As people age, they have various practical matters to navigate. You do not have to have all the answers, but it’s helpful to know there are organizations devoted to helping seniors in a variety of areas from transportation to medical equipment. As you support your faith community — whether they are older adults or adult children dealing with aging parents — we hope this information will help you direct them to useful resources available in most places.

Social Workers

Both clinical and non-clinical social workers can provide support to older adults. Clinical social workers can provide mental health therapy, while non-clinical social workers can talk through transitions and provide guidance on options such as home health services, assisted living and long-term care.

Mental Health Services

Many communities offer behavioral health services for seniors in individual or group settings. In addition to clinical social workers, therapists and counselors can help older adults address feelings of loss, depression, anger and more that can arise as we age. Medicare can even help cover mental health therapy services for qualifying patients.

Area Agency on Aging

Most communities or regions have an Agency on Aging that’s a reliable one-stop-shop for local resources for older adults. These agencies may provide services directly, refer people to outside organizations or help educate people on various topics related to aging. The Manhattan area is served by the North Central-Flint Hills Agency on Aging.

Senior Centers

Like area agencies on aging, local senior centers can provide a variety of services for older adults. Each location is different, but services may include: 

• Meal and nutrition programs
• Health and wellness programs
• Recreational activities
• Art and education programs

The Manhattan area is served by the Riley County Senior Center.

Legal Counsel

Making sure legal affairs are in order is incredibly important as we age. Attorneys will be key in preparing vital documents such as wills, healthcare directives, living wills and powers of attorney. Paralegals can also be helpful members of a legal team. They assist lawyers in creating various documents and provide other support during the estate planning process. Together, they can help guide planning before a health crisis or death, as well as navigate the legal terrain following a death.

Financial Advisors

In addition to managing legal matters, having a solid financial plan is important, but this is about more than the balance in your retirement account. Financial advisors can help you understand and organize information regarding bank accounts, life insurance policies, variable payment life annuities, pensions, benefits like Kansas Medicaid and Veterans Affairs, and more.

Volunteer Centers

Many older adults want to stay engaged and continue to make a positive impact in their communities. Volunteering can be a great way for them to pay it forward. Volunteer centers help match available opportunities with volunteers’ interests and capabilities. The Manhattan area is served by the Flint Hills Volunteer Center. Meadowlark also has volunteer opportunities for older adults.

Continuing Care Communities

At Meadowlark, we pride ourselves on supporting the entire community, not just our residential community. We offer a variety of outreach programs that are open to the public and strive to positively impact the lives of older adults and their caregivers in Kansas. In addition to providing a residential community with varying levels of care—independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing care and post-acute recovery—our services in the greater Manhattan community include:

• Home health and medication management
• Fitness programs
• Volunteer opportunities
• Support programs (memory issues, Parkinson’s disease, caregivers)
• Rehabilitation
• Outpatient therapy
• Physician care

We are available to partner with local churches should you need supportive, educational programing and can also serve as a resource to answer questions and help people navigate some of the questions they face as they age.

“Never hesitate to give us a call. We’ve got such great resources at Meadowlark and we’re always happy to help the community if we can.”

Kristen Martin, Care Transition Leader, Meadowlark