Family Service Association is at work year ‘round to protect our vulnerable senior citizens. Our outreach includes in-home personal care services for older adults; counseling; case management; and resources referral for professionals and families to identify resources for the best individual care.
Every day, dozens of trained Senior In-Home Personal Care assistants fan out to homes and apartments throughout our city to help frail, ill and disabled senior folks maintain their independence. These Family Service employees have a mission. “It’s my calling,” says Sherry Gonzalez, who recently saved a client’s life.
November 22, 2013 seemed like an ordinary day. Sherry had scheduled her weekly appointment to help Mrs. Jackson with light housework, errands, cooking and personal care. But Mrs. Jackson didn’t answer the door or the phone or respond to Sherry’s insistent knocking on the bedroom window. “I saw her car in the parking lot and I knew she was home and knew she must be in trouble,” Sherry said.
Sherry begged the apartment management to open Mrs. Jackson’s door and refused to leave until they checked on her client. Eventually, her persistence, coupled with the intervention of her supervisor, won out and the manager forced entry into Mrs. Jackson’s apartment. There they found her in a diabetic coma. EMS was called and sprang into action, stabilizing her and transporting her to the hospital where she remained under observation for four days.
“My blood sugar was 20, my body temperature was 76, my potassium level was 1.2 and I was delirious and close to death,” Mrs. Jackson tells us. “It’s a miracle. Sherry saved my life.”
Every day, we receive calls from frantic children, spouses and clergy who are worried about a senior family member or friend. As an agency with multiple services, we can either help them directly … or give them referrals to agencies that can answer their concerns.
“Family Service has been meeting the needs of the community for 111 years and we have been providing in-home services to seniors for 40 years. Our longevity sets us apart, and our commitment is extraordinary. Everyone who does this job at our agency feels the mission in our hearts. We love what we’re doing and we care deeply about our clients. They are like family to us,” says Director of Senior Services of Family Service, Ron Flores.
For more information about Family Service and Senior Services, call 210-299-2443 or visit www.family-service.org.
Family Service has once again partnered with the City of San Antonio to provide youth an opportunity to work, save, learn and grow through the summer Youth Career Opportunity program. “While families are struggling to make ends meet and one in three youth drop-out of school, this program allows youth to gain valuable work experience and develop healthy saving habits to ensure they are prepared for the future” Family Service President/CEO said.