For many of us in the United States, military service touches our lives, whether through family, friends, or our communities. Our veterans have sacrificed so much and genuinely deserve our heartfelt gratitude, compassion, and care. Sadly, many of these brave individuals feel isolated and face daily challenges with tasks most of us take for granted, like preparing meals, keeping up with household chores, or managing their own wellbeing.
As veterans grow older, it becomes more important to provide the support they need to remain independent at home. After years spent in service to our country, these individuals deserve dignity, comfort, and attentive care. By investing in the health of our senior veterans, we help them enjoy a higher quality of life and honor their commitment to us all.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recognizes these needs and provides veterans home care funding in Manitou Springs, CO, to assist servicepeople and their loved ones. What many families don't realize is that long-term care options - including in-home care - are included in programs like ameriCARE's Veteran CARE services.
Today, many of our veterans are vulnerable to a variety of issues that can impact their quality of life. However, through our Veteran CARE services, we're able to provide customized, compassionate care that addresses those issues and provides families like yours with peace of mind. Whether they're returning from combat with new health challenges or simply need an extra hand throughout the day as they age, our team is here to help.
Our agency owners are dedicated to guiding veterans through the process of accessing their benefits and understanding their eligibility. This important service, available at many of our franchise locations, empowers veterans to overcome the often confusing world of entitlements. With empathy and expertise, we strive to honor veterans by delivering personalized care and knowledgeable guidance, supporting them in living fuller, more independent lives.
The VA offers valuable benefits that include coverage for home health aide and homemaker services to veterans who require help with daily living activities. Through collaboration with one of our care partners, we learned that, out of more than 8 million veterans in the VA healthcare system aged 65 and older, only about 150,000 are utilizing this support. This means fewer than 2 percent of eligible veterans are getting the care they've rightfully earned. In some cases, such as with "Aid and Attendance," surviving spouses of veterans may also be eligible for benefits.
ameriCARE is committed to linking veterans and seniors nationwide with compassionate, highly trained caregivers from their own communities. We're proud to say that our mission goes beyond care - in fact, we're happy to help guide veterans and their families through the complexities of the VA system, offering hands-on support during the entire approval process. Many of our franchise owners team members are veterans themselves, who are dedicated to ensuring you or your loved one receives reliable, personalized care at home.
Regardless of how long they served, many military veterans leave service with a litany of health issues - both mental and physical. Some of the most common problems that older veterans face after leaving the military include
Research from the National Center for PTSD reveals that as many as 23% of veterans will experience post-traumatic stress disorder during their lifetime. For some, symptoms may not surface until later years, often following retirement. Notably, the development or worsening of PTSD in older adults has been linked to an increased risk of dementia, suggesting a complex relationship between trauma and cognitive decline as veterans age.
A recent study featured in the National Library of Medicine examined the prevalence of malnutrition among older veterans receiving home-based primary care. The researchers discovered that 15% of these individuals were classified as malnourished, highlighting a significant health concern within this population. Malnutrition in elderly veterans can lead to a range of complications, such as weakened immune response, slower recovery from illness, and increased risk of hospitalization. These issues underscore the need for veterans home care funding in Manitou Springs, CO that helps seniors with eating and nutrition challenges.
Studies show that older veterans face a 25% higher likelihood of reporting multiple chronic health issues compared to their nonveteran peers. This trend underscores the unique health challenges veterans may encounter as they age, which often stem from service-related injuries, stress, and more.
Veterans often carry the weight of their service, having endured challenging circumstances and shouldered responsibility for the security of others. As they grow older, preserving their sense of independence becomes deeply intertwined with their mental and emotional health. For many, shifting from self-reliance to accepting help with everyday activities can be a significant adjustment.
A skilled caregiver who understands veterans' unique backgrounds can make this transition smoother. Building trust through respect for personal boundaries, clear communication, and trauma-informed care is essential to fostering a strong partnership between veterans and their in-home caregivers.
Many ameriCARE locations provide their caregivers with specialized training to better support our veterans as veteran cases can be complex and deserve tailored care.
