According to the census bureau, there are already more senior citizens in the United States than there were at any other time in American history. The first of our country’s Baby Boomers, celebrated their 65th birthdays in 2011. We are facing a “Senior Tsunami” that will bring with it, both, opportunities and challenges.

In the next two decades the number of people enrolled in Medicare will reach nearly 80 million while enrollment in Social Security is expected to reach 73 million. And as advancements in medicine continue to astound and people are living longer and longer, those numbers are just going to keep rising.

People are beginning to wonder if they’ll outlive their retirement savings and that has experts in the area of Aging in America asking a startling question: Are we as a society prepared to care for our country’s senior citizens, properly?

If Mercy Housing has anything to say about it, the answer is a resounding YES! Take a peek inside this issue of Community Matters to get a glimpse at how your donor dollars are hard at work to give America’s senior citizens the opportunity to age in place with grace and dignity. Read about the exciting new and refurbished Mercy Housing senior communities popping up all across the country, from Rome, Ga. to San Francisco. Learn about how our inspired on-site preventative health care programs are changing the face of senior housing. And read about how one gentleman even credits Mercy Housing with, literally, saving his life.

All that and more about Mercy Housing’s commitment to health care and housing are right here. So sit back and start reading. You’ll be glad you did!

And as always, thank you for supporting Mercy Housing’s mission to create stable, vibrant and healthy communities through affordable, program-enriched housing for families, seniors and people with special needs. We couldn’t do it without you.

Live in hope,

Sister Lillian Murphy, RSM
Mercy Housing CEO