: Spiritual and emotional support to encourage your heart and mind.

Be sure to subscribe on Apple, Spotify, IHeart Podcasts so you never miss an episode, and if you enjoyed today's show, please leave us a rating and review!

Learn more : https://omny.fm/shows/next-steps-4-seniors-with-wendy-jones

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This is Next Steps for Seniors with your host, Wendy Jones. Each week, Wendy brings resources and information to help guide you through those next steps with elderly parents and loved ones. If you have questions or topic suggestions, you can call us at 248-651-5010.

SPEAKER_03 0:19

Hello and welcome to Next Steps for Seniors Conversations on Aging. Wendy Jones here today with Christy Kirschman. Good morning, Christy. How are you? Hey, Wendy. Great to be here. Thanks for having me. I am so excited to have you on the program. I gotta tell everybody. So, gosh, how long has it been, Christy? Our kids have been friends in school since sixth grade or is it before that? Probably sixth grade. We're dating ourselves attached. Because they're out of college. So figure those numbers out. So, anyway, that's when I met Christy. And I gotta tell you, when something is ordained from the beginning of time, things just happen the way they're supposed to. So I had the business at that time and was working real hard. And when I met Christy, I thought, wow, she's an amazing woman. Just incredible blessing, Christy. Your gifts. When I'm like the visionary person, like I see big picture and I'm like, ooh, let's do that. But guess what? I have absolutely no idea how to get there. And so I need a Christy in my life. Everybody needs a Christy because she's got the organization. She's got the she sees the steps. She sees the plan. She's the implementer. And I just love that about you, Christy. Very, very blessed.

SPEAKER_02 1:37

It's such a blessing to be serving with you and with this team. And yeah, I remember when the kids were growing up, right? And I'll never forget when you started a club for them. Remember? It was like an after-school club, and your focus was on helping these kids be grounded in the word. And that is just the truth of who you are, right? You're so passionate about Jesus, about wanting everybody to not only know him, but also for people to grow in their knowledge of him, right? And you you did that when those kids were in school. I almost forgot about that. We had so much fun. It was after school, it was a couple hours. And I mean, it was it was a fantastic experience. And I I think it was it was really important to my to my kids and their spiritual journey. So um, so yeah, so it's just a blessing to be here and just to see how God just I think brought us together over the years, right? We've always stayed connected, but there was that season, right? And I think it's, you know, while we were friends and I knew what you did in your business, like I never really knew, right? And then when my mom was diagnosed with Louie body dementia and my dad could not take care of her anymore, I was like, oh, Wendy, I need to call Wendy. And that's kind of how this part two of this journey, I think, started.

SPEAKER_03 3:05

It did because, you know, we love helping families in crisis. And unfortunately, 70% of families at some point are usually in a situation that they need some kind of care for their loved ones, and they really nobody knows what to do, right? It's a very, very overwhelming. And I'm just grateful that you remembered, and my team is just incredible. So Christy called the office, and one of our placement specialists was able just to wrap herself around you and just walk through that process. And it's such an important component knowing that you've got someone standing with you. Isn't don't you feel like that having an advocate in your corner that just knows information just makes it so much easier?

SPEAKER_02 3:52

Yeah, and I think, you know, on top of kind of the emotional, I don't want to call it distress, but it kind of is in the moment, right? So my dad cared for my mom for six years. And her dad, by the way, is a saint.

SPEAKER_03 4:08

I love my dad. He's just he is next level. But yes.

