By Jack Cumming
If you were at the LeadingAge meeting in Atlanta, you likely encountered A.G. Rhodes. A.G. Rhodes is a compassionate caring provider of rehabilitation and other services for aging people who need a bit of assistance to lead full and complete lives. That is a blessing. Their attitude is symbolized in the simple words on their website, “We’re glad you’re here.”
Corporate Insights
I was delighted to meet Kim Beasley during that Atlanta meeting. If you don’t know her, Kim is Director of Community Engagement and Interim Communications Specialist for A.G. Rhodes. A.G. Rhodes early recognized that the nursing home of the past is no longer acceptable. A.G. Rhodes is striving successfully to treat each of its customers as an individual deserving of empowerment. This embracing, loving approach contrasts dramatically with how those facing life’s final passage were too often treated in the past. Some homes still have a warehousing aura about them with patients sequestered in shared rooms with strangers. A.G. Rhodes is changing that attitude toward aging.
A Giving Opportunity
Not long ago, as giving Tuesday neared, I was approached by A.G. Rhodes. They were soliciting donations to support a program called “Songs for Seniors.” The simple concept was that bringing aspiring musicians together with people who respond to music can make lives better for some of our most vulnerable elders. I thought of the gift that Tony Bennett has brought to the world despite his struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. I was moved by the loving relationship between this aging icon of popular music from our elders’ era and Lady Gaga who represents the era of many now in authority.
Music for the Nation
Not surprisingly I immediately sent off a donation. What struck me though was that A.G. Rhodes’s approach is one that our entire nation could benefit from. Surprisingly, the designation for the gift-giving opportunity was “Georgia gives”. How uplifting it would be if our trade associations could take this Georgia program and bring the gift of music widely across our nation to all of those whose lives can be enriched by song.
Kim Beasley shared with me that she has a music degree. I thought how wonderful it is that she can bring together her training and her passion with the gift of music for those who can no longer help themselves. We have so many opportunities to make life’s journey better. It’s inspiring to encounter organizations like A.G. Rhodes that have made that kind of inspiration central to their corporate mission and purpose.
You, Too
Let us hear the story of how your organization is also inspiring a better tomorrow for senior living and better lives for those afflicted by age. Many of those now working in senior living will soon be the beneficiaries of their calling. The joy we bring now to our most vulnerable fellow humans comes back to lift us, ourselves, in the never-ending cycle of human generosity. Click here for music that inspires. Click here to learn of the A.G. Rhodes story. Click here for Songs for Seniors.
