Caregiving in Community: It Takes a Village

We are pumped to dive into our topic of the month: Caregiving in Community. To open the show, Megan shared a Yiddish Proverb for the quote this week: "God gave burdens, He also gave shoulders." We like to think of shoulders as our own and the shoulders of others. As social beings, we need the support of each other to make it through the mess of life. We both shared the importance of having chosen family and of creating community with our caregiving experiences.  Here is our caregiving news: More states are and are also considering additional ways of providing support to caregivers. Here's what Oklahoma is doing.  https://states.aarp.org/oklahoma/what-oklahoma-family-caregivers-need-to-know-about-the-caring-for-caregivers-act For the 2024 tax year, unpaid family caregivers will be able to claim up to $2,000 or $3,000 in tax credits for out-of-pocket costs incurred for eligible expenses, depending upon the person for whom they are providing care. New York state is considering new legislation that would increase the amount of family leave time allowed under New York’s program to 26 weeks and allow for 100% wage replacement.  https://www.observertoday.com/news/top-stories/2024/01/legislation-to-expand-nys-paid-family-leave-proposed/ Yay for the states who are putting their money where their mouth is. Caregivers need all of the support--social, financial, emotional.  Megan mentioned land grant universities, and here is a link to learn more: https://www.aplu.org/about-us/history-of-aplu/what-is-a-land-grant-university/ Thanks for taking time to join us for this episode!