Name: Carolyn McClanahan

Role with JCCI:  Happy to be a resource to JCCI on all things about health care reform & Guest for March 2013 Mystery Guest Lunch

JCCI:  What do you do from 9-5?

CM:  My primary job is as a financial life planner helping people who need help aligning their finances and their life so they can be on a happy path. My second job is educating physicians and financial planners around the country on the content of the Affordable Care Act.

JCCI:  What do you do outside of work?

CM:  My life outside of “real” work consists of writing for Forbes on health care reform and end of life planning, volunteering as a physician at Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless and We Care, exercising to mitigate how much time I spend sitting on my rear-end, and spending precious time with my wonderful husband and cats. My brain loves to think about the possibilities for making the world a better place.

JCCI:  How & when did you get involved with JCCI, JAX2025 or JCCI Forward?

CM:  I have kept up with the great work of JCCI for years. I was invited to share the vision of health care reform so JCCI can help Jacksonville realize it’s incredible potential in the realm of health care.

JCCI:  What is your favorite hidden gem in Jacksonville? 

CM:  KYV Farm – I have been a member of their community supported agriculture group since exception. Locally grown food is a key to personal and environmental health for our city. We should all eat local as much as possible.

JCCI:  What community issue is on your radar that doesn’t get enough attention right now?

CM:  It gets attention but not the resources – we truly need a pedestrian and bike friendly city if we are going to realize our vision of a healthy city.

JCCI:  Why is JCCI important to you and Jacksonville? 

CM:  Politicians and administrations come and go. JCCI does a great job providing clear ideas and direction for our city on a consistent basis.

Name: Sheree Washington

Role with JCCI: JAX2025 Facilitator and Mystery Guest Lunch Facilitator

JCCI:  What do you do from 9-5?

SW:  At Shands, I am a performance improvement specialist. I work within the quality management department of an academic medical center to improve system processes to strive for the best patient experiences and minimize patient safety issues.

JCCI:  What do you do outside of work?

SW:  I am partially a socialite, I like to get out and meet new people and experience new things. I moonlite as an event planner at times. The other part is a homebody, I love watching movies.

JCCI:  How did you get involved with JCCI, JAX2025 or JCCI Forward?

SW:  I became involved with JAX2025 as soon as I heard about it (via email) sometime in December 2012.

JCCI:  What is your favorite hidden gem in Jacksonville?

SW:  Huguenot Park! I love that you can drive right up to the water and grill outside of your car, no toting of heavy beach items necessary!

JCCI:  What community issue is on your radar that doesn’t get enough attention right now?

SW:  Nightlife/shopping downtown. It's getting its fair amount of attention in recent times, but I think this area needs a whole lot of work. A city's success can be very dependent on the traffic its downtown generates, not just during the weekdays but at night and on weekends too.

JCCI:  Why is JCCI important to you and Jacksonville?

SW:  It seems as though JCCI and I have a lot in common when it comes to improving the city (educationally and aesthetically). I don't know too much about the organization besides what I've experienced while volunteering for JAX2025, but I'm interested in learning more.

Before I tell you this story, you should know two things:  1) I used to host and wait tables at a popular bar and grille, and 2) I am white.

I was teaching freshman composition, using our required textbook’s essays for discussion and response.  The Presence of Others included tales of human triumph and the shameful acts our history reminds us to work against repeating.  Authors prompted discussions of issues of race, gender, religion, and more.

Early in the semester, conversations about race were squirmy at best and silent at worst.  Some of my (predominantly white) students would shake their heads in irritation at the mention of the word “racism”, stating that it was no longer a problem and that it was precisely our insistence on having conversations like these that led to the perception that there was a problem, that if we could just STOP TALKING ABOUT IT, perhaps it could once and for all actually go away.  My minority students sometimes spoke up, sharing their experiences with overt or subtle racism, but they often clammed up, quickly sensing that even if they really had been blatantly mistreated on the basis of race, their classmates had already decided that it was a “chip on the shoulder” issue.  Basically, the message was, “If you think someone’s being racist toward you, you probably have an attitude problem.  Quit making it a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

But by later in the semester, after talking and writing about what authors had to say about life in their society, the stories began to sink in, the conversation sparked a more open dialogue, and the nuances of subtle racism became clearer.  Students of every background recognized stereotypes at work around them and in their own dealings, kicking themselves for not being as “colorblind” as they had envisioned themselves.  White and black students acknowledged their families’ unspoken rules about who they could and could not date and their own “it’s easier” acceptance of these rules.  Black students revealed that family members often spoke more positively about babies with lighter skin and even pinched noses to encourage them to take a less “African” shape.  (See Chris Rock’s documentary Good Hair for a fascinating discussion of race-based beauty standards and the messages we give children through them.) 

By semester’s end, students routinely questioned what they observed, like why Queen Latifah’s skin was significantly lightened on a movie poster (true).  They knew their impatient proclamations that racism was a thing of our past did not align with their peers’ experiences.  Most of these students would come away from the class with a more critical eye of texts in our culture, able to discern that even though they didn't see physical “Whites Only” signs at the ice cream shop, racism was, in fact, not at all “over”.

So . . . in the middle of such a semester, I was meeting an African-American colleague for a late lunch at a popular bar and grille.  She had arrived early and was already seated when I asked the host for a table for two, scanning the almost empty dining area for my friend.  Oh, nevermind.  There she was.  She waved me over to a table in the very back corner.  You know this table, the “bad” table right next to the kitchen entrance.   It has the least ambiance and the most noise.  If you are sitting in it, you get the sense that you have done something wrong and have been put in Time Out.  This is the table the host only seats when the restaurant is slammed and there’s an hour-long waiting list, the “Could we sit somewhere else?” table any other time.

I sat down in the Time Out Corner and looked around at all the appealing empty tables, the confusion apparent on my face.  Before I could say, “Why are we way back here?” My friend read my expression, gave a knowing, resolute chuckle and said, “Oh, I’m used to it.  Happens all the time.”

It was an educational moment for me.  This was the first time I had an “in your shoes” moment like this.  It’s very easy for me to be oblivious to such an experience, even to want to reject its existence.  I could easily have been like my first-day-of-class students and argued that it’s ridiculous to think something like a table seating has anything to do with race “in this day and age”(!), that it must have been a coincidence.  If my friend had returned from lunch with another colleague and described how she had been put at a terrible table because she’s black, I might have been inclined to think that it must have been the only open section at that time, that maybe the host is new and/or slightly stupid, that there must have been any other legitimate reason—and isn’t there a chance you’re misreading cues because you expect racism?  Because, come on, I want racism to be over.   If I insist on believing it, it will be true, right?

But there was no denying it.  I knew better as a previous restaurant employee and as a diner.  I could feel the intentional isolation, the “less than” treatment, and it threw me.  It was unsettling, so outside my normal experience, and so unpleasant for so many reasons.  I knew in my guts that if I had arrived first, we would have been sitting somewhere better.

These things matter, especially when we’re talking about a job or an education, not just a table in a restaurant.  If my brilliant, charming friend and I were to compare resumes, we would be equally viable candidates, but if we were both to apply for a position, I might have an edge that I didn’t earn and that she can’t acquire, no matter how hard she works:  I happen to have been born white.

I am especially heartened by the results of our Race Relations Progress Report:  for the first time in a long time, whites and blacks in our community perceive racism to be a problem.   I recognize that this could mean that more racism is occurring, that it’s more blatant, or even that more white people feel that they are being discriminated against by policies aimed at diminishing disparities.  However, I am heartened in thinking it means existing racism is more evident, that fewer of us are oblivious, and that more of us are aware—without necessarily having had to experience being seated in a corner to recognize that others’ experiences are valid.

