CarePOD

Karen Williams is a Devoted Wife and Woman of God who grew up in Pemberton, NJ and currently resides in Willingboro, NJ with her husband, Eric of over 18 years. She has always had a passion to help those who have been tossed to and fro from the storms of life and guide them to getting their lives back on track. This fire was ignited when the world was faced with the Global Pandemic in March 2020 and so many people, including herself, were hurting, feeling stuck, holding on to toxic secrets and crippled by fear of the unknown. During those uncertain times, she had an overwhelming desire to empower and encourage people, especially hurting women and completed the training to become a Certified Christian Life Coach through the Freedom Bible Institute and Seminary in November 2020. As a result, the “Friday Five Minute FaithLift” was birthed and started on January 1, 2021 on Facebook Live. Both women and men have testified about how these 5 minutes of Faith have helped and encouraged them to get through these uncertain times we currently live in. In addition, she was prompted to launch her business, “Coach K Secret Place, LLC'' in June 2021 which provides spiritual wellness coaching to women from all walks of life. She also endeavors to provide help and hope for the caregivers of loved ones with Alzheimer’s. This life-changing book was written with them in mind. In addition, she is a contributing author of the collaboration book entitled “Girl, Boss Up and L.E.A.D. She believes that people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.

Michele Boggs has been a registered nurse for 13 years. Her career in healthcare began as a unit secretary in a busy emergency department. She then transitioned to a ED tech while attending nursing school. Once an RN, she worked at various emergency departments in south jersey. She also worked as a pediatric nurse case manager at an inpatient behavioral rehabilitation center. Today, she works as a nursing supervisor in the hospital where she first got her start in healthcare. She is also currently preparing to begin her clinical rotations for her MSN-FNP. Once graduated, she plans to work in primary care.

Srividhya Swaminathan is the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies at St. John’s University in Queens, NY. She is the oldest child of Indian immigrants and has lived in New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C. Her parents made sure that she visited India regularly as a child and travel is an integral part of her identity. She shares her caregiver experience and how her family heritage has shaped her decision making.

Kelly Redman was born and raised in Southern New Jersey. She grew up in a single-parent home during her early childhood years where her father gave her and her siblings the best life he could afford to give. Throughout Kelly’s early teenage to young adult years, she had not learned nor had the desire to learn how to manage money until her late twenties. During that time, Kelly had accumulated credit card debt, loans with no savings, budget, or any financial goals whatsoever. Years later after she decided to not only take budgeting classes, but also facilitate them at her church, Kelly developed a passion to help others who also struggled with money management. In 2020, Kelly authored a book entitled “Making Good Cents, Go from Penniless to Prosperous,” and a year later MGC Budget Coaching, LLC, a 90- Day Budget Coaching Program, was birthed to help people stay consistent with their money goals, while also developing a budget to stay on track with those goals. Kelly's mission is to assist others in breaking free from financial bondage by equipping and teaching them how to properly manage their personal finances.

Karen Grant is a native of Burlington, New Jersey. She was blessed to be raised by Christian parents who were nurturing and loved their children deeply. When her father became ill, it was a very challenging time for her family. However, it was her honor to join with her siblings in caring for him until the Lord called him home. Heartbroken from the loss of her father, Karen was grateful to still have her mother in her life. Then, just about 6 months later, her mother passed away suddenly. Losing both parents in such a short length of time has been heartbreaking, but the lessons learned from the journey with both parents have blessed Karen to be a blessing to others on a similar journey with their parents.

We welcome James Pratta to the CarePOD community to discuss the dos and don'ts of care in the Emergency Department. How to understand the family role when advocating for your loved one in case of an Emergency and managing expectations between the clinician and community. James Pratta brings two decades of knowledge as an Emergency Department Lead Physician Assistant to our discussion. He holds an additional Masters of Health Science and a background as an Occupational Therapist prior to his career as a Physician Assistant.

Inviting David and Anne to the CarePOD to discuss Aging Well, Their own choices in the caregiving journey and how they plan to be successful in writing their own Aging Chapter. David Stern has a solid background in helping the senior population make
decisions about their over 65-helath care insurance (Medicare and Meidcaid0.
He is a licensed broker in Penn, and stays current with the enormous amount
of complicated information that often overwhelms people. Knowing how to
explain the realistic choices is something David is constantly commented
upon. David’s personal experience with his elderly mother was the force that
propelled him to work with seniors. He saw that the choices she made not only
saved her and the family money but also alleviated the stress of caring for
someone long distance.Anne Weisbord has a solid background in training, coaching and public
speaking.  For over 20 years she has conducted programs on career
management and leadership development. She taught Communication in the
MBA Program at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and in
the Wharton Executive MBA Program. At the same time as working, for almost
a decade she was heavily involved in the care of her elderly parents. At first,
her parents lived in Florida in independent living, but as the years went by and
they needed more attention, Anne and her husband, David Stern, decided to
move them closer to them and find a facility that would allow them to have a
good quality of life. Once found, Anne made sure she stayed active in the daily
care. Decisions about elderly care are not easy, but taking care of
yourself—whatever that looks like—is the most important decision. You cannot
take care of someone else unless you take care of yourself first.#GrowingOldTogether #LoveThroughTheYears #AgingGracefully #ForeverTogether #CoupleGoals #EndlessLove #LoveStory #TogetherForever #GoldenYears #SeniorLove #LifePartners #LoveAndCompanionship #TimelessRomance #AgingWithGrace #ElderlyCouples

Sitting with Author Angela McClain as she shares her journey as an author and how the early seed of influence by elders in her life and caregiving has directed her current path#CaregiverAuthor #AuthorLife #CaregiverCommunity #WritingAboutCaregiving #BooksOnCaregiving #CaregiverJourney #SupportForCaregivers #HealingThroughWords #EmpowerCaregivers #StoriesOfCaregiving #CaregivingWisdom #InspirationForCaregivers #WritingToHeal #CaregivingBooks #AuthorAdvocate

Home Sweet Home and how do we keep it that way? What modifications do we need to think about and address as we age? What does this look like in the multigenerational household? Listen in as I sit with David Boudwin, CEO BDP construction #MultigenerationalHomeTrends #MultigenerationalLiving #FamilyLiving #HomeDesignForAllAges #IntergenerationalHomes #HomeTogether #SharedSpaces #FamilyFirst #GenerationalLiving #InclusiveDesign #CoHousing #LivingInHarmony #FamilySupportSystems #SustainableLiving #AdaptableHomes

Sitting With Beauty Expert Nakeara Bond reflecting on the importance of focusing on our inner Beauty and Taking our Self-Care Back! #ReclaimYourBody #ReclaimYourPower #BodyPositivity #EmpowermentJourney #SelfLove #TakeBackYourPower #BodyAcceptance #HealingJourney #EmbraceYourself #MindBodySpirit #StrengthInSelf #OwnYourStory #ConfidenceIsKey #LoveYourselfFirst #TransformYourLife