Our caregivers offer support with meal preparation, grocery shopping, and managing dietary needs. They also encourage healthy habits and lifestyle choices, ensuring you or your loved one receives personalized nutrition and wellness guidance.
Tasks like bathing, using the restroom, getting dressed, and maintaining oral hygiene can become challenging because of aging or ongoing health conditions. Our dedicated caregivers are specially trained to assist with these personal routines and always prioritize the veteran's comfort, privacy, and self-esteem.
A tidy living space does more than promote good hygiene. It fosters a sense of comfort, security, and overall wellbeing. Our caregivers help with everyday household tasks, making sure your home remains a safe, inviting, and organized environment.
When driving becomes a challenge, whether for you or a veteran family member, our caregivers step in to help. They can handle errands such as grocery shopping, picking up prescriptions, ensuring appointments are kept, and providing reliable support for many other daily needs.
In-home caregivers from ameriCARE are dedicated to supporting your loved one's mobility and safety. From accompanying them on short walks to guiding them through physical therapy routines, we help promote regular movement and keep them engaged in activities that support their health and independence.
Our caregivers foster engagement by offering gentle support and uplifting encouragement. We create opportunities for veterans to participate in enriching activities, make social connections, and develop genuine bonds with their in-home caregivers.
We can accompany you or the older veteran in your life to medical appointments. We can also help relay any information or instructions provided by doctors.
Coping with the effects of aging, disability, or recovery from injury often involves juggling multiple medications with specific timing and dosages. Our caregivers can help ensure that you or your veteran loved one receives the correct medications at the right times, providing peace of mind while supporting overall health.
Our comprehensive care extends to beloved pets as well. We can assist with daily dog walks, feeding routines, arranging transportation for vet visits, and maintaining pet hygiene. By helping with day-to-day chores like pet care, we help enhance the wellbeing of senior veterans and their animal companions.
While many veterans have a primary care physician or a home health care professional, they may still need a real human connection beyond medical care. Veteran-funded home care can help you or your loved one maintain a more balanced life, one visit at a time. That's where ameriCARE comes in. We work tirelessly to connect dedicated, welltrained, and dependable caregivers to veterans across the United States.
If you're looking for a locally-owned home care company that provides veterans with personalized support, Request More Info today. It would be our honor to help you and your family navigate the VA and to act as your liaison throughout the benefit approval process.
Ready to get started on your journey with ameriCARE? Request More Info today to schedule your consultation and learn more information about how we can assist you or your senior loved one.
A tiny March election is looming large for Manitou Springs, where a court-mandated vote will decide who gets to run two of the city’s busy downtown parking lots.The unique circumstances behind the election — and what it might mean for parking in the town with a crowded summer tourist season — are not easily comprehended. The mail-in ballot for just under 200 residents asks voters to decide whether to dissolve a special district that owns the Wichita and Smischny parking lots, a combination of 124 parking spaces....
A tiny March election is looming large for Manitou Springs, where a court-mandated vote will decide who gets to run two of the city’s busy downtown parking lots.
The unique circumstances behind the election — and what it might mean for parking in the town with a crowded summer tourist season — are not easily comprehended. The mail-in ballot for just under 200 residents asks voters to decide whether to dissolve a special district that owns the Wichita and Smischny parking lots, a combination of 124 parking spaces.
“I feel like there’s way more here that I just don’t know,” said downtown Manitou Springs resident Karen Benewith.
The election is the product of a legal dispute that has played out in El Paso County District Court over the past year. The city of Manitou Springs is seeking to dissolve the Manitou Springs Metropolitan District, a quasi-governmental entity that was created in 1989 to manage parking for the city’s downtown area.
The city wants to bring the district’s assets under its own parking enterprise, arguing the merger would streamline parking management. The district resisted, saying in court filings that its existence was still necessary to protect the interests of its downtown constituents. The matter went to court, since a municipality cannot unilaterally dissolve a metropolitan district.
In December, the court ordered an election among the residents who live in the district’s boundaries, a small subset of the city’s overall population. Voters would receive the city’s proposed dissolution plan.