This indicator could mean that we’re coming to this community classroom ready to have an open conversation, no longer explaining away our issues, blaming the victims, or believing that talking about racism is the self-perpetuating problem.  If we agree that we have a problem and are willing to talk about it, we can begin to understand it and address it.  This is where the word “progress” rings true in our title’s report.

Get involved in the conversation by learning more in our 2012 Race Relations Progress Report and MOSH’s “RACE:  Are We So Different?” award-winning traveling exhibit.  This exhibit makes a powerful statement about the origin of race, race ideas and the impact they have on American Society, examining the topic from historical, scientific and cultural perspectives in hopes of helping individuals of all ages better understand the origins and manifestations of race in everyday life.

“It’s going to be EPIC!”

It sounds like we’re talking about a fabulous party with outrageous entertainment, but we’re actually talking about neighborhoods afflicted for decades with blight, diminished property values, education gaps, health and safety hazards, and the complications of poverty and disinvestment that have worked to create a self-fulfilling prophecy of ruin.  I won’t lie.  I saw the crime maps with colored dots representing various crimes in the area, and it called to mind a spilled bag of Skittles.  I, too, have had moments of skepticism about community improvement projects.  But stay with me.  This is pretty exciting stuff.

You may not at first believe what is happening.  It may be hard to imagine those crime dots shrinking away, but think about how repaired street lights deter vandalism, how Neighborhood Watch programs work, and how community centers with after school programs can affect education and arm youth with knowledge for success.  The enthusiasm is contagious:  picture with me the bustling businesses, safe and clean streets, and exciting, fun community events.  Yes, in Northwest Jacksonville, Springfield, and the Eastside.  The photo above is from Three Layers Café on Walnut Street.

When a hurricane levels a swath of property in Florida, we wait for the storm to clear, get to work cleaning up and rebuilding, and a couple years later see full recovery, complete with a lively business district and repaired and new homes.  Guess what!  It works that way with a hurricane of community despair, too.  And the sun is beaming.  Residents and stakeholders are standing by with work gloves and tool belts.  They have been cleaning up the debris and rebuilding with an eye toward the community’s thriving future.  Here it comes!

When we say it’s going to be EPIC, we mean it.

LISC Jacksonville has been working with the NJCDC (Northwest Jacksonville Community Development Corporation) in Northwest Jacksonville and Operation New Hope in Springfield and the Eastside, and what they are doing can make the Grinchiest cynic believe in their approach of Empowering People & Inspiring Change.

Neighbors are empowered by first having their voices heard, seeing the difference their efforts make in “early action” projects, such as planting flowers by all the stop signs, and then shaping their vision into an action plan.  As enthusiasm builds, schools, churches, and community centers rally for the cause of making the community an ideal place for raising a family and putting down roots for generations of investment.  Residents unite in efforts to make the area safe and appealing for current and potential new residents.  Ideas become visions which become tangible results which become inspiration for bigger projects and bigger change.  And residents are already invested in working toward the big vision because they have helped to create it.

We are delighted to have worked with LISC Jacksonville in its development of focused Community Action Plans for these neighborhoods.  Yes, these communities have serious needs, but they also have hundreds of neighbors who are eager to work with their Neighborhood Associations to volunteer in community gardens and mentoring relationships with youth, to become active in Neighborhood Watch programs and to work with area merchants to infuse the community with new business and to bring events and tourism to the area.

By drawing on their rich history and showcasing their beautiful historic properties, working together to clean up the streets—literally and figuratively--as well as calling on those responsible for community safety to do their part, these neighborhoods are becoming the places to eat, shop, and be entertained.  Have you eaten at Three Layers?  Not only do they believe in dessert first, but they have a zen garden in back where a sweet resident bunny hops about and takes your mind off of . . . well, anything except cute bunnies.  I had a meeting at Waafa & Mike’s Café the other day, and oh, yummm.  This is a great place for schwarma and incredibly fresh and tasty tzasiki.  I don’t personally care for stuffed grape leaves, but if you do, I’m told theirs are among the best.

These Springfield restaurants are just the beginning:

NJCDC and ONH have worked to create a vision and a plan that includes calling upon the stakeholders who can best implement the proposed strategies, and on January 10, 2013, LISC will release these reports, a set of community New Year’s resolutions we can all stick to.  

Northwest Jax and Springfield/Eastside are going to be EPIC!

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Here at JCCI we know all about a process that begins with listening, having a conversation about community needs.  If you weren’t part of the LISC Jacksonville conversations about these neighborhoods, you still have time to tell us about your vision for Jacksonville—for your own neighborhood—as we take the “listen, envision, plan, and really get there!” approach on a city-wide scale.  What can you tell us about what we need to preserve and maintain?  What needs to change?  What is your dream-big vision of Jacksonville in 2025?  Complete the survey on-line at www.jax2025.org (before January 11!), and please encourage your friends, neighbors, and kids to speak up, too.  Then join us at the Prime Osborn Convention Center on January 19.  Together, we can and do transform our community!

Is Jacksonville a senior-friendly city?  If you had joined me and my 86-year-old grandmother at a fairly swanky downtown nightclub for a night of dancing, you might have answered, “Well, no . . . and yes.”  The pretty twenty-something bartender flashed a frown and gave Grandma a sideways look while begrudgingly pouring her a Sprite, but maybe it wasn’t ageism and just annoyance at the non-alcoholic drink order (whether for a designated driver or not).  It wasn’t just the bartender, though.  One bar patron--who was clearly not the designated driver--found it hilarious that this little old lady was on display for her amusement.  The grey hair!  Her frail-looking wrinkled body!  Tipsy Girl reached for her camera phone to take a photo of this side-show moment: a woman who was obviously in the wrong place for her generation.  When I leaned toward the high-top table and gave Tipsy Girl a knowing look, my “Whatcha doin’?” scooted her off.  (My spunky grandmother could have handled her, but I wanted to spare Grandma the shenanigans.)

I know, I know.  There’s a reason well-meaning friends were giggling about our being there, why my dad strongly suggested that I not encourage her to join me.  He knew Grandma was going to be conspicuous.  Did I feel a bit weird being seen with this little old lady?  Well, I have to admit that I expected some looks and wondered if it was appropriate to invade this space that was designed for “young” adults looking to mingle and let their hair down.  I know that the sight of silver hair makes some people shudder at the thought of growing old, and the point of a nightclub is to live it up and relish being young, not to have to dwell on end-of-life planning or feeling like your grandparents may be watching you and judging your nightclub behavior.  Perhaps I should have taken Grandma out for an afternoon tea at a place with a higher lace doily than disco ball ratio.

I hear you, hipsters and socialites.  You think you have nothing in common with my grandmother, and you certainly don’t want to be near a walking reminder of mortality, a visible symbol of responsibilities in making preparations for your aging.  These are taboo topics even in the most sober surroundings.  So I can understand how you may not have wanted to make Grandma feel welcome.

