Celebrating 50 years of the Foundation for Senior Living in Arizona

The Foundation for Senior Living (FSL) celebrates 50 years this year. The so-called Silver Tsunami is upon us. By 2034, older adults will outnumber younger adults in the U.S. for the first time.

Tami Bohannon, CEO of Foundation for Senior Living, joined “Arizona Horizon” to discuss more about this momentous achievement. FSL works to ensure Arizona is a safe place to age. The nonprofit started in 1974, focusing on providing affordable housing and adult day health centers in Maricopa County.

“We are an organization that sits at the intersection of health care and housing,” Bohannon said. “Everything we do is to help people live independently for as long as they age safely.”

The adult day health centers include medical care, socialization, good food and restorative therapy.

“But if you’re a caregiver of that participant, you get a break,” Bohannon said.

With this being FSL’s 50th year, the mission has been the same, to help others live independently in a safe manner.

FSL is a statewide operation with 25 housing properties across the state. It has 325 employees, operates 27 programs and employs over 40,000 Arizonans each year. Bohannon is the nonprofit’s first female President and CEO.

“We need to invest more in people who are aging, we need more adult day health centers, and then we need to do some preventative work,” Bohannon said. “What does it look like when I’m 70? I want to be down on the floor, playing with my grandkids. So what do I need to do so I can achieve that?”

Bohannon is planning on implementing preventative and health and wellness programs that can help achieve their goals.

One of their new programs is called CHANGE which is in trial right now in an Arizona community. This involves embedding a healthcare worker in a community to help them work on fitness, nutrition and monitoring their glucose and blood pressure. This is to keep them healthy and to increase their life span.