The BayPath Bulletin
News | Events | Resources

APRIL 2019
We empower individuals across the lifespan to live with dignity and independence in the community setting of their choice by providing quality resources and services.
HONORING CHOICES MASSACHUSETTS
Training on End of Life Planning

I n honor of April Healthcare Decisions Month, Ellen M. DiPaola , President & CEO of Honoring Choices Massachusetts , joined us at the BayPath offices on April 4 th to provide training on End of Life Planning. DiPaola's presentation was a mandatory training for employees who visit consumers and offered Social Worker s Continuing Education Units for those who require them.

The discussion centered on educating our staff on the definitions, requirements and processes for developing a personal health care plan, s electing a Health Care Proxy and for generating a Personal Directive.

It also addressed how BayPath employees are best positioned to share this knowledge with consumers and caregivers alike so that they understand the critical importance of establishing these determinations.
For more information, check out www.honoringchoicesmass.com. The website is user friendly and is written with the end user in mind, providing comprehensive explanations, tool kits, resource guides and access to industry experts.

Some especially useful links to help someone getting started with their healthcare planning include:
MetroWest Subaru - Share the Love ®
Making an Impact Together from Coast to Coast.

The Results are in! As a participant in the 2018-2019 Subaru Share the Love® Event , working with MetroWest Subaru and as a Member of Meals on Wheels America, BayPath Elder Services, Inc., is the proud recipient of $6,390.75 that will be dedicated to our Elder Nutrition / Meals on Wheels program.
Massachusetts earned a total of $52,723.71 through this year's Event, with nine participating members qualifying to receive funds. Meals on Wheels America informed our Nutrition Director, Denise Menzdorf , that due in part to BayPath's effort and dedication, this year's campaign has been their biggest success yet!

Over the past 11 years, Subaru of America's continued support through the Share the Love ® Event has helped Meals on Wheels deliver more than 2.2 million meals to homebound seniors, and specifically within the MetroWest community. 
Each year, for every new Subaru vehicle purchased or leased through the Subaru Share the Love® Event, Subaru of America generously donates $250 to the customer's choice of one of four national charities, including Meals on Wheels.
From all of us at BayPath, we send a big thank you to Subaru of America and its retailers, especially MetroWest Subaru , for your continued support of Meals on Wheels in its efforts to help millions of older adults stay independent and healthy by delivering the support seniors need to stay in their homes, where they want to be.
April Fools' Get Together
White Elephant Gift Swap

BayPath staff members got together for the lunch hour on April Fools' Day and had a lot of laughs while trading unwanted items from home. Gifts were thoughtfully wrapped in newspaper, brown paper, grocery bags, take out menus, essentially anything but gift wrap! Using "Yankee Swap" rules, the anonymous gifts were picked in order of the number you drew from a hat, with each person able to "steal" from the ones who picked before them.

The crowd favorite seemed to be a large, yellow, mosaic, snail planter, which was "stolen" many times before finding his new home!
A spotlight on the vital services and programs at BayPath
In each edition of the BayPath Bulletin, we will be showcasing a different BayPath program and how it helps serve our consumers and local communities.

With April being tax month and finances being on our minds, we are shining a light on our Money Management program and our dedicated staff and wonderful volunteers who support this service.
BayPath’s Money Management Program provides much-needed support for elders who have difficulty managing their day-to-day finances. The program operates primarily through the gracious and unwavering support of community volunteers and is managed internally by Fran Bakstran, Area Agency on Aging Assistant Director, Sue Burns , Money Management Program Supervisor and Kris Briggs , Money Management Program Coordinator.

As a way of recognizing National Volunteer Month during April, our Money Manage ment group hosted a gathering for the wonderful volunteers who support this program.  The program operates with 87 volunteers , who provide approximately 180 hours of service each month. Individual volunteers support one to two consumers, spending between two and 12 hours each month.

The get together opened up with an overview of the accomplishments of the team, and then the volunteers had an opportunity to collaborate with each other about situations they have encountered and how their peers have provided support in a similar case. All conversations were shared in a hypothetical fashion, protecting the confidentiality of the consumers, but the dialog provided the group with an opportunity to glean insight from their counterparts.

What stood out was the deep level in which the volunteers have come to care about the consumers they are working with. It is not just a balance sheet and a factual total. The Money Managers work with the consumers to provide a financial approach that is tailored to their personal situation. They work with the consumers to create a budget that covers necessary expenses such as living expenses, insurance, and medications, right down to helping the consumers to be able to pay for desired items like pet food, cable t.v. or even the ability to get a cup of coffee from a shop as a treat. The process enables the consumers to feel more in control of their finances.  

BayPath salutes these wonderful individuals who donate their time, compassion and analytical skills to provide our consumers with the support needed to stay on track with their finances and maintain their independence. 
​“I feel more secure with the help of my money manager and am better all the way around. She helps me to help myself.”
~ Money Management Consumer
LGBT Initiative
LGBT outreach with the younger generation

Our LGBT Initiative has recently collaborated with Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School. The purpose of this outreach was to initiate discussions regarding LGBT history, how the younger generation can interact with elder LGBT adults with sensitivity and compassion, and to chat about ways that they can help make their classrooms more LGBTQ+ welcoming.
Cultural Competency Training
At the invitation of nursing instructor Kathy Faddoul, our LGBT Initiative Coordinator, Julie Nowak collaborated on an in-house field trip so that 24 junior students were able to experience BayPath's LGBT Elders Cultural Competency Training.

According to Julie, the training was an eye-opener for these young people. Many in attendance were not aware of immense resilience that LGBT older adults exhibited during what is now viewed as a turbulent history. After the training, Julie was joined by nursing instructor Kathy Regan for a dynamic discussion centered around using this enlightened understanding to best support LGBT elders, friends, and loved ones. Additionally, Julie and Kathy answered questions about the most appropriate language for addressing LGBT elders and what the differences are in today’s socially accepted terminology vs. earlier decades. 

Recognizing the "Day of Silence"
Julie held a second outreach seminar at the school, meeting with 80 students who are part of Assabet’s GSA ( Gender Sexuality Alliance) and their director Erin Silveira. Together, on April 12th they recognized a day that has long been known as the "Day of Silence"; a day of the year when LGBTQ+ students and allies wear brightly colored t-shirts and become visible, yet silent representatives of all the LGBTQ+ kids. The motivation is to reduce peer-to-peer bullying by showing solidarity on behalf of those who still remain silent to avoid persecution.
39th Annual Senior Conference
The 39th annual Senior Conference at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School took place on Thursday, April 18th and was hosted by State Senator Jamie Eldridge .

The Senior Conference featured a variety of services, workshops, food, and entertainment that was free for seniors in attendance. BayPath participated in the conference with an information table that was staffed by Information & Referral Specialists Maureen Dennehy and Alexis Smither , Options Counselor, Courtney Cassels, and Caregiving Specialist, Karen Trilligan. The team provided older adults and caregivers with relevant information regarding our vital services.
State Senator Jamie Eldridge with our Caregiving Specialist, Karen Trilligan , during the event.
“Older people are the fastest growing population in Massachusetts, and an increasing number is facing income, health care, and housing insecurity. This conference provides our older adults with information they can use to help them maintain healthy, financially secure, and independent lifestyles.”
~State Senator Jamie Eldridge
Caregiving MetroWest - News and Updates
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BayPath Elder Services, Inc.| 508-573-7200 |  http://www.baypath.org