veterans

As we kick-off National Volunteer Week, what words come to mind when you think about volunteers? Caring? Dedicated? Selfless?  Perhaps all of the above? I’ll add two more . . . absolutely essential.

 

Since AARP started partnering with the Department of Veterans Affairs beginning last year to produce a series of 10 videos (five in English, five in Spanish) through the Home Alone Alliance, which I first wrote about here, we’ve only gotten more excited about the project.

In 2016, AARP launched the Home Alone Alliance sm in collaboration with the United Hospital Fund, the Family Caregiver Alliance and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at the University of California at Davis. The Home Alone Alliance sm is a collaborative that brings together partners from the public, private and nonprofit sectors to create solutions that support family caregivers. AARP partnered with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), a Home Alone Alliance sm member, to release a video series instructing family caregivers how to perform mobility-related tasks.

AARP is proud to partner with Next Day Better to share stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) disrupting aging. We're excited to show that AAPIs have a voice — and that our combined voices are loud, proud and clear!

November is National Family Caregiver month — when we recognize and honor the 40 million family caregivers across this country .

Alexandra Minor needed a new challenge. The West Point graduate and Army veteran with two deployments to Iraq had served honorably for five years, completed her master’s degree in business administration from Yale University and worked for a major consulting firm to the federal government.

My Pop, who served in the Navy during World War II, was fond of sharing stories of his military years, and they always started out with the phrase, “When I was in the service of my country, fighting for mankind....” It reminded his children and grandchildren of the magnitude of the war and the sacrifice millions made.

John Cherry had no job, no money, no home. What he did have were debilitating health problems and drug and alcohol addictions. “I hit rock bottom,” says the 60-year-old Washington, D.C., resident.

As the Fourth of July approaches, Americans from coast to coast are preparing for barbecues, parades and fireworks as we celebrate our country’s birthday — and our independence. At this time of year, I like to take a moment to recognize our patriots — the veterans who have fought to keep our country safe and free. I also think about another group of heroes, the family caregivers — spouses, parents, siblings, adult children and others — who care for our veterans so they can live independently at home, where they want to be.