Robbyn R. Wacker - Community Resources for Older Adults: Programs and Services in an Era of Change

Fifth Edition

I am dedicating this book to

Jani Malkiewicz, who, after 30 years, continues to be a steady and loving source of encouragement to me in all of my endeavors;

my UNC friends and colleagues whose support I am grateful to receive; the wonderful UNC Office of Development and Alumni team at the Judy Farr Center;

Dr. Robert C. Dickeson, a wonderful mentor and colleague, for his guidance and wisdom; and

finally, to my mother, Alta Wacker, who shared and modeled her passion for education and belief in its power to change lives and communities.

RRW

I am dedicating this book to my husband, Steven Sheetz, for his never-ending love, support, and encouragement as I pursue the multiple facets of my academic career, as well as for making coffee in the early morning hours when most of my writing gets done, for the calming candlelit dinners to end each day, and for spending long weekends at the lake house to ensure I take time to decompress and reenergize.

KAR

We both dedicate this book to the people who have chosen a career in gerontology and who work tirelessly and with compassion to provide older adults the support they need to live with the dignity they deserve in the last years of their livesthank you.

RRW

KAR

Programs and Services in an Era of Change

Fifth Edition

Students preparing for careers in gerontology and related areas need more than a description of existing community resources available for older adults. They need to understand how programs come to exist through federal legislation, who uses these resources, how they are delivered, and the challenges service providers face in meeting the needs of the aging baby boom cohort.

We have developed a text that gives students a basic understanding of aging policy that created the aging network and of theories that can be used to explain help-seeking behavior. Each chapter provides the reader with a summary of the legislation behind the development of pivotal programs and services, an in-depth review of the programs and services provided by the aging network and the private sector, current scholarship in each topic area, and international, national, and Internet resources. Students will learn to identify the challenges inherent in providing services to older adults through case studies, learning activities, and best-practice models. Instructors can use these learning activities to stimulate critical thinking about program and service delivery and to explore what changes might be needed to support future generations of individuals and families in their later years. We hope that Community Resources for Older Adults is a text that both students and faculty enjoy.

As is typical of a project of this magnitude, many people have helped us along the way. Some did so willingly, others by default because they were in the right (or maybe wrong) place at a time that we needed help. We would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge those persons who made undertaking the revisions for this edition a pleasant and manageable experience. First, we thank students and staff members at the University of Northern Colorado (UNC) and at the Center for Gerontology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) for all their help in collecting articles, tracking down the latest statistics and references, and offering feedback. They include gerontology faculty at UNC, Drs. Susan Collins and Joyce Weil, and gerontology students at UNC, and Emily Hoyt, Shelby Borowski, Anna Harris, Kevin Lancki, and Drew Vipperman from Virginia Tech. Our administrative staff, Carlene Arthur, Valerie Kalos, and Yancey Crawford, supported us in many ways. We appreciate the assistance of Sharon Larson, Region VIII Administration on Aging, for providing so much information on the Older Americans Act and its history. Thanks to Linda Piper, former director of the Weld County Area Agency on Aging, who was our co-author for the first two editions of the text.

We are also indebted to the reviewers who offered their insights for the fifth edition: Patricia Anafi, SUNY Potsdam; Anita Glee Bertram, University of Central Oklahoma; Dean Blevins, University of Louisiana at Monroe; Patricia K. Cianciolo, Northern Michigan University; Renee Michelsen, University of Southern California; Susan A. Myllykangas, Northwest Missouri State University; and Laura J. Perry, University of Florida.