KANSAS CITY, Mo. — When Shereese Hameed-Muhammad hears the saying, "the children are our future," she counters with another phrase, about the seniors in our community.
"Every time an elder dies, a library is burned down," Hameed-Muhammad says. She's a wellness and life coach at Margaret's Place, an adult daycare center in Kansas City, where activities include songs and dances for those who attend. It's tough for the elderly right now, in the current inflationary climate.
"Most of my clients are low income, they come from low income areas," Margaret's Place founder and CEO Patricia McCreary said, "they already struggle with prescription medicine for the month or food for the month. With inflation, it's even worse,"
For Margaret Young, who attends Margaret's Place, it's been difficult.
"The biggest thing was the rent increase. My rent went up so high I had to relinquish my private living quarters to go and live with relatives," Young said.
It's also been hard too for Gary Jones.
"I'm on fixed income, so it's very hard because I have to make a choice between buying food or paying rent sometimes," Jones said.
That strain is also felt by their families.
"When you have to move Mom and Dad in that's already on low income, that's more lights, more water, more gas, more groceries in the house," McCreary says. "It’s already a big expense to take care of your loved ones, so with inflation, it’s made those expenses just shot up."
This adult daycare doesn't just offer activities and meals. That aforementioned life coach helps navigate uncharted economic territory.
"Having someone there to allow you to work through your struggles and the financial issues you're having, and you can see, oh, there's something possible," Hameed-Muhammad said. Her business, Peace Your Pieces, actively works with Margaret's Place clients.
In these uncertain financial times, Margaret's Place isn't just a place where folks are given a helping hand, they're taken by the hand, into this special community.
"Coming here gives you a sense of belonging to something, you know, having fun," Young said, "You see the people, they come alive, you see them when they’re down and done, but you see them come alive."
This is a place to have fun, and care for their elderly neighbors.
"They're God's original angels, without them none of us would be here," McCreary said.
