MIAMI, Fla. /Florida Newswire/ — Papa, a leader in the Elder Tech industry announced they have expanded services to California, Illinois, Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Papa is expanding beyond its current markets of 19 cities throughout Florida, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Papa Pals support older adults with transportation, household chores, technology, and companionship. The Papa Pals are like “Grandkids On-demand!”
Growing with popular demand, Papa’s platform connects older adults with college students for companionship and assistance to aid the loneliness epidemic in aging adults.
“Loneliness has a huge negative impact on older adults’ lives and it’s a silent health epidemic people aren’t speaking about,” said Andrew Parker, founder and CEO of Papa. “The nucleus family is no longer together; people are busy and families are working. Older children want to give their parents and grandparents the support they need, so they send a Papa Pal. Our growth in new cities gives more people the chance to give their families the support they need.”
According to a study by Brigham Young University (*note 1), loneliness shortens a person’s life by 15 years, which is about the same impact as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. The AARP Loneliness study (*note 2) estimates that 42.6 million adults age 45 and older are chronically lonely.
“Our Papa Pals help the older adult they are taking care of as well as the caregiver. People need a support system they can rely on. With our expansion in new cities, we will be able to give our service to more aging adults and caregivers.” said COO Alfredo Vaasmonde.
Nilsa Torres, a caregiver who has taken care of her mother her entire adult life started using a Papa Pal every day for the past few months. She said, “Being a caregiver for so many years, I feel like I don’t have a life. I don’t have that additional help from family members. She [Papa Pal] has breathed new life into our lives. When I come back even if it’s like three hours, four hours I’m a brand new person emotionally. It de-stresses me.”
Papa is expanding at a healthy rate to keep up with the growing demand of seniors and elders who need extra assistance. The platform that developed in Miami has rapidly grown in a little over a year. By the end of 2019 Papa plans to open 20 new markets around the country.
Learn more: https://www.joinpapa.com/
About Papa:
Papa is a Miami startup that has Grandkids On-Demand who provide assistance and companionship to senior citizens throughout Florida, California, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, South Carolina, Illinois, and Kansas. Papa launched their service in January of 2018.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/join_papa
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joinpapa/
References – notes:
*note 1: https://theweek.com/articles/815518/epidemic-loneliness
*note 2: https://www.americannursetoday.com/loneliness-epidemic/
