Caring for our aging parents and ourselves: Jane Everson and Frances Hall at TEDxHickory

As our nation's population, and indeed, the population of the world ages, adult children are becoming the primary caregivers - and unsung heroes - for their aging parents. Becoming informed advocates so that we can better love our parents and ourselves as we age will help businesses, communities, and individual families cope with the coming "silver tsunami". ACAP community offers data-based results and a structured and validated curriculum for face-to-face educational programs, resource tips and tools for healthy aging, and peer-to-peer support for adult child caregivers.

Before joining ACAP (Adult Children of Aging Parents), Jane Everson was a university professor, author, and public speaker for 25 years. Her research focused on workforce development for adults, especially those with disabilities. Jane is currently interested in the challenges faced by people with disabilities, and other adults as they age and seek work and home balance.  She lives in Hickory, North Carolina with her husband and is now helping her mother prepare for a move from to North Carolina. In her free time, Jane enjoys exploring vegetarian cooking, reading, and spending time with a menagerie of companion animals.

Before stopping work in great part to spend more time with her mother, Frances Hall spent 30+ years in college/university administration as well as church-related and nonprofit organizational leadership. Frances lives in Morganton, North Carolina, with her husband and enjoys cooking, traveling and spending time with her husband, step-children, spouses and grandchildren, in addition to her mother.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)