But it was worth sticking around a little longer.  An upbeat, friendly, well-dressed gentleman asking my fun-loving grandmother to dance.  He teased her, too, but this time the teasing was playful, not mocking.  He claimed that she had stolen his seat.  She sassed him back, staking her claim to the best spot from which to watch the dance floor come alive.   He didn’t discriminate against Grandma for being old, something she certainly didn’t wish upon herself or could help.  (You should hear her bemoan her wrinkles.)  He invited her to dance, and in twirling her on the dance floor, he delighted her and the rest of us.  He treated her like a person who enjoyed dancing, not “an old person” who was out of place.  Others smiled, snapping celebratory photos, later commenting on Facebook that my grandma was super cool.  (I know this, but it was nice to see her made truly welcome and celebrated for not letting go of things she was supposedly too old to do, that age-ism, in the end, didn’t fly.)

Later in the night a roller derby girl was surprised to learn that Grandma had been one herself.  Our eyebrows shoot up sometimes when we forget that “old people” have had rich, full lives, that they aren’t just the knitting-in-a-rocking-chair version of themselves we peg them to be now (though my grandmother did crochet me several towels for my kitchen while she was visiting!).  It is sometimes unsettling to discover we are guilty of having bought into stereotypes that limit what we let others or ourselves achieve.  I found myself being overly attentive, constantly asking my grandmother if she wanted to leave.  My hearty grandmother finally set me straight by saying, “They haven’t turned the lights on yet!” as she continued to dance the night away.

So as you think about your vision for Jacksonville for the year 2025, imagine what it will be like for the many elderly citizens who live, work, and play here.  Do we give our elders sideways looks when they voice their concerns, or do we take their ideas for a more senior-friendly city for a twirl? 

What kind of quality of life do our elders have now, and how will things change for them and with them as we achieve our vision for 2025?  When we discuss transportation and mobility in the conversations that determine priorities in our shared vision, how much will we take our growing elderly population into account?   What issues in healthcare will be significant?  How about transit?   The AARP has been exploring how transit affects an older population, and we already know that Jacksonville could stand to be safer for pedestrians and bicyclists.

What about mental health?  Our Quality of Life indicators show that elders in our community have an elevated risk of suicide, higher than other adults and youth.  This is not unique to our community, but should our vision for Jacksonville be to become the place where seniors are “Stayin’ Alive”?

Should our community’s shared vision include Jacksonville achieving the Senior-Friendly City designation?

If you want to answer, “Yes!”—whether you are a caregiver for elders, a retiree, or a concerned citizen of any age—then we need you at our January 19 community meeting.  If you’re a retiree, make sure your community’s vision includes you!  If you’re a 20- or 30-something ordering a fancy drink at a swanky club, speak up for your future silver-haired self (or for your grandma!).  And if nothing else, speak up about continuing to build a vibrant downtown, because you never know how important it may still be to you when you’re 86 and haven’t outgrown dancing and being sassy.

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If you want to learn more about issues affecting elders and their caregivers and what you need to do to plan for your future or talk with your family members about theirs, visit our “Am I My Parents’ Keeper?” page and read our Engage Jax “Am I My Parents’ Keeper?” posts.  We have podcasts for listening, fascinating articles, and resources galore. 

And while we’re on the subject, if you are brave like my grandmother and not afraid to embrace the taboo topic of end-of-life decision making, see the documentary, “Consider the Conversation,” a look at the taboo subject of end-of-life.  It airs again on WJCT November 21 at 10:00 p.m., or, if you’re just getting in from the nightclub, again at 4 a.m. on November 22. http://www.wjct.org/tv/schedule/.

At JCCI, it’s not unusual to see international groups come in to see what we’re about. In fact, over the past year, more than nine separate international groups have come into our doors and learn more about what we have done and continue to do for our community.

Wednesday, November 7, a group of international professionals with international resource center GlobalJax met with our own Ben Warner. Among many topics, the meeting covered everything from JCCI’s community work to the philosophical goal at work in JCCI’s nonpartisan approach.

When asked why JCCI doesn’t attempt to sway voters toward a particular politician, whether locally or nationally, Ben’s answer was simple.

“Most people, regardless of party, want the same things. And it’s our shared dreams that bring us together.”

In essence, we don’t just work for OUR people, we work for THE people. It’s this care for the issues deemed important by the people that allows us to function as an important resource for everyone.

And these guests in JCCI’s conference room, some of whom come from countries where democracy is a foreign concept, were impressed with the extremely democratic way in which JCCI brings the concerns of the people to elected officials like Mayor Alvin Brown.

“Our decision making process is to operate by consensus,” Warner said. “This shared learning process creates respect between community members, as they decide together what matters most.”

It amazed me that a single day after an extraordinarily polarizing presidential election, professionals from all over the world gathered and discussed the importance of shared learning and consensus, the importance of true community.

In every meeting, press conference and community conversation I’ve attended as part of JCCI, I’ve seen the remarkable care that binds everyone. Whatever we title ourselves, whatever moniker that adorns us, we are the people of Jacksonville.

It seems that consensus like the kind at JCCI is what this country needs right now.

When the results of the countrywide vote came through, some groups were truly disappointed and others elated. But now, regardless of party affiliation, we must work together now as we haven’t done for quite some time in the recent past to create a better future for everyone.

I, for one, am ready to roll up my sleeves.

Name: Rena Coughlin

Role with JCCI: Board Member

JCCI - What do you do from 9-5?

RC – I work as President and CEO at the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida.

JCCI - What do you do outside of work?

RC - One of my favorite quotes is by E.B. White, and sums up my non-work time pretty well. “I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day."  My newest hobby is bee-keeping; I also like being in or on the ocean (no power craft, though), biking, and walking -- especially destination walking when traveling.  Reading remains an all-time favorite past time.

JCCI - How & when did you get involved with JCCI or JCCI Forward?

RC - When I moved to Jacksonville in 2001, one of the few persons I knew was deeply involved in the Race Relations study and so I started participating in the meetings.  I was hooked after that.

JCCI - What is your favorite hidden gem in Jacksonville?

RC - 1.) DeWees Street Access to the beach

2.) Breakfast at Lily's in Neptune Beach

3.) Walking across the Main Street Bridge.

JCCI - What issue or concern is on your radar that doesn’t get enough of the community's attention right now?

RC - Making Jacksonville seriously bike-friendly.  Pedestrian-friendly would be nice, too!

JCCI - Why is JCCI important to you and to Jacksonville?

RC - JCCI was my first introduction to civic life in Jacksonville.  I can't think of a better option for newcomers -- or anyone for that matter -- wanting to learn more about a serious, local issue than joining JCCI.  Having a unique asset like JCCI in our community advertises the best of Jacksonville to anyone wondering what kind of place it might be.

Name: Alexis Lambert

Role with JCCI: Mystery Guest Lunch Speaker

JCCI - What do you do from 9-5?

AL - I run the Office of Public Accountability for the City of Jacksonville.  I help citizens, the media, and government officials understand their rights and responsibilities under Florida’s 103 year old Public Records law.  Yes, it’s fun.  Yes, I am fully cognizant of the fact that this makes me a colossal nerd.

JCCI - What do you do outside of work?

AL - Things I am known for: My homemade ice cream, my pastitsio, my infinitely nerdy taste in pop culture. Things I love:  The Florida Gators, The Junior League, St. John the Divine Greek Orthodox Church, when someone else does the dishes.

JCCI - How & when did you get involved with JCCI or JCCI Forward?

AL - Revenge of the Prom was really fantastic.  People really went out of their way to dress up and the music was incredible.  I loved it. I was the one with seriously crimped hair.  I created this style using the crimping iron I received as a birthday gift in the third grade and a quantity of Rave hairspray that probably quadrupled my carbon footprint.

JCCI - What is your favorite hidden gem in Jacksonville?

