All Home Care Matters

All Home Care Matters and our host, Lance A. Slatton were honored to welcome Brenda Freed as guest to the show. About Brenda Freed: Brenda Freed, MA, is the co-founder of Mackenzie Meets Alzheimer's, a family-centered educational program created to help children, parents, caregivers, and families better understand Alzheimer's disease and dementia. With a background in music education and music therapy, Brenda brings a compassionate, creative, and accessible approach to helping families stay connected with loved ones throughout the dementia journey. Through Mackenzie Meets Alzheimer's, Brenda helps provide meaningful tools, videos, music, activities, and guidance designed to make difficult conversations easier for children and families. Her work reflects a deep commitment to education, connection, and helping families create positive moments with loved ones living with Alzheimer's or another form of dementia. About Mackenzie Meet Alzheimer's: The Mackenzie Meets Alzheimer's Program (MMAP) is a family-centered, multimedia educational program designed to help parents, children, educators, and healthcare professionals navigate the challenges of Alzheimer's disease. Created especially for families in the "sandwich generation," it provides practical tools, guidance, and meaningful activities that support positive interactions between children and loved ones living with Alzheimer's from diagnosis through the severe stage. The program helps children and their families stay meaningfully connected throughout the journey. At the heart of the program is the Mackenzie Meets Alzheimer's Awareness Program (MMAAP), a 5-video educational series covering each stage of the disease, along with guidance for adults raising children while caregiving. The program also includes a quick reference guide, transcripts, and accessible audio and visual resources to support a wide range of learning needs. Importantly, the MMAAP helps children understand Alzheimer's in age-appropriate ways and gives them simple, meaningful activities they can do with their loved one to maintain connection and nurture the relationship. Complementing the video series is the Mackenzie Meets Alzheimer's Disease Picture Book, a gentle, child-friendly introduction to Alzheimer's. The book follows a young girl learning how to understand and connect with her grandmother as the disease progresses. It includes a QR code for a free Story Song download whose lyrics are the text for the book—making the learning experience engaging, memorable, and accessible for young children and early readers. The complete MMAP is also a valuable resource for Adult Day Centers and Memory Care Communities, offering a ready-to-run educational program for families. It helps answer common questions proactively, reducing the need for staff to repeatedly provide the same explanations. This allows them to focus more on care and connection. Together, the program and book go beyond education—they empower families to create meaningful moments, maintain connection, and build positive memories throughout the course of Alzheimer's and other dementias.

All Home Care Matters and our host, Lance A. Slatton were honored to welcome Jennifer Spoeri as guest to the show. About Jennifer Spoeri, Executive Director, National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA): Jennifer Spoeri is the Executive Director of the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA), a position she has held since August 2021. With over 18 years of experience in Adult Protective Services (APS), Jennifer brings a wealth of expertise in program development, leadership, multidisciplinary teams and advocacy for vulnerable populations. Prior to her role at NAPSA, she served as the APS Director in Philadelphia, PA, where she led the city's APS program and secured one of the first VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) grants designated for APS. Additionally, she was an integral member of the Philadelphia Financial Exploitation Prevention Task Force and the Philadelphia Hoarding Task Force. Jennifer has long been a dedicated advocate for the APS community, having served on NAPSA's Board of Directors for five years before assuming her current role. As Executive Director, she has served on numerous advisory boards, led several major grants, and played a pivotal role in the creation and development of the National APS Training Center. She holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Kentucky and a master's degree in gerontology with a concentration in Healthcare Administration from Notre Dame of Maryland University. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, reading, taking art classes and spending time with family, friends, her partner Kevin and their dog, Beauregard. About the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA): The National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) is a national nonprofit organization that supports Adult Protective Services programs and professionals across the United States. Formed in 1989, NAPSA provides a forum for APS programs to share information, solve challenges, strengthen professional practices, and improve services for older adults and adults with disabilities who may be experiencing abuse, neglect, exploitation, or other forms of mistreatment. NAPSA's work helps elevate the role of Adult Protective Services in protecting vulnerable adults and connecting them with support, safety, and resources.

All Home Care Maters and our host, Lance A. Slatton were honored to welcome Roy Remer as guest to the show. About Roy Remer: Roy Remer is the author of Zen Caregiving: How to Care for Yourself While Caring for Others. An educator and end-of-life caregiver since 1997, he is executive director of Zen Caregiving Project in San Francisco and lead creator of the Mindful Caregiving Education curriculum. A dedicated practitioner in the Soto Zen tradition, Remer is a student at San Francisco Zen Center. About the Zen Caregiving Project: Formerly Known as Zen Hospice Project was founded in 1986 to address suffering in San Francisco. Rooted in Zen Buddhist tradition, we began training volunteer caregivers to serve dying residents at two sites of service. Their world renowned volunteer caregiver training has evolved to become the foundation of our Mindful Caregiver Education, which we teach nationally. In 2015, we began taking our unique approach to care out into the world in order to allow caregivers anywhere to benefit from our course offerings.

All Home Care Matters and our host, Lance A. Slatton were honored to welcome Cory Fosco as guest to the show. About Cory Fosco: Cory Fosco is the author of The Question of When: A Practical Guide to Knowing When It's Time for Assisted Living, Memory Care, or Skilled Nursing. Cory has spent 34 years in long-term care, beginning in social work and admissions and now working in healthcare technology. He is also the author of the chapbook Empty Streets (Alien Buddha Press, 2024), which contains a Pushcart Prize-nominated story, and his short work has appeared in Superstition Review, Hippocampus, and other publications. Cory holds an MA in Creative Nonfiction from Northwestern University and a BA in Creative Writing from Loyola University Chicago. Cory lives in Chicago with his wife Cyndi.

The Care Advocates is brought to you by the All Home Care Matters Media team and focuses on providing family caregivers and their loved ones with support, resources, and discussion on the issues facing them in the matrix of long-term care. The Care Advocates are co-hosted by Lance A. Slatton & Dr. George Ackerman. The Care Advocates are honored to welcome Anne Smith as guest to the show. About Anne Smith: Anne Smith shines a light on the often-overlooked realities of Parkinson's disease and the profound impact it has on both those living with the condition and the family members who care for them. In this powerful conversation with Lance A. Slatton, Anne discusses the growing number of Parkinson's diagnoses, the emotional toll of watching a loved one's health decline, and the financial challenges many families face after stepping away from careers to become full-time caregivers. Her insights offer a candid look at the sacrifices, struggles, and resilience required when navigating life with Parkinson's disease. Anne also addresses one of the most important and sensitive topics in caregiving: caregiver burnout. Drawing from her own experiences and observations within caregiver communities, she speaks openly about exhaustion, sleep deprivation, frustration, and the emotional strain that can accompany caring for a loved one with Parkinson's. This meaningful discussion serves as both an educational resource and a reminder that caregivers need support, understanding, and compassion just as much as those they care for.