Quakers and the Ministry of Elder Care

October Quarterly Meeting

Presentation Summary

Care and support of aging men and women has long been a concern of Quakers.  In the Philadelphia area, starting around 1890, Quaker Boarding Homes sprung up in almost every Quarter.  Western Quarterly Meeting formed Friends Home in Kennett in 1898, catering to aging Quakers, younger Friends isolated from their families, and transients.  Friends Home was completely owned and operated by the Quarter until about 10 years ago, with a Board made up of representatives from each meeting in the Quarter.

Until that period in US history, elder care was the responsibility of the family.  If the family could not be supportive, elders would end up in a poorhouse, or workhouse, or almshouse, were considered “inmates,” and shared space with the insane, the inebriated, the homeless, those with disabilities, mental illness, contagious diseases, incurable illnesses, alongside children and widows.  The elderly were simply categorized as part of the community’s most needy recipients.

These days, with Social Security and pensions (those that still have any balance!) there are many more choices beyond facilities like Friends Home.  Over 90% of aging men and women want to “age-in-place”– stay in their homes as long as possible, and receive whatever supportive services they need from local agencies.  These include the most critical service, care management, as well as home care (help with ADLs – activities of daily living), meals, transportation, and a referral service for other household needs.

Friend’s Home, while still a viable and venerable bricks-and-mortar facility, is considering ways that we can provide those home services, and thus enlarge our caring community outside our walls.  And we also are working on plans to get a larger Quaker presence at our Home!  Come sit on our porch and rock!