AL - I like that there are so many dog friendly places to go around the city.  Justin, my Pembroke Welsh corgi, is particularly happy about it.

JCCI - What issue or concern is on your radar that doesn’t get enough of the community’s attention right now?

AL - I wish more businesses would move downtown.

JCCI - Why is JCCI important to you and to Jacksonville?

AL - More cities should have a JCCI- a young, vibrant, diverse, smart, fun group of people looking to build better communities by engaging up-and-coming professionals.  This city is growing and changing in truly impressive ways.  The endgame is for people from all walks of life to know that Jacksonville is a great place to live, work, go to school, and raise a family.

Something caught me by surprise when I began working at JCCI as a summer intern. The first major project I had my hands in was “Am I My Parents’ Keeper?” It allowed members of the community to gather and discuss end-of-life decision making for Baby Boomers and “the sandwich generation.”
For most people in their early 20s like me, that doesn’t sound like an immediate issue, right? Wrong.
As people filed in to the weekly meetings and discussed sometimes-uplifting, sometimes-upsetting truths about care-giving, an electric charge filled the room. A tangible sense of community permeated the solemn moments, and then helped us laugh and joke together.  What impressed me most, though, was the grace with which the weekly speakers and attendees alike handled these very delicate topics.

It didn’t matter what the conversation was about. Whether it was an intense discussion of patient rights or a debate over hospice care, everyone involved spoke with dignity and addressed the issues, not people or personalities. Seeing that something as drastic as end-of-life decision making could be handled with such class causes me to squint my eyes at the current political climate.  As the muckraking rages on from both sides of this heated Presidential election, it’s refreshing to see and hear that not all debate of relevant issues must get so ugly.

Funny thing, though. It’s the people who keep a cool head as they present their points, that best seem to handle confrontation assertively, not aggressively. These are the people that I respect the most.

And it’s nice to know I can always find them inside the walls of JCCI’s Conference Room.

On Friday JCCI hosted an international expert on children’s rights, Gerison Lansdown. She is the founding Director of the Children’s Rights Alliance for England.

We’ve all seen amazing parents devoted to creating an environment for their children that is based on love and respect. My co-worker, Tonia, who worked on the Children: 1-2-3 report is an example of someone committed to parenting her son, River. She sees herself as responsible for his growth and development, and ensures that all the adults around him respect his right to express himself, be safe, and be the total intellectual genius that he is. And did I mention JCCI’s President, Ben? Father of eight? Well, he is a committed and responsible father of beautiful young adults and children. All children should be so lucky.

Or should I say: all children have the right to grow up in a safe, clean, healthy and nurturing environment.

It turns out that human rights start at home. One of the early participants in the creation of the United Nations knew that human rights begin where the individual lives and breathes.

All well and good except for the fact that not all homes, schools, and neighborhoods are safe places where children are listened to, learn and grow. Can we make that happen for all children? Absolutely, and we should.

This is where the Convention on the Rights of the Child comes in, a.k.a the CRC. The CRC is a treaty that countries involved in the United Nations sign on to and abide by as they govern themselves. It was ratified in 1989. There is accountability when it comes to the CRC because the United Nations spawned a children’s rights organization after World War II.

It’s called UNICEF-- you might remember them from Halloween. At least I do. We got little orange boxes that had a slit in them for putting in coins. And when we went trick or treating, we asked for donations to UNICEF.

Well, it is UNICEF which now operationalizes the CRC.  UNICEF is making the CRC a reality on a grand scale.

Quite frankly, I don’t know a lot about the United Nations and my understanding of UNICEF extends to Halloween. So I need some ‘splainin’ when it comes to children’s rights. Gerison changed my framework for thinking about rights because she repeated frequently three words: commitments, obligations, and entitlements.

This was a little mind-blowing for me. I’m used to the right to have and the right to do.

Like the right to drive a car. Our laws limit the right to drive a car to those who are physically able. I know people who don’t have the right because they have epilepsy. And my Dad, who survived three strokes, is not allowed to drive a car.

Like the right to have an education. In the U.S. we take this right seriously. In many countries an education is a privilege. On the other hand, in many countries the human right to health care and medical attention is much clearer. In the U.S. we think of medical attention and health care as a privilege dependent on having a full-time job. However, we do use one of Gerison’s words (“entitlement”) when it comes to health. We consider people over 65 to be entitled to healthcare. They use Medicare.

And the individual right to have a gun. This is also how I think of rights: I get to have something. And that is my right—no ifs, ands, or buts.

In contrast to the individual right to have or do, there are responsibilities and commitments to the larger community. This is the part that people in the U.S. forget about frequently. We are super-aware of the individual right to be all we can be, own a gun, and so forth. We are less likely to act on the responsibilities and commitments that individual rights require.

Individual rights require a larger community creating conditions for rights to be exercised. And this is where Gerison said something pretty shocking. She said, ‘the reason the United States is the only so-called ‘more developed country’ on the Earth that has not signed on to the Convention of the Rights of the Child is because the U.S. is not yet committed to creating conditions required for all its children to be safe, have a voice, and be healthy.’

But she said it sweetly, so nobody took offense. Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down!

"That is so not funny,” says Mary Poppins.

Here are similar words from our own Sherry Magill, President of the Jessie Ball duPont Fund:

I’m so used to thinking of individual rights as the freedom to do something (go to a rally in Memorial Park) and have something (access to my partner’s pension benefits when I get old) that I often forget what is most important. Rights must be created and expanded continually. If they are reserved for a couple of groups or only some individuals, then those are privileges.

So do children have the right to safety, information, health, and a voice-- and am I obligated to create those conditions for children in my city and neighborhood? Yes.

And we want that in Jacksonville. The Children: 1-2-3 Implementation Task Force is working right now on:

A Child Friendly City? Absolutely. We can make policy with children in mind so that children’s rights to safety, growth, and a voice are respected. The first step in this journey has already been taken. It is getting youth involved in the processes and activities that we already have going on. The Duval Youth Voices Council is starting up now, with Gerison’s guidance and inspiration.

We do stuff to youth every day. We school them, take them on trips, promote them, diagnose them as mentally ill, award them prizes, find them delinquent and arrest them. We develop programs, assistance, and workshops. We take them out of their home and family for the sake of safety. We develop all kinds of things for children and youth without ever asking: What do you think?

Incredible when you think about it. The right to be heard is serious and crucial when it comes to children and youth.

Gerison asked everyone to check out what happens when a Youth Council takes off. So check out Funky Dragon-- a website about the amazing things that Welsh youth are doing with their country’s government.

And many thanks to Jeff Goldhagen for making Gerison’s visit to JCCI possible. We love having people from all over the world come into our conference room to speak about their work. Stay tuned to JCCI for more cool people, presentations, and discussions!

Last night I saw We Remember Raines, a very powerful movie for everyone in Jacksonville-- no, scratch that. Everyone in the U.S.

William M. Raines High School is the alma mater of the filmmaker, Emanuel Washington. We Remember Raines tells the story of Raines High School from its start in the early 1960’s until 2011. It proves, without a doubt, that Raines can be a college-prep school because it was one. The movie's hopeful message is that it can be college-prep again.

Until 1971, Jacksonville had two school districts: one for whites and one for blacks. When Raines opened in the mid-1960’s, all black schools lacked the resources and physical amenities of white schools.

In 1958, Matthew Gilbert High was the heart of the Eastside black community. Earl Kitchings, the school’s football coach, recalls:

Separate and unequal school systems were officially in place until 1970. In 1970, there were 20 all-black schools, and another 8 were 90 percent black. 77.6 percent of all Negro high school students went to a school that was 90 percent black. 

