Fay Mattson loves helping people.
The East Moline woman was a caregiver for a business that specializes in providing home care for seniors and people living with disabilities.
“My favorite part of caregiving was seeing the smiles on the faces of people I helped. They saw that somebody cares for them,” said Ms. Mattson, who is now a recruiting specialist with Help At Home.
Ms. Mattson was one of about 40 people to attend a grand opening and Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, Oct. 31, to welcome the new Help at Home Care Center to the community. (The in-home care business is located inside the Walmart Supercenter in Moline at 3930 44th Ave. It occupies an office space at the front of the store near the Subway sandwich shop.)
This marks the organization’s first care center concept office, according to Ivan Colorato, quality and compliance market lead for Help at Home, and one of the company officials at Thursday’s grand opening.
The center acts as a one-stop shop to help seniors over 60 years old as well as veterans get the help they need. It will also be an education and recruiting center to attract new employees for Help at Home, he added.
“Help at Home has been serving seniors in the Moline area for the over 25 years. Help at Home wanted to have a central location in the community for all seniors to find home care help when needed,” Mr. Colorato told the QCBJ in an emailed statement on Friday.
Kim Evans, a supervisor with Help At Home, said the company loves the new location because it’s in a place where people can see it and use the services. In fact, during the grand opening events Thursday, several Walmart shoppers stopped by to see what services are offered by Help at Home.
The organization has been in business for 50 years. It offers a wide variety of services to help people live independent lives and stay in their homes. Some of those services include helping with meals, housekeeping, laundry, transportation, respite care, errands, companionship and much more. (Ms. Mattson said that one of her favorite caregiver jobs was providing companionship to people who were alone and needed somebody to talk to.)
“We understand that home care is deeply personal and local, and we are thrilled to join the Moline community,” Ms. Evans said during the grand opening celebration. “This new location serves as a convenient and accessible resource for individuals seeking information about home care services.”
The new Moline site has about seven employees, and consists of a front reception area and two offices. In the reception area is a piece of wall art that tells the group’s mission: “Enable individuals to have great days with independence and dignity at home.”
Ms. Evans said the care center concept is meant to help people in need as quickly as possible.
The new concept is a physical office location with accessible resources designed to simplify the navigation of available home care services through conversations with Help at Home personnel. The experienced staff can explain options and eligibility for programs such as Medicaid, Veterans Affairs and long-term care insurance, among others.
Additionally, the care center will serve as a one-stop shop for individuals looking for careers in the care workforce. With demand for home care continuing to grow, the company is always looking to grow its dedicated team of nearly 60,000 caregivers across the communities it serves, such as Moline. Its staff work to meet the needs of seniors who want to age in place at home as independently as possible, according to information from Help at Home.
“The new Care Center is open and ready to assist seniors and those with disabilities, and their loved ones, in navigating home care services,” said Help at Home’s Regional Leader James Quach in a news release. “We’re also excited about the convenience for individuals interested in a purpose-driven career to learn more about us and apply for opportunities in the care workforce.”
As of June, Help at Home operated more than 180 branch locations across 11 states and provided in-home personal care and integrated care management services to approximately 67,000 clients with the help of more than 58,000 caregivers. Help at Home was founded in 1975 and is headquartered in Chicago.
The care center office in Moline is open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays; and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sundays. The telephone number is (309) 504-0999.