Both the city and the district have since been making their case to people who live, work and park downtown.
Last month, the Manitou Springs City Council approved a conditional resolution creating a new Downtown Benefit Parking Program, which would allow residents and employees to apply for parking permits. The resolution would also extend progressive parking fees downtown by one more hour before the rate goes up.
The resolution’s changes take effect only if voters approve the district dissolution, however. Manitou Springs Mayor Natalie Johnson said a permit program would cost about $250,000 to create — money the city would pull from acquiring the district’s assets.
“We are very quick to say that parking downtown can be better,” she said.
Shemi Shlomo, metro district chair, said he felt the resolution was a “bribe” to downtown residents who experience parking frustrations.
“Whether this is a yes or no, the city of Manitou Springs should find a solution for these people,” he said.
On the district’s side, “No 5A” signs have been going up in many downtown businesses. One of them is Osburn Gift Shop, a jewelry shop that has been open on Manitou Avenue since the end of World War II. Owner Linda Reed said the dispute was “complicated,” but she ultimately did not trust the city to look after the interests of small business owners.
“The whole parking situation has been a nightmare for so many years,” she said.
Not all are happy with the district’s management of downtown lots. Manitou Springs resident Cheyene Grow is the registered agent for a committee that is pro-dissolution. He said he disliked how the district went about since-abandoned plans for a parking garage and felt the city would be more transparent about its parking management decisions.
“I’d just rather see that whatever happens with this property happens with public input,” he said.
Johnson said the upside to dissolution would be the inclusion of the Wichita and Smischny lots in an upcoming $1.4 million grant program to assess the city’s parking and mobility needs.
“We can seamlessly connect everything,” she said.
Mail-in ballots in the special election must be received by a deadline of March 3.
The Manitou Springs (CO) varsity soccer team has a home non-conference match vs. The Classical Academy (Colorado Springs, CO) on Monday, April 27 @ 6:30p.Rankings & Records Team Stat Comparison The Classical AcademyManitou Springs 3Goals3 3Assists- 12Shots20 1.500Goals Against Average3.00...
The Manitou Springs (CO) varsity soccer team has a home non-conference match vs. The Classical Academy (Colorado Springs, CO) on Monday, April 27 @ 6:30p.
| The Classical Academy | Manitou Springs | |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Goals | 3 |
| 3 | Assists | - |
| 12 | Shots | 20 |
| 1.500 | Goals Against Average | 3.000 |
| School | Common Opp. Rec. | School | Common Opp. Rec. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Classical Academy | 0-0 | Manitou Springs | 0-0 |
| Date | Away | Home | Result | Date | Away | Home | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4/18/26 | Colorado Springs Christian | The Classical Academy | 4/30/26 | Manitou Springs | Colorado Springs Christian |
| 1-1 | Overall | 1-1 |
|---|---|---|
| 0-0 | League | 0-0 |
| 1-1 | Non-League | 1-1 |
| 0-0 | Head to Head | 0-0 |
| 0-0 | Common Opponent | 0-0 |
| 0-1 | Home | 0-1 |
| 1-0 | Away | 1-0 |
| 0-0 | Neutral | 0-0 |
| 0-0 | Playoff | 0-0 |
| 1-1 | In-State | 1-1 |
| 0-0 | Out-of-State | 0-0 |
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Colorado Springs’ public transportation service, Mountain Metro, will pilot a free bus route between downtown Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs starting March 29.Free fare will be offered on Route 3, which travels in a loop from downtown Colorado Springs through Old Colorado City and the west side of town, ending at Old Man’s Trail.“It’s sometimes hard for me to get transportation from point A to point B,” said America Klopfenstein, 30, a frequent Ro...
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Colorado Springs’ public transportation service, Mountain Metro, will pilot a free bus route between downtown Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs starting March 29.
Free fare will be offered on Route 3, which travels in a loop from downtown Colorado Springs through Old Colorado City and the west side of town, ending at Old Man’s Trail.