Jacksonville’s decision-makers felt the pressure of African-American residents who wanted an equal education for their children and the students themselves. Rodney Hurst's personal account of the sit-in demonstrations in Jacksonville and Ax-Handle Saturday is a great picture of the resistance and protests. Since 1954, when the Supreme Court ruled the 2-district system unequal, whites were adamant that they would not attend school with blacks. So in the mid-1960’s white decision-makers came up with a solution.

Build a new $2 million high school for blacks! Less than a mile away from the white high school!

This was also in response to the fact that all Jacksonville high schools were disaccredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in the 1960’s. In other words, at that time, all Jacksonville students were considered less prepared and less likely to succeed in college. The problem was Jacksonville was not spending enough money on educating its children, and the school system needed to catch up with the rest of the nation.

Academics were of utmost importance at Raines, and it was the first school in Jacksonville to regain accreditation from SACS. The athletic program at Raines shined in all sports, and especially football. Within the first 10 years the school was open, six young black men blazed a path to the NFL. School clubs such as the Rainesmen and Ladies of Raines turned out leaders who, today, are engaged in preserving Raines culture and history.

One of those people is Cleve Warren, President and CEO of Essential Capital Finance, Inc. The filmmaker asked him: “Why was Raines so successful?” His reply: "Simple. It hired the best teachers in Jacksonville."

And why did that happen at Raines in the mid to late 1960s? One reason is ironic and the other iconic. Ironically, the two-system school district denied all black teachers from teaching white students; they had to teach in all-black schools. Most black teachers at Raines earned master’s and doctoral degrees at universities in the North (e.g. Columbia, Illinois University) or historically black colleges in the South (Florida A&M, Bethune-Cookman) and chose to return to Jacksonville. The second reason Raines had the best teachers in Jacksonville was a man named Andrew Robinson, who became an icon in Florida’s education community. He hired the very best teachers in Jacksonville, who happened to be black, and brought them all to Raines. And he created a school culture that continued long after he left there.

Andrew Robinson’s influence at that time is unimaginable nowadays. He created a culture of educational excellence and integrity that was the envy of Northeast Florida. One of his frequent sayings was: “What you learn after you know it all, is what counts.”

I love this because it means "after you know it all," (you’ve earned all the degrees that you’ll get), the real learning begins. It also suggests a core principle here at JCCI: knowledge is for getting stuff done, not for having, hoarding, and showing off. It also suggests humility when it comes to education and expertise. In other words, knowledge is really about creating relationships with others and building community. It is not for defining the self apart from others.

Andrew Robinson at University of North Florida, where he was the first African-American president of a Florida university.

Last week I was on vacation in Connecticut, which is where my people come from. I was on the Connecticut River at a family reunion. However, in the North, people have some very odd ideas about the South. It gets me every time. Someone there threw me off: “I imagine it’s pretty segregated down there.” Hmm…perhaps it’s more segregated than where that relative lives-- in Brooklyn, NY. I don’t know-- Spike Lee’s films suggest otherwise.

We Remember Raines has given me an excellent answer to all those folks asking about racism in the South and my choice to live in Jacksonville for nearly 20 years. From now on I will reply with something along these lines: “Jacksonville is home to some of the most accomplished, creative, inspiring, thinkers and doers in the U.S. And that’s because we have an incredibly strong and vibrant African-American community here. I’m proud to live in Jacksonville.”

This screening of We Remember Raines was made possible by JCCI Forward, our leadership development program. For more information about Forward’s amazing work, check out their website. Or better yet, come to their next training: “Leading by Facilitation and Consensus 101.” And if you are interested in the current state of equity between races and ethnic groups, check out JCCI's Race Relations Progress Report.

How do you complete this sentence? “Children have the right to . . .”

-protection from violence?
-nurturing emotional care?
-an hour of time outside?
-food?
-health care? 
-quality education?
-clean air and water?
-be treated like people whose thoughts and feelings have value?

We’ve come a long way from the days of exploiting children as chimney sweeps and factory workers, and public education is now available (compulsory, even).   But how well can you argue that Jacksonville is an ideal environment for children, that people want to come here because it’s a “great place to raise your kids”?  Do our policies and practices foster their thriving in body and mind?  

As we mull and make decisions about the obligations we have as a community to address issues in child care, safety, health, and education, JCCI volunteers are hard at work, implementing our Children: 1-2-3 inquiry recommendations to close gaps in policy and promote effective practices so that this community becomes more child-friendly (which, as these children grow, leads to Jacksonville’s being—say it with me!—more adult-friendly).

This week, you can learn about the U.N. Convention on Rights of the Child and how grassroots and organizational efforts can transform how children are treated, and in turn, how they shape their community as they grow.

Clear your calendar for Friday, August 10 at noon. 

You don’t want to miss this very special Issues and Answers forum!

Gerison Lansdown, international expert in child rights and founding Director of the Children’s Rights Alliance for England will lead our community in a discussion about children’s rights, child-friendly cities and child and youth participation.  She will be accompanied by members of Funky Dragon, a youth council promoting the effective participation of children and young people in decision-making about policies and services in Wales.

RSVP here now!

Name: Jennifer Chapman

Role with JCCI:  Member of the Board

JCCI - What do you do from 9-5?

JC - I am the Director of Public Affairs for a local finance investment firm.  I am in charge of government, community and public relations for our 750-person operation in Jacksonville and the other areas around the state where we have operations.

JCCI - What do you do outside of work?

First and foremost, my husband Josh and I have three little boys ages 7, 4 and 4 who keep us very busy.  In January of this year, I launched an IT startup company called Mystical Basket, LLC.  I volunteer a lot, serving on the board of JCCI, Leadership Jacksonville and the Early Learning Coalition of Duval County and working recently on smaller projects with Junior Achievement and the Girl Scouts.  And last, I blog at imthebossofme.wordpress.com.  If there is any time left over, I love to read and do DIY projects…which makes me a HUGE fan of the Jacksonville public library and Pinterest.

JCCI - How & when did you get involved with JCCI or JCCI Forward?

JC - I was invited to a Forward event nearly 10 years ago by my then-fiancé, Josh.  Since then, I have dabbled in Forward, been a part of the Quality of Life review process, co-chaired (with my good friend Broderick Green) the Race Relations Progress Report and joined the board.  It has been a wild ride.

JCCI - What is your favorite hidden gem in Jacksonville?  

JC - I think CoWork Jax, at the corner of Forsyth and Main, is a great addition to Jacksonville.  Every day dozens of people leave their homes to work together in this fun, vibrant industrial space.   The events are terrific and informative and the staff is eager to help “CoWorkers” get the most out of their membership.

On an unrelated topic, I think Burrito Gallery’s black bean quesadillas are amazing and worth the drive over from my office on the Southside.

JCCI - What issue or concern is on your radar that doesn’t get enough of the community’s attention right now?

JC - I believe Jacksonville is well aware of what our challenges are. We know we can do better in addressing disparities in education, wages and health outcomes.  What I would like to see is a self-motivated push to be more open-minded, to try to work together, and to recognize that we are all doing what we believe is in our best interests, even when we are in conflict.

JCCI - Why is JCCI important to you and to Jacksonville?

JC - JCCI has a proven track record of bringing tough issues to the forefront in a constructive and insightful way.  We have no agenda.  We are here to facilitate discussion and encourage problem solving.  Jacksonville is fortunate to have a group dedicated to the constant improvement of our City and I am proud to have been a supporter and now a board member.

