A Community That Shows Up for Its Older Adults

By David Finke, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, Jewish Family & Career Services

Many families recognize the moment when a parent who has always managed independently needs help getting to an appointment. Or when a neighbor who once hosted every holiday gathering begins spending more time alone. Someone who has spent a lifetime caring for others suddenly needs support caring for themselves.

These changes rarely happen all at once or fit neatly into one service. Often, one need leads to another: transportation, help navigating resources, assistance at home or a familiar voice checking in.

At Jewish Family & Career Services (JFCS), we see this every day. We also see something equally important: with the right support, older adults can continue making choices about their lives, participating in the community and maintaining the independence they value.

Our Klein Older Adult Services program has long been part of that support system in Louisville, providing a holistic approach to supporting older adults through services such as homecare, transportation, social engagement opportunities, caregiver support, mental health services and fraud prevention. These services work together to help older adults maintain independence, build meaningful connections, and remain active in community life. More people turn to us every year for these critical services. Over the past four years, the number of older adult clients served by JFCS has increased by approximately 80 percent. That reflects both our community’s trust and the growing complexity of the challenges older adults and families face.

Supporting the community that supported us

I think often about the Jewish Louisvillians who built the congregations, institutions and relationships we benefit from today. They volunteered, led and cared for neighbors, helping create the vibrant Jewish community we know today. Our older adults are an important part of that history and continue to enrich our community in meaningful ways.

Our tradition teaches kavod, the dignity and respect owed to every person, and chesed, the importance of acting with loving-kindness. These values are reflected in the ways we care for one another, whether helping an older neighbor get to a medical appointment, providing support to a caregiver, or creating opportunities for connection and friendship.

While JFCS has a particular responsibility to the Jewish community, our services reflect a belief that every person deserves dignity, regardless of background. Supporting older adults is one of the many ways we put that belief into practice across Louisville.

The strength of this work comes from the partnerships that make it possible. JFCS staff bring training, experience and continuity. Volunteers share their time and compassion. Families, congregations and community organizations help us identify needs and connect individuals with resources. Donors help strengthen and sustain the services that support older adults throughout our community.

The measure of a community is not only how it celebrates its milestones or cares for its children. It is also how it shows up for people as they age. Many of the older adults we serve have spent decades building and supporting our community. Now, we have an opportunity and a responsibility to show up for them.

As we look ahead, these partnerships will continue to play an important role in helping JFCS meet the evolving needs of older adults in Louisville.

JFCS will continue to serve those in need, and one way the community can be part of that work is through transportation. Beginning December 1, JFCS will be using volunteers to assist our clients with their transportation needs. Transportation is something many of us take for granted, but for someone who no longer drives, it can make a significant difference in their daily life. Getting to a medical appointment may mean relying on family, paying for an unaffordable ride or missing the appointment altogether. According to a 2011 study from the AARP Public Policy Institute, family and friends provide transportation for 1.4 billion visits each year for older adults age 70 and older who no longer drive themselves. Without reliable transportation, access to health care and community life can narrow quickly. For our volunteers, this is more than a chance to provide a ride to someone who needs it. It is an opportunity to both give and receive the benefits of a meaningful interaction, of creating a relationship, of building a stronger community.

Consider what Zmira Gold recently shared about what our transportation services mean to her. She relies on them to get to medical appointments and manage important parts of her daily life. But what stood out in her story was more than only practical help. She described the connections she has built with the drivers who take her where she needs to go. Those rides are also moments of conversation, familiarity, and trust. They remind us that meaningful service is often about more than the task being completed. It is about a person being seen, the relationship being developed, and the community being built.

With demand for older adult services continuing to grow, JFCS is adapting how we provide transportation to help meet those needs. The goal of this transition to volunteer drivers is to preserve an essential connection to appointments and community life while creating a more sustainable way to provide rides. We are actively seeking people willing to share their time as drivers.

JFCS will provide the training, the car insurance, even the car if the volunteer wants it. With a few hours of service, you can make a substantial difference to someone whose world has become harder to navigate and create an opportunity for both of you to develop a meaningful relationship.

As the current tax year comes to a close, we are in the season of the financial ask. While financial support remains an important part of our work, volunteering offers another meaningful way to give back while building relationships that strengthen our community.

If you are interested in more information about this or other volunteer opportunities at JFCS, please reach out to our Volunteers and Outreach Coordinator, Sophia Fayne at sfayne@jfcslouisville.org or call JFCS at 502-452-6341.

At its heart, this work is about helping older adults continue to live with dignity, maintain their independence, and stay connected to the people and places that matter to them. Through these connections, we are not only supporting older adults, but honoring the lives they have built, the relationships they cherish, and the important place they continue to hold in our community.