SPEAKER_02 4:13

And God's given him this heart to be a caregiver, right? That is who he is. That's how God's wired him. And so walking with somebody through Louis Body Dementia, it's been, you know, however many years. Well, it got to a point where my mom became violent. And it was really in that moment that we knew, like, dad, you can't do that anymore. And that's a whole nother God story of how that whole situation was orchestrated. But she had to go to the hospital in that moment. And so the decision point kind of became a forced decision point. And we said she can't go home. Where is she gonna go now? And that's when I reached out to Wendy and her team, and then it's this whole other landscape of decisions. You have no idea how many options are there, what your finances will allow, won't allow, what your insurance will allow, won't allow, all of it. And so you don't know what you don't know. And so when Wendy stepped in and then we were connected with a placement specialist, this placement specialist was able to walk alongside of us and and very calmly, right, and show us the options. And I mean physically show us the options. So this placement specialist would meet us at various communities, and then my dad and I would meet them there. And then we as a family could see knowing my mom and knowing my dad, which is the best fit for her on all those levels, right? And so I think for us, it was just such a blessing to have somebody that's kind of helping you navigate. And I think advocate is is really a great word because that's what they do, you know. So once you decide, hey, this is I think this is gonna be a good place for mom, then they go to work on your behalf. We didn't have to do anything at that point. We just said, yes, this is the place, the details were worked out, the room was, you know, located, and then we moved her in. And it was really it made it made a very difficult, stressful situation a lot easier.

SPEAKER_03 6:47

Just to add, because I think one of the best parts to the family is you're not paying for it. Right. It's complimentary, it's free of charge to the family. So it is such a blessing to be able to say, Hey, I I need help. You know, sometimes we call an attorney and it's a couple hundred dollars an hour, or we call, but we do it because of the compassion that we have, but the business model is set up like real estate. So until she moves in, then that community would pay a referral fee, which is so much easier than the family dishing out cash at a moment of stress. Yeah, it's just overwhelming. And I really feel prompted to say this that next steps for seniors pride themselves on the personal touch. Yeah. The personal, we are hands and feet, we sit with you, we hold your hand, we walk with you, like you mentioned. Don't go on Google and try to figure something out on your own because having someone with you that you are looking eye to eye, that you are giving a hug to, it's a whole different level, especially in these most emotional times with your family members.

SPEAKER_02 7:54

Yeah. And I think that's a great point because I I'm a Google person, right? Like I Google everything, research every research every last option. But in that season, I don't know that I could have because there's so much going on, it's happening so quickly. You know, you're kind of in that crisis mode, right? And so I think the thing that I love too, we could trust, right? So it was wasn't just personal, it wasn't just easy. It was like, okay, I trust this person because they are the experts, right? They are the experts. They've got years of experience doing this, they've placed thousands of people over the years, right? And so I believe that they have our best interest at heart.

SPEAKER_03 8:38

Right. And I gotta tell you, every family is different too. What you're looking for, what you need, what you want, where you're located, how much you have, like these are all critical parts of it. And when we put it together, it's really unique because yeah, there's about 500 different communities just in Michigan. So imagine nationwide what you're dealing with. But at the end of the day, based upon what you and your family's needs are and your loved ones, that's how we help. It's like a broker, we know exactly which one will fit that need for you. You don't have to figure that out. We do that for you. Yeah. And of course, it's your decision.

SPEAKER_02 9:15

We're just gonna show you the options, which is and and I think the other cool thing was, or important thing I should say, is you know, it wasn't just one facility for mom, one community. Because as her disease progressed, her needs changed.

SPEAKER_03 9:31

Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 9:32

And so then, you know, it was okay, let's find the next community that fits. Let's find the next community that fits. And we always came back to next steps for seniors. We always came back to the placement specialist, and they presented the options, we made the decision again, and the move happened. So, you know, next steps isn't just for you in the initial placement steps with an S, right? It's next steps for seniors for a reason, right? Because they help you navigate the steps.

SPEAKER_03 10:00

Amen. Amen. And when we move into our next segment today, we're gonna talk about something really special that we do after that family member moves into a community. And to me, you know, anyone can do the first part of it, but the second part of it is so unique and so special. So stay tuned. We want to share the story of what happens next once somebody moves into a community. So thank you for tuning in to Next Steps for Seniors Conversations on Aging. We'll be with you in just a moment. Welcome to Next Steps for Seniors Conversations on Aging. So incredibly blessed to be here with you today. And I've got some amazing guests in the studio with me. Christy Kirschman, longtime friend, total mentor friend, somebody who God brought into my life at the right time, at the right place. Love when he does that. And Roz Burns, equally ditto, walked into my office. We started talking, and I think I like hired her on the spot for my foundation team because I was like, Can you start tomorrow? Didn't I say that, Roz? I think I said You did indeed. So again, so blessed. And I wanted to share with you that, you know, God put on my heart many years ago that once these seniors move into a community and, you know, that the business helps them with, what is the next step? Right? The next step physically, yes, we need to move into an assisted living. But what happens after they're in the assisted living? Many of them are alone, isolated, and they're thinking about their lives and things that have happened. They might have been hurt, they might have unforgiveness. And honestly, the Holy Spirit really spoke to my heart. We have been moving people physically into the next steps, but now it's time to move them spiritually. There is no greater place to be than to have the assurance that you're gonna spend eternity in heaven, and that is why these two beautiful ladies are here with me today. We want to walk you through the process. So once someone moves in, Roz, talk to our listeners about what we do at the foundation side. At the foundation, we have an amazing opportunity to meet Yeah, meet the people right where they are and and have the volunteers come in and just be educated. Tell them about the program we just did with all the churches.

SPEAKER_01 12:31

What we're doing is with all the churches, we have a wonderful group of volunteers that have come together, and what we did is some training so that we can go visit seniors and we can speak to them as to what is their next step, where are they on their journey? Visit them and understand maybe what some of their concerns might be because as Wendy indicated, they're in this new place. They are determining whether they like it or not, and we can help them understand that this is a place that can fulfill their needs, and we can talk to them about what God can do to assist them. So, what our plan is is we have a grand opportunity to provide a gift to the senior and provide a blanket that we will share with them to get them talking, to say, hi, we're here to see how you are, and this is a blanket for you, a gift from the Next Steps for Seniors team. Everybody wants a gift, right? You walk in the door with a gift, and it's like this is so fun. Yeah, and it's amazing. We have done several of these visits, and people are just so excited to see us, to have someone to talk to, to share some of their concerns with, to share where they are in their life journey. And what we are planning to do is to exactly do that. Find out where people are on their spiritual journey. Do they have a relationship with Christ? What is that relationship? Do they want to have a better relationship so that they know that they will go to heaven when they die?

SPEAKER_03 14:14

Do you remember, Christy, when we went to visit with your mom? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:19

So my mom, you know, she had Louis body dementia for probably six or seven years, and we got to a point where my dad couldn't care for her anymore. And so I had reached out to Wendy, and uh she helped place mom into a community, but it didn't stop there. When she got to the community, there was a team that visited my mom and they brought her this blanket. And Louie Body took my mom's memory, took her words. She couldn't complete a sentence. But what it didn't take from her was her love for Jesus. And that came through when the spiritual team stopped by, they visited, and then they ended up singing. I think it was Amazing Grace. She was.

SPEAKER_01 15:06

Absolutely amazing grace.

SPEAKER_02 15:08

And my mom, who couldn't put words together, sat there and sang Amazing Grace. And that blanket that she received that day went with her to the two other communities that followed before she went home to be with Jesus. I love the blanket because I think it not only represents a gift that we've been given, the free gift of grace that Jesus offers us in salvation, but it also I think represents beautifully the comfort that he brings to these, to these men and these women who many times are on their own. They're by themselves. And Roz and I had the blessing, right, of going to visit a few seniors a couple weeks ago. And I remember one woman that we met with. Unfortunately, she was a double amputee. And we had the sweetest time with her, and she had that blanket, and you could tell she was just feeling the blanket, right?

SPEAKER_01 16:18

It was her comfort.

SPEAKER_02 16:19

It was like her comfort.

SPEAKER_01 16:21

It was almost like God having his arms wrapped around her.

