Last year, I was watching a Hallmark holiday movie that referenced the quote, "It takes a village to raise a child." It struck me that it should also take a village to care for our aging loved ones. I wondered why we, as a society, aren't acknowledging the increasing need to support our precious elderly and those who care for them. Caretakers assume the difficult responsibility (and loving privilege) of caring for an aging loved one, yet oftentimes, no one cares for the caretaker. Caretaking can be an isolating endeavor. While the number of adult children who are caring for an aging parent has increased exponentially as our Baby Boomer population has grown older, distance often separates this peer group, which makes them feel alone. These adult daughters and sons—who either balance their careers with caregiving or leave the workforce altogether to care for a parent—may not have a social support group to encourage them during this stressful stage of life. Caretakers are close to my heart, and building an online community where they can connect, support one another, share helpful tips, and discuss pertinent topics became an essential component of Beach Barrister. Sometimes, just knowing there are others experiencing the same circumstances can help. To learn more about adult children who care for their aging parents, check out our Elder Law article, "You're Not Alone: The Sandwich Generation of Caregivers," in the Articles Gallery on our Learning Center page! Are you an adult child who is caring for an aging parent or loved one? What difficulties are you experiencing? If you've been a caregiver to a parent, do you have any tips for others? Thank you for sharing!❤️

Welcome to the Beach Barrister Online Community! Please review our forum rules before joining the fun! (You can find the Beach Barrister Code in our first Online Community post, "The Pirate Code.") Please take a moment and say, "Hi," to this brand new community in the comments! We'd love to get to know you better! Tell us a little about yourself, like what state you're from or what brings you to our jolly little crew! Feel free to add appropriate GIFs, hashtags, videos, and more to your posts and comments! I'll get the tide rolling by telling you a little bit about myself and the creation of Beach Barrister! ⚓️Ahoy!⚓️ My name is Michelle, and I'm the Captain of this ship! Beach Barrister was in development for almost four years before its launch in November 2022. In 2019, the idea of creating a venue that provided accessible, fundamental legal education while promoting awareness of elder law issues was born. Over the years, I developed the concept and content of Beach Barrister whenever I could, outside the working hours of my day job at a firm. The 2020 pandemic turned everything on its head, and it forced me to adapt a business plan—that originally emphasized in-person presentations—to a medium that would safely reach our audience. In December 2021, I unexpectedly became a caregiver, which required a temporary leave from my traditional day job. The privilege of caregiving at home offered precious, quality time with a loved one, and it opened the door to pursuing my passion project, Beach Barrister. Thanks for stopping by! We're so excited for you to join us! Please say, "Hello" in our comments!

In order to create a safe, positive, and supportive environment, we have implemented forum rules. The Beach Barrister Code is not merely guidelines; it is resolute and unyielding, not a trifling, fleeting, or passing fancy. (Points to anyone who can name the movies where those quote tidbits came from!) Please review the Code before boarding, so we all can enjoy the journey! The Beach Barrister Code Be kind. We are a community that builds each other up; we do not tear each other down. Beach Barrister has a zero-tolerance policy for mean-spirited posts. Truly, life is hard enough without negative comments, bullying, or incivility. Be supportive. We are a community that encourages one another. Be respectful. We are a community that promotes acceptance, inclusion, and dignity. Be relevant. We are a community that keeps posts and comments relevant to the forum topic. Individual legal counseling is not available. Beach Barrister is an educational site; Beach Barrister is NOT a law firm. Therefore, legal topics are only addressed generally, not specifically. Please respect that personalized, legal advice will not be offered or dispensed at any time on this website or in any form of correspondence with Beach Barrister or any member of the Beach Barrister team. Political posts are prohibited. This is not a venue for political discourse. Social media history demonstrates that politically-charged messaging violates Beach Barrister Codes 1-4; therefore, we reserve the right to remove political posts or comments to preserve our safe and harmonious learning environment. Spamming is prohibited.