Kiersten Downs, a U.S. Air Force veteran and one of this year’s Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund recipients, recently welcomed a group of family caregivers to Elle Pea Acres, her flower and alpaca farm in Groton, Tompkins County, for the farm’s first Family Caregiver Flower U-Pick and Bouquet Making Retreat.
Caregivers spent the afternoon walking rows of sunflowers and zinnias, making bouquets, meeting the farm’s alpacas, and trading stories. Kiersten said the retreat had been an idea of hers since buying the farm, and that it exceeded every expectation. “Building community is beautiful,” she wrote afterward.
Thank you, Caregiver Action Network
The retreat was made possible by Caregiver Action Network (CAN), the nation’s leading family caregiver organization. CAN provides education, peer support, and resources to family caregivers of every kind, from parents of children with serious health needs, to spouses and families of wounded service members, to adult children caring for aging parents. Their support turned Kiersten’s idea into an afternoon of rest for people who rarely get one. The Marigold Gardens also led a bouquet workshop for attendees.
Caring for the caregivers
Behind many veterans is a spouse, parent or child who helps manage appointments, medications, and daily life. That work often goes unseen, and caregivers tend to put their own health last. November is National Family Caregivers Month, the same month we honor veterans, which makes it a good time to check in on the caregivers you know. Offer a meal, an afternoon off, or just ask how they are doing.
If you are a caregiver looking for support:
- CAN Caregiver Help Desk: (855) 227-3640 or caregiveraction.org/helpdesk
- VA Caregiver Support Line, for anyone caring for a veteran: (855) 260-3274, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern
Congratulations to Kiersten and Elle Pea Acres, and thank you to every caregiver who came out.