SPEAKER_02 16:24

It was perfect. Wasn't it beautiful? It was beautiful, Roz.

SPEAKER_01 16:27

It was absolutely beautiful.

SPEAKER_02 16:29

Yeah. And so, you know, we asked her how she was doing, because that's part of what the spiritual support team. She's like, I'm getting used to my new self. Oh, that was perfect. Wasn't it? Yeah. It was just, it was a really special moment. We sat and talked to her for maybe what, 20 minutes or so? And just had a wonderful conversation, shared about her family. And then we heard, I don't know, about a week ago, she ended up back in the hospital. And the placement specialist followed up with her again and visited her. And what did she have with her?

SPEAKER_01 17:01

The placement specialist sent us a picture of her beautiful, fuzzy, warm, comforting blanket that she had taken with her to the hospital. It's the best. And we understood that she took that blanket pretty much everywhere.

SPEAKER_02 17:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:13

And that's the blessing that we have the opportunity. We have an amazing group of volunteers for our spiritual support team. They have been trained, and we are going out to deliver the blankets to these wonderful seniors because they are important to us. Seniors truly matter.

SPEAKER_02 17:30

Yeah, they do. They do. I think one of my favorite tidbits of information is last year, and there were a team of six, right? They went out and they visited seniors. And 125 people committed their lives to Jesus. I mean, that's just incredible, isn't it? 125 seniors are sure about their next step. And so that's what this ministry is all about. That's what this business is all about, right? It's all about making sure these seniors, it's next steps for seniors. And through the spiritual support team, they can be assured that they know where they're going.

SPEAKER_01 18:10

Absolutely. They have that comfort level. And it gives them the peace that they so richly deserve. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 18:16

Yep, they do.

SPEAKER_03 18:17

And we just give God the glory for all of this because the way He has from the beginning of time orchestrated every person, every moment, every opportunity. You can't even make this stuff up. No. It can only be God.

SPEAKER_01 18:33

And the beautiful stories that are shared, we're just overwhelmed.

SPEAKER_03 18:36

It's a blessing to us. So we've activated locally here in Michigan eight different churches and 20 different volunteers. So if you know somebody that you're concerned about and you're listening to this program right now, I just want to encourage you, this is an opportunity to reach out to us. We absolutely are here for you and for our families and for our seniors. So Next Stepsfor Seniors Foundation.org is the website for our foundation team. And you can fill out a request form and or next stepsfor seniors.com is the business side. If you have a senior that needs help finding placement, reach out to us there as well. But that's the whole point is yes, the next steps physically are important, but there is nothing that compares to the assurance of spending eternity, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt where you will spend eternity. And that is the next step spiritually. Any other closing statements from either of you? We got a minute left in our program. But you know, anyone who might just be tuning in.

SPEAKER_02 19:42

Yeah. I would say the business side places 400 seniors a year, right? And the spiritual support team wants to reach every single one of those seniors. But to do that, you know, we need people who love Jesus, who love people, who want to see these people, you know, and know passion them. Yeah, know Jesus and understand their eternity. And so, you know, if you go to a church that has a heart for seniors, you know, I would encourage you to, you know, connect, connect with the foundation. And yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:18

Yes, there's indeed an opportunity on the website that uh has an area for volunteers. Please fill out that information and let us know that you'd like to be part of this amazing spiritual support team.

SPEAKER_03 20:30

Yes, and I want to give you the phone number too for the foundation. It is 248-923-2110. And again, thank you. Thank you for tuning in. Thank you for listening to the heart. You can hear the compassion in these two beautiful souls that God has brought into this ministry. And if you want to be part of it, reach out because we need you. God bless you, and be sure that you know where you're gonna spend eternity. Amen. You're listening to Next Steps for Seniors Conversations on Aging. Our podcast drops twice a week, Tuesdays and Fridays at 7 a.m. Find us on your favorite podcast platform and be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. To learn more about Next Steps for Seniors, visit us at Next Steps Number Four Seniors.com.