In 1983, former President Ronald Regan dedicated the third week in September to raising awareness of the wealth of adult day programs available nationwide and improving accessibility to those programs for families in need of adult day care services. This year’s National Adult Day Services Week takes place during the week of September 21-27, 2008.
NADSA, the National Adult Day Services Association, lists several ways for families to celebrate this week of awareness at their Web site: http://www.nadsa.org/events/nadsw2008.asp.
If you’d like to get involved in this national celebration, read on for a few ways you can observe National Adult Day Services Week in your own community.
• Suggest to your local high school that they select students to partner members of local adult day care center to record oral histories. Forging connections between generations this way can be rewarding for all involved.
• Work with an area newspaper or television station to promote a human interest story about a member of a local adult day care center.
• If you or a member of your family has are familiar with using adult day care services, offer to speak at a local caregiver support meeting and share your experiences.