Dear Friend,

WELCOME TO LOTSA COMMUNITY WORKS
It sure has been a long winter season for most of us throughout the country, and our hometown of Boston was no exception! But, if you pay close attention, you can finally feel that signs of spring are here. For many, that means plans for spring break and summer activities with family are well underway. For family caregivers, this kind of respite can be difficult – if not impossible – to come by. Family caregivers – especially those involved with intense, daily caregiving for loved ones – feel very isolated and often can’t envision taking time out for themselves. I was again reminded of this reality from a conversation I recently had with a member of a Lotsa Helping Hands community. Jennifer – a family caregiver to her husband Sean who recently had a stroke also helps with the caregiving duties for her father coping with moderate Alzheimer’s disease. She shared with me that one of her greatest challenges is finding time for self care and respite in her hectic routine. In fact, she has not had more than a few hours break at a time for more than a year, leaving her exhausted and isolated. Unfortunately, stories like Jennifer’s are all too common.

If you know a family caregiver in need of a break, what can you do to help? Here are some ideas.

Offer them an afternoon off where you or someone in their circle of community can visit with their loved one. Purchase a gift certificate for a day at the spa or tickets to a movie. Encourage the family to post respite needs on the calendar in their Lotsa Helping Hands community for eager volunteers to sign up and help.

Wishing you and your community a happy and healthy spring.

     From our community to yours,

          Hal Chapel, Co-Founder & CEO



LOTSA TIPS AND FEATURES

We have several tips to share this month.

1. Changing Your Community Name: Perhaps you’ve decided that you want to change the name of your community after you created it. Coordinators can click on the Administration tab, then click on the Site options link on the next page. Simply enter the new name of your community in the space provided for Site name. (Remember to scroll to the bottom and click Save Changes!)

2. Posting Announcements: The default community home page will display the most recent Announcement sent to members. Many communities prefer a ‘static’ message, which does not change each time a new Announcement is created. To choose this option, Coordinators can click on the Administration tab, and choose the Site options link. Next to the Homepage announcement is a drop-down menu where you can choose a specific message to display instead of the most recent Announcement.

3. Adding your meal after signing up: When signing up to deliver a meal, you have the option to enter what food you are bringing to the family. You can even view what other people are bringing in the days before and after the date you’re signing up for – that way the family doesn’t get the same menu every night! If you don’t know what you’ll be bringing when you first sign up, you can always come back and enter your menu, even after you’ve already delivered the meal. On the Calendar, click on the date and task for which you’ve volunteered. Then click on the Change meal link and you’ll be able to specify the food you’ll be delivering (or have already delivered).

4. Lotsa Resources for You: From your private community web site, visit Lotsa Resources for You. Here, you will find resources from our team as well as information from our partner organizations. Please let us know what resources you would like to see in this section.

5. Lotsa Helping Hands Webinar Series: Our monthly Webinar includes tips about ways to use the service, stories of community support, and helpful ideas for families, and those wishing to support them, during their caregiving journey. Visit our web site to listen and watch one of our archived webinars.

If you have additional questions, contact us at info@lotsahelpinghands.com



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Free, private, web-based communities for organizing friends, family, and colleagues – your 'circles of community' – during times of need. Coordinate activities and manage volunteers with our intuitive group calendar. Easily communicate and share updates using announcements, message boards, and photos. Safely store vital information. Get Started.