An Oasis Nearby

Lion Ruth Heaney

In days long ago, mom and dad were taken care of by their family and might remain in the house where they were reared as they aged. Today, that is not the case. A bit of context may help.

A chart from the U.S. Census Bureau is enlightening: In 1800, 6 percent of the U.S. population was urban and 94 percent was rural. Families on the farms and homesteads were contained units with everything that was needed, including children to help run the farm and take care of family members of different ages, as necessary. Transportation was slow and the doctor traveled to the patient.

Urban population compared to rural population in the same U.S. Census Bureau creeps slowly along, but there are significant shifts.

One consequential change appeared in 1900, when data showed that 40 percent was urban and 60 percent was rural. In 1950, the numbers were reversed: 60 percent was urban and 40 percent was rural. By 1990, 75 percent was urban and 25 percent was rural.

Facts from the website https://www. seniorliving.org/history/1800-1990- changes-urbanrural-us-population/ paint this picture: “The life expectancy of a man ranged from 33 years to 47 in 1900, and very few people made it to old age. Only four percent of people born in 1900 made it to age 85 and 10 to 12 percent to age 65. Old age and senior care were rare.”

In 2022, according to blogs.cdc. gov/NCHS, “The life expectancy at birth for the U.S. population in 2022 was 77.5 years. In the same year, the life expectancy at birth for men is 75 and the life expectancy at birth for females is 81.”

In 1965, Medicare and Medicaid came to be, and medicine felt a seismic shift. The idea of a nursing home began in 1970, and hospice care began in 1974. Today, there are a myriad of possibilities, but assisted senior living is a popular choice.

According to the National Survey of Residential Care Facilities, there are now 31,000 assisted-living facilities nationwide, housing almost 1 million seniors.

Reviewing the senior living options now available to senior citizens can make them and their caregivers throw up their hands in despair. How do they navigate the possibilities open to seniors as they are living longer and in better health thanks to modern medicine?

Fortunately, there are professionals who know the ins and outs of senior living options. Ms. Kristie Kidd is one of those professionals. She has received a hospice tenure and has become an assisted living community executive director. On a personal level, she was the principal caregiver for her grandmother who had Alzheimer’s for eight years, as well as for her grandfather for eleven years when he could no longer live by himself. These experiences led Ms. Kidd to establish the Oasis Senior Living Advisors in 2018. Jason Vaughn, her husband, joined the group in 2023.

Ms. Kidd and Mr. Vaughn, along with their qualified Oasis Senior Advisors, serve areas in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, to “…make senior living simple. Oasis Senior Advisors is here to help. No matter where you go, Oasis makes getting there easy.”

Please join the Lions Club on Wednesday, August 14, at 6:30 p.m., at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Thurmont, when Ms. Kidd will be our speaker. There is no charge, and the meeting is open to the public. There will be a wealth of information to benefit everyone.