Just before my dad moved into a senior living community, I had sold my previous company, Michel/Russo Advertising, a boutique creative advertising agency, serving the motion picture industry. I had not yet determined what my next job would be, so I had the opportunity to make caring for my father my highest priority. This turned out to be even more fortunate because when it became apparent that my dad’s second wife was unable to care for him, I was already there and in a position to be his primary caregiver.
For a man in his 80s, my dad was generally a healthy guy—with the one key exception being his Alzheimer’s—therefore my concerns for his quality of life from then on centered almost solely on his cognitive condition. I was not only acutely aware of his condition but also on what his caregivers could do for him.