The final meeting of Am I My Parents' Keeper? focused on the legal complexities surrounding the end of life and what we could do to prepare. I found out that the time to prepare is right now; that as soon as you're old enough to be called a legal adult, you're old enough to make plans about what should happen when the inevitable happens. After all, as the great philosopher Jim Morrison was wont to say, No one here gets out alive. 

Mike Jorgenson, of Senior Counsel Law, identified five documents everyone should have as soon as they turn 18:

1. Durable Power of Attorney. This identifies who can act on your behalf when you are not able to do so for yourself. The law changed October 1, 2011, so even if you already have one, get an updated one to reflect the changes in the law.
2. Designation of Health Care Surrogate. Here you need to find someone who will do what you want, not what they might prefer should happen to you.
3. Living Will. This is not your Last Will and Testament (which is also an important thing to have), but instead the document that allows you to refuse unwanted medical treatment, even if you aren't in a position to communicate your wishes.
4. Mental Health Directive. I had no idea that you needed a separate form for expressing your wishes regarding mental health treatment. If you don't make your wishes known, a judge will decide for you.
5. Declaration Naming Preneed Guardian. Guardianship takes away our right to make certain decisions on our own, such as to enter into a contract, get married, vote, and more. If at any point I need a guardian to make decisions on my behalf, it would be better to have someone who will make the decisions I want.

Even with these documents in place, you don't lose any of your constitutional rights -- you only designate someone to make certain decisions for you if the time comes that you can't make them on your own. In Florida, if it looks like you need guardianship, an examining committee of three doctors will review the situation and recommend to the court if you need full guardianship, limited guardianship, or none at all. Once the court makes its decision, then the power to make designated decisions goes to the guardian.

Skip Cramer shared his personal experience with the legal issues in end-of-life care. He pointed out the following lessons he learned:

1. We're never really ready for the end to happen.
2. Even if you have all the paperwork, advanced directives, insurance, and benefits in place, not everything is going to work the way you expect it to.
3. Listen to the lawyers. Don't try to tackle the IRS, CPAs, and other issues on your own, especially not at a time when you're at lowest capacity.
4. Ponder long-term care insurance, but look carefully at what the policies really cover. You'll most likely very quickly get to the point when Medicaid kicks in.
5. Don't underestimate the time lag between when you apply for your benefits and when they actually kick in. 

Other important messages I got from the meeting include:

• Keep your documents where your surrogate can easily get to them. I hadn't thought about it, but the paperwork that allows someone to get into your safe deposit box shouldn't be kept within the safe deposit box.
• Power of attorney ends at death. Get done what needs to get done while you can get it done and before probate kicks in.
• The legal paperwork kits out there may not work for you if they don't have the specific Florida statute language in them. 
• Estate planning attorneys are not the same as elder law attorneys. Both are important, but they do different things.

The series left me with a lot of sobering thoughts, and helped nudge me into having some difficult conversations I had been putting off. Maybe it has done the same for you. We don't like to talk about the inevitable shared human experience of death, or that difficult stage of life that often precedes the end, but it's as necessary a conversation as the birds & bees talk with our children. I hope you have found it useful. I'd love your thoughts about how we share this information (and the audio podcasts) with more people.

_____________________________________________________

Special thanks to Pat Vail, JCCI volunteer, for facilitating our opening and closing sessions of this series.

Visit the Am I My Parents' Keeper? site for audio recordings of each session, links to all six meetings’ highlights, and many other resources you can use to get your own conversations going with family and caregiver team members.

Okay, so it’s the last stop on the line, the last call for alcohol, the last bowl of cereal, there’s one more sock in the dryer….I’ve, ya’ know…

Huh? It’s the truth. Everybody needs to think about how they want to go out — call a funeral home! Start planning on who, what, where and how your body will find its final rest. And take a minute to find out what it will cost, too.

My last party will probably be on a beach. Our resource expert representing a local funeral home said that Florida law prohibits my ashes from being strewn on the beach. Phooey. They also have this thing called ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.’

And who’s going to know if my ashes are strewn at the beach at 7pm when the sun sets?

About 35 percent of us go with ashes and 65 percent are buried. What do you want to do? Be in an urn? Buried in the ground at a cemetery? What kind of cemetery? It could be the very beautiful National Cemetery on Lannie Rd. on the Northside.

Here’s the beauty of planning (I’m a plannah-plannah…like a playah-playah so I love this stuff): if I make the funeral arrangements now, the cost of the funeral is what it is when I pre-planned and pre-paid. If I buy life insurance to pay for my funeral in 40 years, I have to pay the cost of a funeral in 40 years. Just like a Florida Pre-Paid College Plan. Except I know I’m going to die. I have no idea whether someone is going to college.

As a result of this meeting, I’ve already decided on the cremation idea. It’s way less expensive than a burial! Way less! ($2,000 vs. $10,000) I want money spent on the party, not on my long-gone body. But that’s just me. That’s just me…signing out…not just yet…just planning on signing out…

Special thanks to Ashley Trapp, JCCI Forward Executive Committee member, for facilitating this session!

Our Am I My Parents' Keeper? conversations continue Thursday, July 26, 11:30-1:00 at JCCI.  Join us to about the legal matters that require attention in end-of-life planning. Lunch is provided. Please RSVP!

Visit the Am I My Parents' Keeper? site for audio recordings of each session, links to resources, and a calendar of speakers.

Here’s a fabulous story we heard from Janet Chamberlain. Her Dad become quite ill very suddenly and went into the hospital with trouble breathing. He didn’t get to leave the hospital. In order to find out what was creating the breathing problem, doctors wanted to (Big Word of the Day coming up) INTUBATE him. Well, we’ve been learning in our discussions that this is where the rubber hits the road. Think carefully about being intubated.

Janet’s Dad learned that once he had the tube in his windpipe, the hospital would keep it in to prolong his life. Well, Janet’s Dad was incredibly aware, lucid, and clear about what he wanted the end of his life to be like. He saw what was out there, what was coming and he planned— all from his hospital bed.

And you know what? He decided against the intubation. He gathered his entire family around him, and very mindfully defined when he would go off oxygen and stop taking breaths.

Which brings me to one of the advanced directives everyone must have: A LIVING WILL. This says, ‘hey, do not resuscitate (if you don’t want to be resuscitated). Hey, do not prolong my life if I can’t eat or breathe on my own.” That kind of thing. Very important because not everyone is as lucky as Janet’s Dad. He was aware, lucid, and clear until the end. The health professionals just asked him, “What do you want to do?”

My parents might be in the hospital at the end of their life and be in a coma. Or have dementia. And you know what, that set of instructions for what to do if they can’t make their own decisions…it’s not the only document needed.

Not Enough?! Not by a long shot. Documents can’t tell doctors what to do when they are faced with a decision to do this or that. Only a person can do that. And you know what the doctor and hospital will do. They will prolong life for as long as possible.

Medical technology is stellar, amazing, and a lifesaver without a doubt. It also means we have 50,000 decisions to make about what to do and not do while in the hospital. Which brings me to another document your parents must have: HEALTH CARE SURROGACY. Some people call it the health care proxy. But there has to be a person who makes the decisions and this document names that person.

1. Got a will, check

2. Living will, check

3. Health care surrogacy, check.

4. Durable power of attorney, check.

5. Pre-need guardian designation, check.

You’re done! Well…not finished…I mean you’re done…with planning on being finished…or you’ve planned to be done…or…you know what I mean….

