Seniors hold a “soft spot” in Ashley Mayo’s heart. Not only does she enjoy assisting them as the marketing and admissions director of the independent senior living community, Solarbron Pointe, but she appreciates and cares for the senior population outside of her work as well.
“I’ve been blessed to have all of my great grandparents still living well into my 20s,” she said. “So, I’ve been around seniors for a long time, and I’ve been able to learn from them, gain their wisdom and hear all of their amazing stories.”
Back when she was a summer marketing intern for Solabron — CarDon & Associates’ senior living community in Evansville — her experience opened her eyes to all the things seniors need that many don’t know are accessible to them.
“Solabron is a gem offering seniors the full continuum of care they need, which the staff provides in a compassionate, dignified way,” she said.
Ashley contributes to that continuum far beyond the walls of Solarbron by volunteering for the Southwest Indiana Regional Council on Aging (SWIRCA). This non-profit organization focuses its efforts on empowering seniors to live safely in their homes through supportive services. Once a month, Ashley helps the organization distribute food commodity boxes with shelf-stable foods for seniors. But she also serves as Solarbron’s representative in sponsoring many of SWIRCA’s programs and activities, and the two organizations now benefit one another.
“We’ve created a great two-way street between the organization and our campus,” she said. “For example, when seniors come to Solarbron for rehab-to-home services, we can connect them with case workers from SWIRCA to set up Meals on Wheels services. If they need ramps put in or other adaptations made to their home, we can coordinate that work with SWIRCA.”
Ashley’s latest community outreach effort focuses on folks from the opposite end of the age spectrum, but it ultimately helps seniors as well.
This month, Solarbron is serving as a sponsor of the Tri-State Food Bank’s 24 Carrot Challenge, which started on June 1 and aims toward ending child hunger in local school systems with the goal of raising $24,000 by June 24. That money will fund the BackPack Program, which provides free bagged meals for students K-12 on the Friday of each school week to feed them over the weekend. They also receive these food bags through holidays and summer break.
Ashley initially thought it would be fitting for Solarbron to sponsor this effort since the Tri-State Food Bank also provides the commodity boxes that SWIRCA delivers to local seniors, including those Solarbron serves.
“The 24 Carrot Challenge is a great opportunity to raise money and awareness for a worthy cause, and to serve these two wonderful organizations — the Tri-State Food Bank and SWIRCA,” she said.
Whether she’s at Solarbron or out in the local area, Ashley shows that her true passion lies in helping people, which ultimately reflects CarDon’s values as well.
