Leeza’s Place will be hosting an End of Life presentation on 7/29/10 from 6-7:30pm PST

Viki will be giving an End of Life presentation at Leeza’s Place in Sherman Oaks, CA on 7/29/10 from 6-7:30pm PST

Leeza Gibbons develped Leeza’s Place for both family caregivers and the recently diagnosed with chronic illness or disease, that integrates educational programs, connective social activities, emotional support, and intergenerational programming designed to help you navigate through your community’s continuum of care.

Leeza’s Place was designed to ensure that others would have access to new, supportive settings created for the purpose of educating, empowering and energizing.

The cornerstone of each Leeza’s Place is a specially trained “Leeza Care Advocate” whose primary responsibility is to guide caregivers and their loved ones through the emotionally charged maze of memory disorders: educationally, supportively, and confidently.

Each Leeza’s Place has been carefully crafted to empower both the caregiver and the recently diagnosed by offering services that create self esteem, relieve symptoms, impart knowledge, reduce stress, promote inclusion, and ultimately improve the quality of life while helping you to acquire advocacy, coping and care-related skills.

All of the programs at Leeza’s Place are the direct result of listening to and understanding the unique needs, values, pressures and goals of caregivers and their loved ones. Programs have been designed to provide educational and empowering strategies that are not currently available.

Although services may vary from site to site, each Leeza’s Place locale will provide programs that offer support on three levels – emotional, educational and social – for caregivers, families and their recently diagnosed loved ones.

Leeza’s Place is the signature program of the Leeza Gibbons Memory Foundation. For a list of Leeza’s Place locations across the country, please click HERE.

Have a kind and respectful day.

Viki will be a guest on Winning Life Through Pain radio show with Coach Marla on 7/27/10 at 11am PST

Viki will be a guest on Winning Life Through Pain radio show with Coach Marla on 7/27/10 at 11am PST.

Winning Life Through Pain® is a show that chats with varying types of amazing guests as if they are all sitting around the same kitchen table including chronic Pain/Illness Individuals, Authors, and they chat with the experts as well. Coach Marla believes we all have a journey we must travel through life and it is her mission to make your journey one full of “Laughter, Hope, Knowledge, Fulfillment, and Joy” so you might get through the tough times a little easier!

Coach Marla offers RSD (Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy) coaching as well as hosting the Winning Life Through Pain radio show.

Have a kind and respectful day.

Listen to blogtalkradio’s Healing through Hurt radio show with Maria Wall

Viki will be a special guest on blogtalkradio’s Healing through Hurt radio show with Maria Wall on July 24, 2010 at 8pm PST.

Healing through Hurt Talk Radio with Maria Wall is a subsidiary of The Wall Foundation Inc. a Non Profit community based 501 (c)(3) organization! Serving at risk, vulnerable youth and their families including seniors! Offering a host of programs for families. This year their focus is on women and the challenges they face in their daily lives from abuse and esteem issues to the many health issues they face. Their mission is to empower and uplift real women & men with real stories. Reaching out through Radio to a broader audience of females & males of all ages and ethnic origin. They promise to continue to bring you the absolute best in show guests and topics.

In 2003 Maria Wall, President of the CM Wall Company Inc, saw a need to give our young people a voice and purpose outside of the vicious cycles they were accustomed to in addition to the lack of adult guidance for a host of reasons. Mrs. Wall developed a youth media / professional program that won international awards.

Although Mrs. Wall operated her program under the umbrella of other established non profit programs, she felt a need to do more. Therefore in 2008 she formed The Wall Foundation Inc. An organization that realized these are tough and hard times for our youth and their families. Mrs.
Wall is the little girl with big dreams who grew up to make them reality!

Have a kind and respectful day.

Viki will be featured on Author’s Read radio program 7/26/10 at 9am PST

Viki will be featured on blogtalkradio’s Author’s Read program on 7/26/10 at 9am PST.

The Authors Read radio program is a 15 minute program that offers authors, storytellers and poets a chance to read from their published work. There is nothing like hearing a story told the way the writer intended it to be read… straight from the writer’s lips is even better!

Dave and Lillian Brummet, the hosts of Author’s Read have been writing professionally since 1999 starting out as free lance writers – which they continue to do today. To date, they have written 3 nonfiction published books; Trash Talk, Purple Snowflake Marketing, and Towards understanding.

The main focus of their work is to inspire hope in individuals, helping them realize the value of their efforts and encouraging them to become more positive, proactive in life.

Have a kind and respectful day.

Autumn View Gardens in St. Louis will be hosting a lecture on Caregiving on 7/22/10 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.

Autumn View Gardens in St. Louis will be hosting a lecture on Caregiving on 7/22/10 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.

Autumn View Gardens is a beautiful assisted-living community located on Schuetz Road in Creve Coeur, a suburb of St. Louis, MO. They have a total of 90 private apartments, including companion suites, with a choice among six apartment styles. All apartments feature private bedrooms, kitchenettes, individual thermostats, large closets, and balconies or patios. Apartments range from 300 to 600 square feet.

