By MICHAEL GIBBS

michaelgibbs@nwherald.com

Ann May faced a dilemma after her 89-year-old mother, Agnes Burbank, finished inpatient rehabilitation for a broken hip.

May wanted Burbank to return to her apartment that connects to the May home. But family members worked jobs they could not quit.

The Mays knew they could not leave Burbank alone for fear that she would fall - something that already had caused her broken hip.

But a growing service industry in the Chicago area allowed the Mays to bring Burbank back home to the apartment they built for her and her husband, Les, who died in 2001.

The Mays were the first client of Angels By Your Side, a Crystal Lake company formed in 2002 that provides nonmedical assistance to those who need help while remaining in their homes.

"We have caregivers with us 24/7," May said "The three caregivers we have do an excellent job. They cook for my mother, do her laundry and her dishes."

The care offered by Angels By Your Side sometimes goes beyond her mother, May said.

"The caregivers care for our family. One night, we had to take Mom to the hospital. The two caregivers with us at the time would not leave the hospital until Mom was set up in her room."

Angels By Your Side is one of several nonmedical caregiving companies that have cropped up in the area over the past few years. Some are franchises of larger operations, while others are smaller businesses started by individuals.

The companies charge about $12 per hour to $18.50 per hour, or between about $130 a day and $160 a day for 24-hour care.

The companies usually do not receive payment from medical insurers. Disability and worker's compensation are two methods of payment. Some clients pay out of their own pockets.

The caregivers are not trained medical professionals. They do undergo detailed background and reference checks, as well on on-site evaluations.

And not all are limited to elderly assistance.

Here is a look at some of the more recent arrivals in McHenry County:

ANGELS BY YOUR SIDE

When Sandy Diesel worked as a nurse, she saw many people placed in nursing homes because they did not have someone to devote the time needed to help them live independently.

That led Diesel to open Angels By Your Side, where she serves as director. The company, a partnership of five family members and friends who grew up in McHenry County, has 55 caregivers on staff.

"Our largest number of clients are seniors," Diesel said. "But we help parents of newborns and also work with individuals who have developmental disabilities or physical handicaps."

Angels by Your Side has 50 clients, more than Diesel said she and partners expected after two years in business.

"We are ahead of where we thought we would be," she said. "This business is growing. We are researching the possibility of opening a residential facility where individuals live in a group setting with caregivers on-site around the clock."

Angels By Your Side also offers a 24-hour medical-alert system that clients can contact through pressing a button located on their wrist or around their neck.

When activated, the system will asses the situation to determine whether paramedics, family or friends need to contacted.

LOVING FAMILY CARE LTD.

During John DeCleene's bout with cancer, his daughter, Gerry Dotson, was unable to find a caregiver who met her standards.

She needed someone to care for her father at home. Without a caregiver, DeCleene moved in with Dotson and her family.

Before he died last year, DeCleene discussed with Dotson ways to make it easier for sick people to be a part of their family's lives. Loving Family Care was the result.

The company, based out of Dotson's home in Cary, opened in January and has 30 caregivers.

"This business is something I need to do in memory of my father," Dotson said. "I also need to do it for myself."

For Dotson, that sometimes means making business secondary.

"I have a client who wants us one hour a week to help bathe her mother," she said. "I do not make money from that, but I am in the business of helping people, not making money."

Dotson gets to know each client and their family.

"That helps me provide a caregiver suitable to the client," she said. "I pop in at all hours of the day. If something is not right or the family is not happy, I replace the caregiver."

PEN-CARE HOME HELPERS

Pen-Care Inc. Home Helpers of Northern Illinois is a 2-year-old Johnsburg company owned by four investors that employs 25 caregivers.

It is affiliated with Home Helpers Inc. in Cincinnati, which has about 135 franchises.

Pen-Care Home Helpers was formed after Penny Eisenmenger, a 30-year veteran of the home-health-care industry, saw a growing need for nonmedical home assistance, said Dick Eisenmenger, Penny's husband and Pen-Care's general manager.

"Many people cannot afford or do not need home health care," Dick Eisenmenger said. "With an aging population, we saw a more economical niche.

"We lend assistance to a person who needs bathing, reminders to take their medication, a ride to do errands, or just needs companionship from reading books to going to the movies."

Dick Eisenmenger said Pen-Care does not target a specific demographic.

"We lend care to any person of any age," he said. "We help new moms with household chores."

VISITING ANGELS LIVING ASSISTANCE SERVICES

Melinda and Jeffrey Reid wanted to start their own business.

The nonmedical-assistance market attracted them because they could help people and be entrepreneurs.

The Reids settled on a franchise operation through Visiting Angels Living Assistance Services of Havertown, Pa. Run out of their Cary home, the business has 21 caregivers.

"Jeff and I love doing this," Melinda Reid said. "We help anybody over the age of 18 who needs assisted living in their homes.

"We recognize that not only is it difficult for the person who needs assistance, but it is oftentimes difficult emotionally and physically for the person's family.

"We saw a need and we were right. Business has been fantastic."

Visiting Angels Living Assistance Services has 200 franchises in the United States and Canada, including operations in Bartlett, Berwyn, Oak Lawn, Wheaton and Woodridge.

Click here to see the article

"Spreading the word about 'Angels'."

Back to the Top of the Page