A Portrait of Care

“She gave us life, helped raised our children and now I am only doing for her what she would do for any family member that needed help.”

Iris gave up her career at age 59 to take care of her mother, Maximina, who suffers from multiple ailments – any of which could mean life in a nursing home. But Iris is determined to keep her mother at home, where she wants to be, and out of costly institutional care.

Iris isn’t alone. In Louisiana, 660,000 caregivers perform a labor of love every day caring for older parents, spouses, and other loved ones. Each year, they spend 615 million hours helping with bathing and dressing, meals, chores, transportation and more – like complex medical tasks including wound care, giving injections, and complicated medication management. This unpaid care is valued at about $6.5 billion a year. But we know this care is invaluable.

AARP believes family caregiver stories aren’t celebrated nearly enough.

As we fight for commonsense solutions to support family caregivers – like help at home, workplace flexibility, training and more – we think it’s time the world got a better picture of just what it means to be you.

To honor and recognize family caregivers all around the country, AARP will randomly select one caregiver from each of the 53 U.S. states and territories to receive a Portrait of Care, an artist’s painting of you and your loved one.

Share your story and photo with us at aarp.org/iheartcaregivers

Watch to learn more about Portraits of Care:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpEiZC4McbE&list=PLErIJrtiGWSzApcdW0WyMv2oJu2G3JrVB&index=340[/youtube]

If you are a family caregiver, you’re not alone.

• Find the tools and support you need, as well as ways to connect with other caregivers at org/caregiving.
• See the stories behind Portraits of Care, and share your own story and photo with us at org/iheartcaregivers.