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Congratulations Winners!!!

Congratulations Winners!!!

Terri Murray
Mitch Feigenberg
Susan Hughes
Laurie Brown
Patricia Raymond
(I will be contacting you for your shipping address.)

Thank you to all the people who wrote and shared your stories with me. You are exactly why I wrote this book. So many people are struggling having to make these tough decisions. My heart is with you.

If you would like to order The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making, the book is available online and at your local bookstore. You can also ask your local library to carry it. (It will take a while for it to get onto the library’s shelf, so if you need it right away, then you should order it for yourself.)

http://www.amazon.com/Caregivers-Path-Compassionate-Decision-Making/dp/1608320413

Have a kind and respectful day.

Viki will be featured on AskMomRN’s radio show on 7/26/10 at 10am

Viki will be featured on blogtalkradio’s AskMomRN’s radio show on 7/26/10 at 10am.

Tamara Walker, RN, the host of MomRN has advice, support, and encouragement to help you on your journey through parenthood. MomRN is walking right alongside you on this path, with two teenage kids of her own. Her eighteen years of motherhood, plus three years as a pediatric nurse, a dozen years as a professional child care provider, and growing up as the oldest sibling of six children has given MomRN a unique variety of parenting experiences and expertise. Her expertise has helped thousands of parents as they strive to be the best parents they can be.

In March 2007, Tamara appeared via video on the Rachael Ray Show providing a helpful parenting tip for a segment on children’s health. She also wrote and starred in “Safety Smarts”, quick safety tips for use between shows for the Smile of a Child television network. Currently, she is a featured writer for Examiner.com and writes articles as the Oklahoma Child Safety Examiner.

The Ask MomRN Show covers a wide variety of parenting, family, safety, and health topics and features several well-known expert guests. Parents are welcome to call in with questions and speak with MomRN and her guests during the show.

Have a kind and respectful day.

Long Term Care Ombudsman of St. Louis will be hosting a presentation on empowering Caregivers to Make Better Decisions on July 22, 2010

Long Term Care Ombudsman of St. Louis will be hosting a presentation on empowering Caregivers to Make Better Decisions on July 22, 2010 from 10am to 12pm.

The Long Term Care Ombudsman Program of Saint Louis (LTCOP), a United Way agency, is part of a nationwide program which began in 1971 in response to public outcry over abuse and neglect in long-term nursing home facilities. Since its inception there are now over 500 Ombudsman Programs across the United States. LTCOP is the area’s most comprehensive resource that serves residents of licensed long-term care nursing homes and their families.

The St. Louis Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program is comprised of professional and specially trained staff and volunteer ombudsman who are assigned to long term care nursing home facilities weekly, getting to know residents and providing advocacy, support, and education about their rights. When requested, ombudsmen act as a voice for resident treatment and care. Ombudsmen can help mediate resolution of grievances and disputes, make referrals and monitor the referrals to see that the problems are resolved. Ombudsman listen to nursing home residents concerns and complaints and work to educate residents about their rights while working with families and facility staff in resolving care and treatment plan issues.

Their mission is “To preserve the quality of life for long-term care residents by empowering residents and their families through education, advocacy and support.”

Have a kind and respectful day.

Lecture at Young at Heart Adult Day Care in St. Louis, MO on July 21, 2010 from 5-7pm

Viki will be speaking at Young at Heart Adult Day Care in St. Louis, MO on July 21, 2010 from 5-7pm.

Research shows that there are thousands of seniors living in our community who do not need a nursing home, but do need help, especially during the day to continue living safely at home.

Young at Heart Adult Day Care provides high quality care for an aging senior, or a family member with a cognitive or physical disability that limits their safety at home. Young at Heart is a good alternative to a nursing home for many people who are not ready to leave their home; and a great option for family members getting worn down with worry and the round the clock commitments of time to provide in-home support.

Owned and operated by Peter Nicolazzi and Laura Bone, Young at Heart Adult Day Care is licensed by the State of Missouri and is a Medicaid Provider. They are also members of the Missouri Adult Day Services Association. Pete has a history of over 20 years in a variety of social work settings. Most recent experience in the past 8 years has been working as a geriatric medical social worker in long term care. Voted Best Customer Service Award of 2003 from Barnes-Jewish Extended Care for superior performance and service to Patients, Families, Visitors and Staff. Laura brings 20 years of nursing experience with a specialty in Rehabilitation Nursing. Voted Nurse Manager of the Year of 2001 from Rehab Care Group. Clinical experience include medical/surgical, acute rehabilitation and Emergency Medicine. Laura is a member of the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses. Laura is currently serving as Vice President on the Missouri Adult Day Services Board.

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Booklist Magazine Reviews The Caregiver’s Path!

Whitney Scott of Booklist Magazine review’s “The Caregiver’s Path to Compassionate Decision Making: Making Choices for Those Who Can’t.”

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