Washington Co., WI – On May 24, 2022, Interfaith Caregivers of Washington County will announce the winners of the Judy Phillips Memorial Influencer in Aging Award. The award honors Judy Phillips and her legacy of passionate work for senior citizens. It will recognize those in the community whose work demonstrates creative, impactful, and strong advocacy for the senior citizens.
Sue Merkel, Geriatric Case Manager at Gericare of West Bend, LLC, has been working with the aging community for most of her career. “I love older people,” said Merkel, “I’ve always had a very soft spot in my heart for them. And I find it very rewarding. And people are…
very appreciative. Even just the little things that we do for people, such as, someone might have a bird feeder, but there’s no way they can get to the store. So, I’ll go and buy some bird seed and fill it up for them or on their birthday bring a little cupcake… just little things like that.”
Merkel first met Judy Phillips in 1989 while working at Cedar Community. Phillips went on to start her own business and Merkel was encouraged to join the team in 2007 because of her strong background, working with those who are aging and her bachelor’s degree in social work with a minor in aging.
“Even though we both had very different styles, we really complemented each other well,” said Merkel, who voiced admiration for Phillips who had suffered a stroke and went on to recover and continue working, “She was a very good mentor to a lot of people in the community.”
Click HERE to read about Judy Phillips Award nominee Cedar Community
After Phillips passed away in 2020, Merkel was concerned people would assume Gericare would close. But Merkel made the decision to push forward in Phillips’ honor and keep the business open to provide the care that was needed in the community.
Click HERE to read about Judy Phillips Award nominee Paula Hader
“We see all kinds of people,” said Merkel, “We get a lot of referrals from attorneys who see that there are people who are struggling. We’ll do an assessment and a lot of times it’s with the family and the clients and they’re looking for placements and want to be pointed in the right direction.
Click HERE to read about nominee Deb Anderson
“We also get longer-term cases; people who really don’t have family to act on their behalf. We’ve been dual power of attorney for healthcare and finances for people and we’ve had some really long-term people we’ve helped through the continuum or crisis management.”
Click HERE to read about Judy Phillips Award nominees
Tammy Dickman and Mona Dickmann from ADRC
Merkel was nominated for the Judy Phillips Memorial “Aging Advocacy” award which recognizes an individual, group, organization or program that promotes a cause or whose advocacy for seniors has brought about a positive change. To that end, Merkel said, “This is very rewarding.”
Merkel also feels Interfaith’s decision to formally recognize those who have gone above and beyond in their field with the aging community is very important, “We’re a tight-knit family. We work well together here in Washington County.”
Click HERE to read about nominees Dave and Lisa Morbeck
The Judy Phillips Memorial Influencers in Aging Award will be May 24, 2022, at the Maurin Center at Lac Lawrann, West Bend, WI.
Awards will be presented for Creative Expression, Community Impact, and Aging Advocacy.
