Welcome to Grandma's Village Inc. elderly charity

Grandma's Village Inc. was established as a nonprofit 501(c) (3) in 2021 after our founder had the difficult task of caring for her grandmother and realized there was a need for families of seniors that were transitioning from living on their own, to living with family or in a long-term facility setting. 

In the African American Culture, grandmothers have been the "village" to communities and families for as long as I can remember. They were the pillars of the neighborhoods, looking out for the children and making sure we were all accountable, safe, respectful, fed and had a strong foundation. Fast forward, we now need to be the village for them and service them with meeting their needs.  This becomes difficult since most of us have children, spouses and full time jobs. The task became challenging trying to balance it all and that's where it was found there was a need for services, assistance and companionship.  

Our founder Kim, the only child was left to be the sole provider of her grandmother once her father passed in 2014. At that time, her grandma Mrs. Flo was living on her own but had loss 75% of her sight due to glaucoma and cataracts.  She eventually reached a time that living alone wasn't a viable option. Our founder tried to honor her wishes by allowing her to stay in her apartment and remain as independent as possible. This meant that she would now begin going by her grandmother's home most mornings before work to make sure she had breakfast, a bath and was dressed and then head to work. At the end of the day, she would stop by and do the same for dinner, she did this for the better of 5 years and the latter years being more involved than the previous. 

She tried to find assistance from Department of Human Services, and third-party companies but due to her income, having access to a caregiver was not an option and she wasn't eligible for any free or low-cost services provided by the state.

Every day that Kim visited her grandmother she would meet other seniors who were also in need of services such as errands, or just a simple conversation. She knew then she had to be the change.  

Grandma Flora fell ill and was diagnosed with dementia that progressed very fast and she was no longer able to stay home alone for safety reasons and was placed in a long-term living facility.  I think if there were more services that offered companionship or just services to assist with the daily living needs, she could have stayed comfortably in her home.  Mrs. Flo is thriving and doing well, she is currently 95 years old, and still feisty as ever. 

There are so many things that our founder learned along the way and so much more that she wants to share with other families to make aging in place a possibility. 

The Mission of Grandma's Village Inc. is to stand in the gap and assist senior citizens and their families affected by aging, illness or financial hardship. We want to help seniors maintain their independence and keep them in their homes as long as possible. If staying in their home isn't a possibility, we want to help families navigate the long-term living process.