Special thanks to Ashley Trapp, JCCI Forward Executive Committee member, for facilitating this session!

Our Am I My Parents' Keeper? conversations continue Thursday, July 26, 11:30-1:00 at JCCI.  Join us to about the legal matters that require attention in end-of-life planning. Lunch is provided. Please RSVP!

Visit the Am I My Parents' Keeper? site for audio recordings of each session, links to resources, and a calendar of speakers.

Here are two real things that came up at JCCI today (and a third that is real and unreal at the same time):

1. “I don’t want the government to take away everything that my parents worked for all their lives.”

This fear makes for more trouble. Rebecca Berg, a local elder attorney sees what happens when people have this fear. Their loved one goes from the hospital to rehab or from rehab to a nursing home. “They’re going to charge us $200 a day! They’ll take all her money away!” So they move all the assets and property to their own name in the hopes that none of their parents’ hard-earned money can be touched. It turns out that putting everything in a child’s name can cause major tax headaches later. Not a good idea.

One of our speakers suggested reading up on long-term care insurance. She especially recommended what Consumer Reports says. It’s a relatively new kind of insurance. Then again, we’re living longer, so there’s all kinds of new situations to prepare for.

2. “Who’s going to get their stuff?”

Stuff is houses, property in other states, retirement accounts, savings, life insurance policies, and so on. Estate plans, wills, and trusts are the legal means that you have for keeping stuff in your family…which brings me to Big Word of the Day: PROBATE. All the stuff has to be distributed or turned over, right? So the minute the ticker stops ticking, the courts get involved to decide where it goes to, and that is probate. Which brings me to one of four documents everyone must have: A WILL. When your parents have a will, they are giving the courts a roadmap to where all the stuff should go after they die.

3. And the third is the very real situation of children taking care of parents…

Here is the very best Big Word of the Day! DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY. And here’s my definition of that legal term…if Lynda Carter were an attorney and her bulletproof bracelets were her only weapon. (She’s got the Lasso of Truth besides the bracelets). She’s durable, she’s powerful and she’s an attorney!

The durable power of attorney makes you the person who can handle your parents’ stuff and the health surrogacy makes you the person that can talk to the doctors about your parents. My parents accumulated a lot of stuff, and neighbors, relatives and even moi can set sights on all that stuff. If they make me the durable power of attorney (DPA), then I am in charge of their stuff. Turns out that there is lots of room for exploitation of elders when it comes to the DPA. As a result, in 2011 Florida changed the laws around DPA. So everyone whose DPA was drawn up before 2011 needs to go back for a check-up. Law changed, and now your document could use a review.

This is all tough stuff. And the beautiful thing about JCCI’s Am I My Parents’ Keeper meetings is how our volunteers and participants are willing to share the truth about their lives. Everyone around the lunch table shares what they have gone through and how they learned to do what they do. So all those folks taking on family responsibilities that make them wonder women and wonder men, here’s your Lasso of Truth!

Special thanks to Ashley Trapp, JCCI Forward Executive Committee member, for facilitating this session!

Our Am I My Parents' Keeper? conversations continue Thursday, July 26, 11:30-1:00 at JCCI.  Join us to about the legal matters that require attention in end-of-life planning. Lunch is provided. Please RSVP!

Visit the Am I My Parents' Keeper? site for audio recordings of each session, links to resources, and a calendar of speakers.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we fall off it,” said Canadian Prime Minister Lester Pearson.  Speaker Shelley Kulchin, an Elder Advocate for Senior Solutions at Jewish Family& Community Services, quoted him, noting that many of us fail to prepare and have the attitude he described, that the crises are often, unfortunately, what compel us to take action.

But don’t we want to honor our parents’ wishes? Dad explicitly said he didn’t want the paramedics to perform CPR or to put him on a breathing machine.  Don’t we want our lives to be easier?  Who wants to scurry to find out who has the copy of the living will once a parent is already unconscious?  On a more positive note, won’t it be nice to have a plan for honoring Mom’s life instead of tearing her house apart to find documents?

Keeping paperwork in order is absolutely crucial, not only for legal protections, but for honoring your elder’s wishes and for taking away unnecessary stress.

Make sure your paperwork is:

Thorough: Make sure you have all the documents you need.  If the bank has a special form, yes, complete it, even if you think you’re covered by another document.  Aging True provides resources, including respite care, through the Older Americans Act.  You have to sign up for the benefits, and there are waiting lists, but it’s worth getting on them!  Do you qualify for Veterans’ Affairs coverage?  Fill out the paperwork before your cancer requires surgery for removal and time for processing is not on your side.  Do you need discharge papers?  Do you know where they are?  Start gathering!  Shelley provided a helpful checklist of the documents and information you need, and speaker Robert Morgan, attorney at Morgan & Associates, provided a guide to getting your affairs in order.

Complete: Some forms require tender, difficult, emotional discussions with your elder in care or siblings and other family members.  It’s important to talk sooner rather than later.  Prevent the rifts.  Skip the guilt.  Honor the wishes.  Literally be on the same page. Sometimes it’s hard to get there, so look to AARP and Alzheimer’s Association resources for guiding your family through the talk, and use personal stories to describe experiences as a lead-in to discussions (e.g., “A woman at work had to break down her dad’s door when he fell because she didn’t have a key to the house and wasn’t in contact with the neighbors.  Can we talk about planning for and preventing worst case scenarios?”).  Did you know that in Florida you can add to advance directives?  For example, some religions prohibit the use of blood products.  You can say you don’t want a transfusion.

Legal: A durable power of attorney, which in Florida addresses not only finances but also healthcare, completed prior to October 2011 or from another state is technically valid, but the laws have changed since then, so institutions like your bank may interpret them with current, stricter, more precise guidelines.  The lack of initials on a “superpower” (specifically outlined ability to make a decision) can be the determining factor in whether or not you can withdraw money from the checking account to pay a medical expense. 

     You also have to be sure that your healthcare surrogate designation includes HIPAA release language in it, or you may not have access to the records you need when you need them. 
     The Five Wishes document is recognized by Hospice but may not be recognized in a medical office. 
     Pre-need guardianship is a way of choosing who you want your guardian to be, and a simple paragraph can establish that you’re asserting this right under Florida law.  The person who you put on “stand by” will be at the top of the list for designation, though it will still be at the judge’s discretion to appoint the guardian. 
A living will does not avoid probate, but a living trust can. 
     What is a guardian pooled trust?  Under Medicaid, you can set aside assets to be used for medical care and homestead expenses.  It is a form of irrevocable trust, and it has a payback provision, meaning if the loved one is clearly facing death, the designee can withdraw from the account.  The funds can then be used to cover funeral expenses.
     If you don’t have a durable power of attorney in place, who decides what happens to you if you can’t?  The practices and procedures of the hospital will take precedence, which usually means they will be obliged to continue life-saving efforts, including artificial ones.
     Why not download legal kits from the internet? They may not be up-to-date with current law, and there is nobody to stand behind them.  What if you can’t afford an attorney?  Talk to an attorney.  They will often work with you on a flat fee or a payment schedule.  If this is still beyond your means, Legal Aid can probably help you.  The important thing is that you make sure to consult with an elder attorney to be sure your paperwork is legally binding.
     If you think hiring an elder attorney will be expensive, consider the $5000 and 60 days you’ll spend on a court-order for guardianship, which is often what a bank or other institution will require if the other documents are not sufficient.  Also, note that spending money on attorney’s fees may diminish your assets so that you qualify for Medicaid.  An elder attorney specializes in estate planning with an emphasis on health care and caregiver issues, usually working toward in-home care.  A will is technically legal if it’s signed by two witnesses, but trusts are complicated, and an attorney can ensure that loopholes don’t thwart your intentions.

