By Jessica Davis, JTNews Correspondent
As a new Certified Senior Advisor, Janis Blauer-Chima has learned about what seniors go through as they get older.
“I have more of an appreciation than I used to about different cultures,” she says. “I’ve learned a lot just about the difference between people.”
A Seattle bookkeeper for 12 years, Blauer-Chima became a Certified Senior Advisor last February to offer more to her older clients.
“This was perfect for my set of skills,” she says.
To become a CSA, she had to attend a week-long course in San Francisco and study an 800-page course book. Like Blauer-Chima, many CSAs also have another profession. Blauer-Chima’s background includes art education from the University of Washington and an accounting education from North Seattle Community College. She is also a member of the Northend Senior Care Coalition.
“I’ve also learned that getting old in this country can be very sad and very, very difficult,” says Blauer-Chima. “It’s easy to become neglected when you’re older.”
American culture is focuses people under 40, she says, where many other cultures have a higher appreciation for the elderly.
“I feel that that’s a really skewed view that we have here,” says Blauer-Chima.
As a baby boomer, she believes there will be even more accommodations needed for seniors in the future, as the baby boomers hit their early to mid-70s.
“Seniors aren’t really different from the rest of us. We’re all facing the same issues,” she says.
Blauer-Chima has received positive responses about her line of work from seniors and other members of the local community.
“It is a growing niche,” she says. “I intend to continue what I’m doing and getting more involved in the community.”
When Blauer-Chima meets with a prospective client, she finds out their needs, to what extent they need help, how much control they wish to maintain after hiring a bookkeeper and how much their family is involved. There is no age limit for her clients; most are 80 years or older. One of her clients is 95 years old.
“Everyone’s different,” she says. “We’re just more of who we are as we get older.”
Some of Blauer-Chima’s clients have memory problems, some have no kids or their kids live far away, so they need assistance. She checks on some of her clients twice weekly, some quarterly and some have her on call. In addition to accounting, Blauer-Chima has done a whole range of things for her clients including filing, conducting an estate sale, selling a car and holding power of an attorney. She and her family once cleaned a client’s house together.
Blauer-Chima, a member of Temple Beth Am, says there is a special affinity between her Jewish clients and herself.
“I’m accustomed to Jewish life or Jewish family,” she says.
Most of Blauer-Chima’s clients are referred to her by word of mouth. She confers with social workers, attorneys, financial planners, CPAs, medical professionals, funeral directors, senior housing facilities directors and more.
“It’s an honor to be some small part of their support system,” she says.
She likes working with her clients individually, one on one. However, she hopes to offer bookkeeping tips for seniors and their families in a workshop she will hold at the Summit on First Hill in Seattle.
Blauer-Chima’s schedule remains flexible and adaptable. She balances her workload with time for her own family.
“I think back and appreciate having had grandparents,” she says about her job as a senior advisor. “I kind of think of it as a holy experience.”