Seniors Helping Seniors(R) In-Home Services Establishes Franchise in Palm Beach County

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January 12, 2009 // Franchising.com // Wyomissing Hills, Pa – To help meet the growing demand of older Floridians who want to remain in their own homes and stay as self-sufficient as possible, Seniors Helping Seniors® In-Home Services (SHS) has established a new franchise at Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., that will serve the communities from the Tequesta County line to Belvedere Road and from Palm Beach to Loxahatchee including Wellington and Royal Palm Beach.

Seniors Helping Seniors--which has five regional owners and some 50 franchise partners in Florida, Georgia, New York, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Michigan, Washington and California--is a national caregiver and companionship organization and the only one that matches seniors who need in-home care services with seniors who provide them.

The newest franchise is licensed by the State of Florida as a Homemaker and Companion Service by the Agency of Health Care Administration. The business is owned and operated by Grace Watson of Palm Beach Gardens, who has 30 years of experience caring for seniors as a Registered Nurse. There is also a Seniors Helping Seniors franchise at Dunedin, Florida, that serves Pinellas County.

A native of Milwaukee, Wis., Grace has worked in different levels of nursing and has a passion for taking care of people. She is board certified by the American Nursing Credentialing Center and achieved her Bachelors Degree in Nursing. Grace has worked in acute care hospitals throughout her nursing career and has proudly been the bedside advocate for seniors.

She chose to join Seniors Helping Seniors because she shared its sincere interest in helping seniors. "They are very careful in selecting franchise partners. I, too, want to give seniors hope and the opportunity to remain at home, even after an illness and hospitalization. Seniors Helping Seniors represents the future of home care with its ability to deliver quality, stable and reliable services."

Watson, who managed the daily care of her parents, said hers and other Seniors Helping Seniors franchises could help keep seniors in their own homes. "Growing numbers of our older population said they much prefer living in their own homes rather than moving into institutional care. For most seniors needing a ride to the store or the doctor, or finding help to change a light bulb, means they have to assess a smorgasbord of home health care organizations to help with daily tasks that do not require a home healthcare provider." Grace hopes family caregivers will call and use our services as a respite from being a full time caregiver.

Philip Yocom, who manages the national Seniors Helping Seniors franchise organization, said he is pleased to welcome Watson as a franchise partner. "Grace comes to our Seniors Helping Seniors community with many years of nursing and management experience and a deeply personal knowledge about what it means to be a caregiver for seniors. She will make an excellent addition to our franchise family, people who are dedicated to providing the Seniors Helping Seniors brand of loving, giving, caring and compassionate service and who will fulfill our mission in further expanding our care giving and companionship services in Florida," he said.

Added Watson, "I always wanted a home-based business. I wanted to own a quality home care company that gives its receivers more than what they expect. Seniors Helping Seniors is innovative in promoting senior employment, hiring providers who will be empathetic to senior receivers in need". This business is an enhancement to the Palm Beach County senior community.

Philip Yocom, and his wife, Kiran Yocom, co-founded Seniors Helping Seniors In-Home Services (SHS), which began as a non-profit organization serving Reading and Berks County, Pennsylvania. That first non-profit organization today encompasses more than 250 senior providers helping more than 600 senior receivers. In 2007, the non-profit Seniors Helping Seniors provided nearly 17,000 hours of service.

Philip Yocom said, "What began as a heartfelt mission to fill a need that was not being served by our local community is now being recognized as a prime business opportunity being fueled by the fastest growing demographic in our society."

He said, "We want the existing Seniors Helping Seniors organization and any future franchises to be the first place that seniors in need of non-medical services and those seeking extra income call."

"We will support all our franchisees with all of the expertise we have gained in running Seniors Helping Seniors. We'll also provide marketing, sales, management, and technology support."

He added, "We believe we have found a practical, cost-effective way to help seniors remain independent and to continue contributing. As we grow nationwide, we remain committed to providing our brand of loving, giving, caring, compassionate service."