Our Philanthropy: WomanSage Cares
Caregivers Cruisin' 2008
"It’s like being in summer camp!" giggled one of the travelers on the Caregiver Cruise as she posed for a photo. "I haven't felt this free for a long time."
Twenty caregivers left their duties behind for a five-day, four-night cruise to Ensenada, guests of WomanSage Cares. After the first hours of initial concern about leaving their loved ones in the care of someone else, the WomanSage sponsored cruisers could barely be distinguished from the 2,000 others aboard the Carnival Fun Ship. They had no choice, really, because they were at sea and couldn't get back. So they relaxed and each one did his or her thing.
Some read entire books. Uninterrupted. Some just slept in. Some sat in the sun on deck chairs doing nothing. Some exercised in the well-appointed gym.
One took a very, very long shower, thrilled to not have the "minute-by-minute-shower-curtain-pull" by her husband with questions about "what's for lunch?" or "when will you be done?" His dementia blocks the answers as soon as he hears them so he asks the same questions over and over. She did stop the long showers after she heard they were a no-no on the water conserving cruise list of "dos and don'ts."
They were free to enjoy every activity available onboard the ship and in each port from excursions and shopping on Catalina Island and in Ensenada, gambling in the casino into all hours of the night, the stage productions and shopping. And eating. Lots of eating. There were the buffets, the snack bars, room service and the nightly seating at which everyone dressed up and dined on a wonderful full course dinner.
One woman refused to consider the cruise when she was first referred because she had nothing to wear on a cruise. Caring for her husband with dementia and a list of other illnesses since 1992, she literally had little that she felt she could pack. With a generous donation from Working Wardrobes, including a personal volunteer shopper who helped her with accessories and the right colors, she was one of the best dressed on the cruise.
On the morning of the last day, she took her blood pressure and tested her sugar levels. They were normal for the first time in many years! The few days away brought enough reduction in stress and anxiety to have this profound effect on her.
There are many more examples but it can be said that the third annual WomanSage Cares Caregiver Cruise, was a success once again.
A huge thank you goes to Dr. Alfred J. Gobar, major donor for this philanthropic project. He knows the path of the caregiver from his own experience and he knows that they all need a few "days off" to refresh and renew. He established the caregiver fund in honor of his first wife, Dr. Sally Gobar, for whom he cared for many years.
If you are interested in joining Dr. Gobar by making a gift to the WomanSage Cares program so that we may continue and expand this service, please know that you are free to do online here. Make a donation in honor of Dr. Gobar or in honor of someone else who understands the need for respite.
A grateful thank you, too, for the hours and hours of tender loving attention to the travel arrangements for the cruise go to WomanSage member, Dee Muir, who helps package, market and coordinate the Caregiver Cruise each year.
Others we thank for making the cruise possible are:
- Alzheimer's Family Services Center, Huntington Beach
- Alzheimer's Association of Orange County
- Atria Senior Living, Irvine
- Care Connections, Huntington Beach
- Orange Caregiver Resource Center
- Orange County Office on Aging
- Silverado Senior Living
- UCI Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia
