December 11, 2023
Seeta was off to Trinidad this week for a wedding. Ellen and Ali managed the show with our great guests Owner of Seniors Helping Seniors Jennifer Barton and Educator and Author, Dr Martha J Watts.
Jennifer Barton, Seniors Helping Seniors https://seniorcarebrevard.com
At Seniors Helping Seniors® Brevard County, we have a passion for meeting the needs of seniors in a way that provides both dignity and a sense of camaraderie. Our owner(s) Jennifer Helin and Rosemary Barton firmly believe we can do that through serving seniors in our community, which includes: Melbourne, Palm Bay, Titusville, and surrounding communities.
Mother and daughter team, Rosemary Barton and Jennifer Helin come to Seniors Helping Seniors® in-home services with the motivation and dedication to be there for seniors in Brevard County.
“As the youngest of seven children, with aging parents who had poor health, I became a caregiver at a very young age,” shared Rosemary. “When my daughter, Jennifer, came to me with the idea to start providing caregiving services to seniors in our community, it just made perfect sense.”
Jennifer had a similar caregiving experience with her mother-in-law. “I had spent a lot of time caring for my mother-in-law after she had two surgeries. While I was running to doctors’ appointments, doing errands and sitting at lunch surrounded by seniors, I realized that this was no burden at all, I was really enjoying myself!” said Jennifer. “I worked with my mother before and knew that she would be excited about being there for seniors in a compassionate and loving way. She was the first person I thought of to join me in starting a Seniors Helping Seniors center.
Seniors Helping Seniors® in-home care matches seniors who want to help with seniors who need a little help. This peer-to-peer assistance allows seniors in need to receive care from someone who they can trust and with whom they can build a relationship. At the same time seniors who want to help are able to remain active in their community and often form relationships with the seniors for whom they are caring.
The senior providers who work with Rosemary and Jennifer offer many non-medical services including:
- Light housekeeping
- Transportation
- Grocery shopping
- Gardening
- Meal preparation
- Bill paying
- Computer assistance
- Laundry
- Companionship
Dr Martha J Watts, Educator https://buddinwriters.com/about-the-author
Dr. Martha Joseph Watts an educator with more than two decades experience of teaching at all levels, ranging from elementary to university both in the Caribbean on the United States mainland. Her diverse experiences in teaching make her a strong voice as a student advocate. Her passion for teaching students to read and write non-fiction was exhibited at a Kids Count conference in 2003 where she presented to parents on “Children as Non-Fiction Writers”.
When Dr. Watts observed the reluctance, and sometimes apprehension of students’ reaction to written tasks, she was motivated to develop the Writing to Respond Process as a non-threatening way to engage students in writing to respond to text. The positive reaction from her students, and fellow teachers who utilized the process within her school setting significantly impacted her continued advocacy for students in the area of reading and writing.
After four years of utilizing, and introducing the process to teachers in other districts, the results were positive. In 2013 Dr. Watts expanded the Writing to Respond process to include writing in response to test prompts, and after three years of usage with a diverse group of students, the results were eye-opening. Dr. Watts has published resources to facilitate the use of the process at schools and at home. See products
Her academic excellence complements her achievements. She holds a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Full Sail University, (2021); Doctor of Education in Teacher Training from Walden University, (2013); a Masters in Educational Leadership and a BA in English and Secondary Education from the University of the Virgin Islands, (2005, 2002).
Dr. Watts is Dominican born. She studied, lived and worked in the United States Virgin Islands, and now resides in Florida, United States.