It’s time to honor family caregivers As...

It’s time to honor family caregivers

As a former family caregiver who assists family caregivers as a

social worker at an adult day health-care center, I would like to

once again publicize that November is National Family Caregivers

Month.

According to the National Family Caregiver Assn., there is a

disparity between a family caregiver’s quality of life and that of

mainstream Americans. Taking this one step further, while being a

family caregiver to a physically challenged loved one is difficult,

it is more difficult for those who care for cognitively impaired

loved ones.

Speaking from five years of experience taking care of my father

and seeing the toll caregiving takes on the family members of

clients, I can emphatically state just how difficult it was. Unless

you’ve been a caregiver for a loved one with a dementia, you can only

imagine the amount of stress and financial strain a family caregiver

experiences. In fact, the amount of stress is so intense, family

caregivers can die before their loved ones.

Some of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of

dementia can include but are not limited to: memory loss (not knowing

family members, a person, place, or time), inappropriate behavior

(taking one’s clothes off in public), wandering, incontinence issues,

agitation and other behavioral problems.

The general public cannot understand just how heartbreaking being

a parent to one’s parent is for many caregivers. Those who have never

been in the position as a caregiver cannot understand just how

stressful and heartbreaking it is when the parent who once took care

of his or her children for years asks the daughter, “Where is my

daughter? Have you seen my daughter?”

Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia eventually leads to the

death of the care recipient. After care giving ends, it takes a long

time -- sometimes years -- to relieve the stress and other problems

caused by the years of being a family caregiver. However, if there

are financial constraints, it adds more stress, which makes the

family caregivers’ higher quality of life much more difficult.

In honor of family caregivers and the tremendous work they do, say

a prayer, light a candle, and/or offer to help them with their loved

ones. They will appreciate it.

EDEN ROSEN

Burbank

What good neighbor?

As I lifelong horse owner and resident of the Burbank Rancho, I

would like to add my input and support for the views expressed by

Mr. Dunlevie and Mr. Kelley concerning our “good” neighbor at the Los

Angeles Equestrian Center.

When the center was first built, causing us to lose an open place

to work our horses and the only unique cricket field in the area, we

were misled by the now deceased Al Garcia. We were promised a

world-class show facility, access to arenas, and a bridge for the

Glendale Rancho equestrians to cross the river into Griffith Park on

the Easter Field end. We believed these promises and bought into

them. Now, during the entire time the center has been there, we have

had no access to any part of the center, there is no second bridge

across the river, and the center frequently is used for programs that

have nothing to do with horses.

What we now have is an ugly, fenced, private facility, with

ever-increasing gigantic manure berms along one side. Those of us who

are fortunate enough to have our horses on our own property are

required to pay extra to have the manure hauled away, and the local

public stables also used to pay for that service. Moreover, part of

the center has a parking area reminiscent of a used car lot car lot

full of campers and trailers that don’t even belong to the people

that board their horses at the center.

The center was supposed to be horse-oriented, yet there are

offices being constructed for a construction company that runs the

center, and there are many non-equestrian events that were properly

complained about because they bothered people up to at least three

blocks away. Due to the non horse-oriented events which occur on the

same days as horse-oriented events, participants and spectators have

difficulty parking, even if one has paid for exhibitor parking space.

The recent Fiesta of the Spanish Horse, which abided by all the

rules, is an example of the way things should be done. There were no

complaints. It seems as if the more time that goes by, the more the

true purpose of the Equestrian Center becomes blurred and the more

suffering there is by horse owners, including the ones who board

their horses at the center. Now, for example, they have to pay extra

to use the various arenas at the center.

It appears that commercialism and the almighty dollar have

overwhelmed the actual lawful use of the land and are responsible for

a deterioration of what was the protected enjoyment of the land. If

we could only have our voices heard, Mr. Dunlevie and Mr. Kelley and

others similarly situated would, by rights, be able to enjoy life

once again.

KATHLEEN SOLNER

Burbank