Church supports caregivers




 

 

A program intended to give emotional, physical and spiritual support to caregivers and those who receive care will be offered this month at Church in the Canyon in Calabasas.

The free, three-part class will take place from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. on Sundays, Jan. 18 and 25, and Feb. 1 at 4235 Las Virgenes Road.

The class will make use of a DVD and study guide titled “God’s Encouragement for Caregivers.” The video encompasses three episodes of “The John Ankerberg Show” featuring Joni Eareckson and Ken Tada, and Michael and Cindy Easley, two couples that deal with disability on a daily basis.

Ankerberg produces and hosts a television show that looks at current issues with a Christian perspective.

Joni Eareckson Tada is an evangelical Christian author, radio host and founder of Joni and Friends, an Agoura Hills-based organization that serves people who are disabled. She was injured in a diving accident in 1967 that left her paralyzed from the shoulders down.

Michael Easley is the president emeritus of Moody Bible Institute and the lead pastor of a church in Tennessee. His wife, Cindy, is a speaker and author. Due to back problems, Michael Easley has chronic pain, and his wife has become his caretaker in many ways.

In the DVD, the interviewer and couples examine what it is like to be a caregiver and how to deal with issues successfully.

The program at Church in the Canyon will include group discussions among participants. The church’s pastor, the Rev. Bob Bjerkaas, who is legally blind, will also participate in the workshops.

“Caregivers and care receivers both run the risk of burnout and both have the opportunity of being blessed,” he said.

Bjerkaas said that in many cases, especially if children are caring for a parent, much of the responsibility falls on one person.

Burnout for the caregiver and strife among the siblings can result, he said.

“Usually one child is the primary caretaker and the siblings don’t do as much,” he said. “This could be for financial or geographical reasons, (but) it can have an unfortunate effect on the family.”

The workshop will provide tips on how to communicate about caregiving issues and how to be aware of the challenges involved, Bjerkaas said.

The “God’s Encouragement for Caregivers” series is an extension of a November caregiver’s workshop at Church in the Canyon that featured the Tadas.

Because many people in the community have aging parents or loved ones with special needs who depend on them for everyday care, the church wanted to continue the program to serve more people, said Kathleen Brooks, a certified Christian life coach and three-time cancer survivor.

Brooks and her husband, Dennis, have firsthand experience in the caregiver and care-receiver roles.

In 1978, four months after they were married, Dennis Brooks became lost in the Rocky Mountains after a plane he was in went down in a blizzard. Brooks broke his back in the crash.

Dennis and Kathleen Brooks began attending Church in the Canyon 34 years ago, after their first son, Nathan, was born. Nathan had severe disabilities and was hospitalized for most of his life. He died as a toddler.

Kathleen Brooks said Church in the Canyon and the community supported her family throughout the ordeal.

“That church ministered to us in ways you can’t imagine. They offered practical assistance and spiritual support,” she said.

An article about Nathan was published on the front page of The Acorn 33 years ago, but Brooks had never seen it.

“My neighbor Joan gave me the article about a year ago following my third bout with breast cancer,” Brooks said. “She kept the article on her desk for all these years. . . . The old article showed how the Agoura community supported us.”

The article reinforced Brooks’ desire to help others through Church in the Canyon ministries and through her own life-coaching practice in Westlake Village.

Brooks said her faith enabled her and her husband to survive their hardships, and it offers them comfort, peace and joy in their time of need.

“It isn’t about us. . . . It is about what the Lord God has done in us and sometimes through us in our situations,” she said.

For more information or to register for the caregiver program, call the church office at (818) 880- 2060 or email OutreachTeam@ ChurchintheCanyon.org.

 

 

 

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