Social media offers solace and support for boomers, aging parents,those with special needs

 Maury Middlebrooks is one of those boomers with a big heart and now she needs the outreach from others in selling our house so she can care for her mother full time.[/caption]

Carol Forsloff---At a time when the economy continues to splutter to regain viable footing for most middle class folk, baby boomers often struggle to save money for retirement, pay the mortgage, and plan for their own health care needs, and at the same time care for aging parents. It becomes especially complicated when that aging parent needs special care and requires the boomer to sell a home and move, as is happening with Maury Middlebrooks in Florida.



Maury represents a generation of folks whose obligations for caring for aging parents requires financial sacrifice. In this case, selling a house in an urgent manner might mean a financial loss and surely a struggle for someone who has personal needs and priorities that must be put aside to be a caregiver. But taking responsibility for her mother, whose health concerns are now paramount, is an important priority for Maury who believes in the values that for many people seem to be drifting away in favor of simply putting a parent in a nursing home or assisted living center.



The kind of difficulties Maury presently faces is similar to many other people who are faced with selling a home in one area to move to another to care for a family member. And like others, Maury has the foresight to use community resources; and in the world of the Internet, social media expands the community in such a way that help can often come from many directions and from people one may never have known personally but who form friendships that can make a difference when someone has a special need.



On Facebook, as an example, the woman with cancer describes her treatment, her pain, and the joys of seeing her family and being able to go home from the hospital as a celebration. While people read of her suffering, they also read of her courage and ability to share how she copes with some of the worst cancer symptoms by reaching out to others. And it is a social media platform like Facebook that can allow someone like Maury to reach out in the same way with her own dilemma, selling that house in Florida as quickly as possible in order to take care of her beloved mother.



The announcement on Facebook reflects the value of social media for people like Maury and the gentle Southern lady who offers her personal observations and thoughts while undergoing cancer treatment. Maury's mother also has cancer, so the sharing has a practical bent as well as letting people know the need for emotional support as well. The struggles faced by someone like Maury can bring people together in ways just as real as a neighborhood in a small town where people pull together to solve problems, which is why Maury's sharing touched the hearts of many of her friends with this request:

"I am trying to sell my house in Tallahassee, Fla. My mother in Pensacola, Fla. is living with stage 4 breast cancer and needs a full time caregiver (me). She does not want any other help at this time. That's fine with me but I have been driving back and forth for about 6 months now living between two places. My home in Tall. is about to fall apart, most my pets have been scattered different ( safe) places because I can't be everywhere at once. I am depending on people who have gone all out for me. But I am running out of steam and money --"-

While baby boomers like Maury work tirelessly to help a family member, many people are content to let someone else step in and manage the affairs of their parents, even in those situations where the parents cannot help themselves. It is the kind of society where the exigencies of the day require people to be 24/7 with almost everything, so it is difficult to fit in the care of an aging parent. So for those who are dedicated to providing the service, and putting their personal lives on hold while doing it, that extra support can be helpful.

A real estate agent and the combined efforts of readers and their friends and a hopeful heart can make a difference in someone's life, when there are difficulties like those facing Maury right now. It is testament to the value of social media---as well as the writer's pen---and the humanitarian nature of a magazine where hope literally springs eternal when there is someone in need. And for those who want a sweet home in the country in Florida, this just might be the right match as well.

For everyone there is a time when life seems more complicated than at other times and when a moment of support from a friend or a group of friends on social media can lend that helping hand. While many people consider social media like Facebook a boor, unnecessary drivel or simply a place to post pictures of one's pets, it's important to know that there is the kind of support one neighbor gives another right at one's fingertips, that might just make that world of difference someone needs.

And that sweet little house in the country can be seen right here:  Maury's House with a little peek from this picture:

Maury's home, just for the right person