We Connect Caregivers to Respite Resources
Who We Are
There are 600,300 children and adults living with a disability in Colorado (disabilitystatistics.org) and 370,000 people over the age of 70 (Administration for Community Living). Most of these Coloradans rely on everyday people including family members, friends, and neighbors, to take care of them. In fact, there are 870,000 unpaid, informal caregivers in Colorado (Bell Policy Center).
Caring looks different for everyone. Parents care for their children with disabilities, spouses care for one another as they age, children grow up and care for their parents, and grandparents raise grandchildren. No matter the caregiving arrangement, there is one experience that all caregivers share: caring for another person is hard work. And, when you are just trying to deliver the care that your loved one needs, it’s easy to forget to take care of yourself, too.
Colorado Respite Coalition believes that as a statewide community, can only thrive if our caregivers are thriving, too.
A program of Easterseals Colorado, Colorado Respite Coalition exists to encourage caregivers to take a break. We help families and professionals connect with respite care and caregiving resources three ways:
- Expanding respite resources available to caregivers
- Training and education for caregivers
- Networking and support for professional caregivers
Mission
To strengthen Colorado’s statewide lifespan respite care resource network for family caregivers and professionals.
Vision
All Colorado family caregivers have access to quality respite care resources through a sustainable network that promotes collaboration and innovation across the lifespan, disability and health spectrums.
Meet the Colorado Respite Coalition Team
We are here to help connect you to resources that help caregivers take a break.
Megan Bettinger, Program Director
Megan has been with the the Colorado Respite Coalition since the fall of 2020 and at Easterseals Colorado since June 2017. She holds a B.S. in Health Services Administration from California State University, Chico. Although she was not born in Colorado, she has over a century of family heritage in Colorado.
Megan’s goal is to build upon the foundation her CRC predecessors have built. She is dedicated to CRC’s mission of supporting caregivers, and is proud of CRC’s growth over the last decade. Her goals include partnering with people who are passionate about supporting caregivers, who think outside the box, and who find creative ways to bring respite to family caregivers who need break.
Outside of work, Megan enjoys spending my time with her family and pets, cooking, and traveling.
Shelley Wilson, Program Coordinator
Shelley has been a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) for over eight years, and is passionate about helping others. This amazing journey has allowed her to explore another side of caregiving, and she is absolutely delighted to support family caregivers as CRC’s Program Coordinator.
She holds a BA in Human Services and an Associate Degree in Business Administration.
Shelley is a Football & Wrestling “Girl Mom” all the way! She loves to hike and attend sporting events and musicals with her wonderful and dynamic family. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, active journaling, and crafting with her cricket machine and heat press!
Joan Melgard, Program Assistant
Joan was born and raised in the Midwest. She moved to Denver 45 years ago. She worked for attorneys for 42 years as a legal secretary and administrative assistant until joining Easterseals Colorado in 2022.
Joan’s goal is to respond to each person who contacts CRC’s office with respect, care, and useful information. A caregiver’s day has no beginning and no end; it is endless. Joan offers reassurance to a caregiver they are doing a great job and should acknowledge that every day. Locating respite care or other resources is part of Joan’s nature, as she cared for both her parents throughout their lives.
Joan’s interests include reading, gardening, and enjoying the outdoors. She visits family in South Dakota and Minnesota several times a year.
Our History
Originally the “Emergency Respite Project,” the Colorado Respite Coalition was formed in 2007 by two mothers of children with disabilities. The following year, the organization was renamed the “Colorado Respite Coalition” and began to assess the needs of caregivers of children with disabilities in Colorado.
Just four years later, through determined advocacy and partnership with the Colorado Department of Human Services and Easterseals Colorado, CRC accomplished two monumental milestones: it secured the federal Lifespan Respite Grant from the Administration for Community Living, and it ensured dedicated funding from the State of Colorado. These two ongoing funding sources have allowed the CRC to expand its services to all caregivers, including any family member or friend caring for a child with a disability, adult with a disability, or older adult. The CRC is now a formal program of Easterseals Colorado.
In the past decade CRC has organized regional respite coalitions, distributed hundreds of thousands of dollars of grants to expand respite in local communities, hosted family respite weekends, distributed hundreds of thousands directly to families in the form of respite care reimbursements, and convened respite organizations from all over the state to network and learn from one another. CRC envisions a state where all Colorado family caregivers have access to quality respite care resources through a sustainable network that promotes collaboration and innovation across the lifespan, disability and health spectrums, and will not stop until that vision is realized.