Organized: Go for chronological order.  Keep your current material on top, and keep everything together.  Organizational tools include accordion files, scanned files kept on a jump drive, and on-line archives, such as Mayo Clinic’s patient account.

Current: Even a living will can be changed when your elder’s wishes change.  This is why, for example, a hospital may call you in the middle of the night to confirm that your dad’s living will reflects his current wishes if you are his healthcare surrogate or why you may find yourself faxing a document to a healthcare facility in another state after life-prolonging measures have begun against your loved one’s living will statements (because without them in hand, the doctors had to treat).  This is also why when designating a healthcare surrogate, it’s important to choose someone who will honor the decisions you have communicated when you cannot communicate your wishes in that moment, someone who will ask questions.  Conditions change.  Minds change.  You have to remain flexible. Make Medicare your primary health care provider and your group benefits (even post-retirement) the secondary.  This will help you streamline processing and avoid tons of unnecessary paperwork for filing claims.

Communicated/Shared/Accessible: Who is on the support team?  The doctor and other healthcare providers?  Siblings?  An elder care attorney?  Get copies of the essentials, keep files in a place where others on the team can access them, and communicate when changes and additions are made.

Verified: Be persistent in documenting everything and assuming nothing.  Keep names on file.  Always verify records.  Double check medication lists. 

     Clarify.  Ask questions.  Write it down.

Portable: If you have them, carry x-rays and medical records to appointments.  Don’t rely on the health care providers to communicate with each other; be sure all relevant information is available to any who may need it.  And keep those conversations going.

To apply for Medicare, start here.
To apply for Medicaid, start here.
To apply for Veterans Affairs benefits, start here. 

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Special thanks to Ashley Trapp, JCCI Forward Executive Committee member, for facilitating!

Our Am I My Parents' Keeper? conversations continue Thursday, July 19, 11:30-1:00 at JCCI.  Join us to learn how financial planning can affect long-term care and end of life options. Lunch is provided.  Please RSVP!

Visit the Am I My Parents' Keeper? site for audio recordings of each session, links to resources, and a calendar of speakers.

Remember when The Jetsons was a futuristic show?  Well, not only do we finally have flying cars, but in terms of elder independence and health, more importantly, we also have—for your Fido or Astro—electronic feeders and doggie treadmills!  This means that you or your caregiver can “walk the dog” by pushing a button, allowing someone with limited mobility or dementia-related disorientation to keep a beloved furry companion, whose presence can improve health and quality of life.

Other high-tech and smart-design products promise to make life for elders—and their caregivers—easier.  With more and more elders hoping to be able to “age in place,” the Baby Boomer-driven market is responding.  Products such as robotic vacuum cleaners and bathtubs with doors allow for greater independence for longer.  Fold-up scooters that can be checked as luggage on a plane, and even personal mobility vehicles that you steer by shifting your weight are becoming available.

Soon, you may even see people with mobility impairment able to walk with the help of HAL (I know!), a device that responds to brain signals and functions like a powerful exoskeleton.

Caregivers can even monitor elders from afar with the help of personal sensors and monitoring systems.  When I’m an independent elder, specialized motion detectors can monitor my movements and note when something changes, including whether or not I’m opening the refrigerator and remembering to prepare myself meals.  The same technology that my Wii Fitness program uses to announce that I need to work on balancing my stance (thanks for nothing, years of ballet as a child!) will help me monitor my level of balance control and alert my health care surrogate when a wobble indicates a potential health problem.

Smartphone apps will certainly help me age in place, too.  Med Minder for Android and Pill Reminder for Apple devices are already available.  Current research efforts explore how smart phones can even interact with responsive sensors and video monitors to create a smart home that does everything from reporting when an elder strays from home to playing pre-recorded messages from family members:  “It’s time to have a glass of water, Mom.”  “The food is burning, Grandpa.”

I remember when computers first became available in schools.  We got to program a triangle with commands like “FWD 10 and RT 3” to draw a bent line on the screen.  It took about twenty minutes to draw a stick figure or a house that we would then print on a dot matrix printer, feeling like astronauts.  Now my middle-of-the-road smart phone can fetch me a website with a voice command.  The new Galaxy smart phone can detect eye movements and dim the screen to save power when you look away.  Imagine how in the coming years this kind of technology will feature in smart home applications, further promoting elder independence.  The technological future of elder care is bright.  I think I’ll wear shades—or—when my eyesight begins to decline, digitally focusing eyeglasses.

For now, though, even a simple GPS tracking bracelet and a cell phone line with Skype capabilities can give you and your elder (or, if you’re the elder, you and your concerned family members or team of caregivers) a relatively inexpensive means to independent living, not to mention convenient but still connected communication.  Say I’m an elder who likes to meet my friends at Starbucks for coffee and cards.  My son—or a friend or hired caregiver—can see from the cell phone record that I placed a call to the senior taxi service, and he can watch my GPS dot to see that I rode there and stayed an hour.  My caregiver can see that I have placed three thirty-minute calls to close friends in a given day, so I may not need frequent check-ins to prevent isolation that day.  However, if my GPS dot has not moved from the couch since this morning, or if my family has checked in using the webcams in the living spaces, my boy may want to Skype in and say, “Hey, Mom.  Want to meet on my lunch hour for a walk?”

The internet can deliver tasty and easy-to-prepare meals.  If distracted cooking is a problem, we can get a device that turns off the stove.  If I’m on medications and might be likely to double or skip dosages, a smart phone app may not be enough.  Instead of trying to dash home in time to stop me from taking my fifteenth blood pressure tablet or arguing that for my safety I’ll need to be relocated to a facility where staff can supervise me, we can get a digital pill dispenser with locks, timers, and reminders.  For intimate care, bidets have been around since the 17th century, and I'll let you do your own Google search for the newest high-tech version of your choosing.  

Robots may not be able to do everything people can (though they can be more precise and reliable, and for intimate care, they may be preferred), and they also cannot provide human companionship, but they can alleviate loneliness to a degree and promote health and independence.  In one study, robot dogs had almost as significant an impact as live ones.  Nothing compares to human touch and human interaction, and critics question the digital outsourcing of care, but if Grandma is smiling at her digital puppy’s tricks, why not encourage this attachment?  Paro, a plush baby harp seal robot, a medical device with proven health impacts, such as reduced stress proteins measured in urine samples, is being used with success in nursing homes.

Between elder independence and caregiver responsibility, digital technology can bridge gaps, make once contentious conversations moot, prevent many serious crises, and increase convenience, independence, and--many will say--dignity.  My mom is on Facebook, and she text messages my nephew.  She is embracing the technology that will help her stay in her home, but even if she were not, I’m glad the internet can deliver me all this information as her potential caregiver.  I’m looking forward to aging in place, waking to pancakes made by my digital food server and laughing at the latest jokes my Johnny Depp companion robot tells me while he checks my blood pressure and dispenses my morning meds.

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Our Am I My Parents' Keeper? conversations continue Thursday, July 12, 11:30-1:00 at JCCI.  Join us to learn how to navigate and organize paperwork ranging from establishing advanced directives and power of attorney to applying for Medicare.  Lunch is provided.  Please RSVP!

Visit the Am I My Parents' Keeper? site for audio recordings of each session and a calendar of upcoming speakers.