In 2021, 5.6% or 19 million American adults identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or genderqueer/nonbinary and that number has steadily increased year-to-year (Gallup). The data demonstrates increased need for LGBTQ+ inclusive housing as the population ages.
Category: Caring for Community
Posted inCaring for Community
With proper care, healthy aging with HIV is possible
There was a time when an AIDS diagnosis was a death sentence–no exceptions, no relief, no end in sight. In the 1980s and ’90s, a generation of men shrank into wretched illness that robbed them of their dignity and their future.
Posted inCaring for Community
AARP warns against holiday and charitable fraud
Three-quarters of American consumers say they have experienced or been targeted by fraud related to the holidays, according to a new AARP survey. Recipients noted that holiday scams took many forms for them, including online ads, requests for end-of-year charitable donations, and receiving fake notifications about shipping issues.
Posted inCaring for Community
COVID pandemic highlighted the importance of advanced care planning
Three years ago, Palm Springs resident Richard Bass went to visit a friend who was in the hospital after experiencing a fainting spell at home. The elderly gentleman lived alone and shared his concern about what would happen if he experienced a debilitating health issue and was unable to call for help.
Posted inCaring for Community
Supporting LGBTQ+ culture in senior living communities
For seven years now, I’ve had the privilege of working at Ingleside, a not-for-profit organization that provides management and leadership for three Life Plan Communities in the Washington, D.C. area. As the Accreditation and Quality Improvement Manager for Ingleside, one of my driving goals is to ensure that all of Ingleside’s life plan communities continue to be inclusive, welcoming environments that cultivate respect for all people, including those who are part of the LGBTQ+ community.
Posted inCaring for Community
Meet LuAnn Boylan, a long-time activist creating community for LGBTQ+ seniors
There’s an entire generation of LGBTQ+ baby boomers approaching retirement age, many of whom were at the front lines of the gay rights movement of the 60s and 70s.
Posted inCaring for Community
QPOC and transgender elders become focus of grad student’s thesis
When we think about how LGBTQ+ age, helping people feel connected and “seen” is just one of the many ways a community can care for LGBTQ+ elders. It can contribute to their mental health as they navigate the other challenges of aging. Frencia Stephenson is helping compile their histories.
Posted inCaring for Community
Philadelphia’s LGBTQ+ elders foster a caring community
The sages John Lennon and Paul McCartney asked and answered the great question: Does it worry you to be alone? No, because you get by with a little help from your friends. But that thought is incomplete: your friends might need a little help from you as well. That, at its core, is what caregiving and care receiving are all about. A caregiver recognizes a need and steps up to fill it. Over the course of our lives, it’s the rare person who has not been both the provider and recipient of care.
Posted inCaring for Community
Long-term care remains challenging
As more LGBTQ+ people age, decisions about their future remain complicated by a patchwork of local, state and federal laws and regulations. In particular, if an individual needs long-term care in a dedicated community, there can be uncertainty about the community’s understanding and openness to the particular needs of LGBTQ+ older adults.
Posted inCaring for Community
Growing number of care providers catering to LGBTQ+ seniors
With the Baby Boomer population aging into retirement, more LGBTQ+ seniors are looking for affirming care and resources in their golden years, nervous about having to return to the closet in the absence of such care.
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The value of affirming caregiving for LGBTQ+ elders
Found families are one of the most treasured touchstones of the LGBTQ+ community. It is within these circles of friends who evolve into family that we find unconditional support, meaningful companionship and genuine belonging. As we continue to age, there’s an added role that the members of our found families may take on: that of caregivers.
Posted inCaring for Community
SF was at the epicenter of lesbians helping gay men during AIDS crisis
This article is part of News is Out’s Caring for Community series, which is focused on the challenges and triumphs of giving and receiving care in the LGBTQ+ community. These stories have been created through a strategic partnership between AARP and News is Out. When Leslie Ewing walked into Daddy’s, a Castro gay bar, in the mid-1990s […]
Posted inCaring for Community
Philly’s queer running groups build community with LGBTQ+ seniors
To create a more inclusive, accepting running environment for LGBTQ+ folks in Philly, Cain Leathers started the running group Queer Run in April 2022. Leathers was motivated by some patterns of discrimination he noticed while working in the athletics industry, so he took a break to run across Pennsylvania to raise money for the Trevor Project, a crisis prevention organization geared toward LGBTQ+ youth.