“It’s sometimes hard for me to get transportation from point A to point B,” said America Klopfenstein, 30, a frequent Route 3 bus rider. Klopfenstein said she spends about $20 to $30 every week on bus fare.
“My financial situation is kind of difficult right now. So, having that route free would help me a lot.”
While a free route is the city’s step towards making its buses more accessible, the city still faces gaps in providing adequate public transportation throughout Colorado Springs.
Bus ridership in Colorado Springs has increased in the past five years. Last year, Mountain Metro recorded more than 3 million rides, said Elaine Sheridan, the senior public communications specialist at Mountain Metro. But the rapid spread of suburban areas have left gaps in the city’s ability to provide ample public transit in the northern and eastern parts of Colorado Springs. The city does not have the funding to buy more buses, hire more bus drivers and create more routes in those areas, Sheridan said
Mountain Metro updates its bus routes and services about twice a year, typically in the spring and fall, but this spring’s changes are some of the biggest the city has seen in a while because of how many changes are being made to services, Sheridan said. The buses ran fare-free during the past four summers through the statewide summer ozone reduction program called Zero Fare for Better Air, but the state is not offering the grant money for this program this year.
The Cities of Manitou Springs and Colorado Springs will cover the free fares on Route 3 for the next year, with the possibility to extend the program annually, Sheridan said. This faced backlash online with some Facebook users commenting they don’t want their taxpayer money going towards free bus fares.
Veronica Lopez, who lives in Manitou Springs and commutes to the Circle K on 28th Street in Colorado Springs for work, said she appreciates the free route.
“All the community here, we all look forward to it being free,” Lopez said. “I ride my bike down [to work] and then I’ll take [the bus] back up in the morning after my shift, especially when it’s snowing like this.”
Michael Barsotti, the owner of CK Comics and Collectibles in Manitou Springs, is also excited about the free route.
“I think it's great because it means Manitouians or Manitoids … can get downtown easier. And people from downtown can now come into Manitou without having to worry about parking,” Barsotti said.
The free route is one of many service changes the Mountain Metro is making this year, which include increasing bus frequency on multiple routes and consolidating other routes.
Type of story: NewsBased on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. To read more about why you can trust the journalism of Rocky Mountain PBS, please visit our .
MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — A small but significant election in Manitou Springs will determine control of two key parking lots and could set a precedent for metropolitan districts across Colorado.Issue 5A asks voters whether to dissolve the Manitou Springs Metropolitan District, which has operated the Wichita and Smischny parking lots, along with the former Ute Pass Motel site, for more than 35 years.The city submitted a formal request to dissolve the district and transfer control of the properties to municipal owners...
MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — A small but significant election in Manitou Springs will determine control of two key parking lots and could set a precedent for metropolitan districts across Colorado.
Issue 5A asks voters whether to dissolve the Manitou Springs Metropolitan District, which has operated the Wichita and Smischny parking lots, along with the former Ute Pass Motel site, for more than 35 years.
The city submitted a formal request to dissolve the district and transfer control of the properties to municipal ownership. When the district disagreed with the proposed plans, a court ordered the election.
"We no longer need the metro district. What they offered in 1989, that solution is no longer a solution to tackle today's problems," said Mayor Natalie Johnson.
The district was formed in 1989 to manage parking according to community needs. Unlike more recently formed metro districts, it has no end date due to when it was established.
Only property owners who live within the district boundaries, which include Manitou and Ruxton Avenues, are eligible to vote.
Business owners in the area and district members oppose the city takeover, displaying "No 5A" signs in their windows. Mike Graham, owner of Ruxton's Trading Post and Metro District Boardmember, has deep roots in the community spanning multiple generations.
Graham argues the city is making promises it can't keep if it were to take over the District's assets.
"The City says they can do a better job of running the parking than we can. I think if we thought the city was doing a better job, than we would hand the property over," said Graham.
Graham compared the situation to a children's story about sharing success after others do the work.
"It's like the story of the 'Little Red Hen.' That children's book. Where the red hen does all the work and then everyone saw the success, so they wanted to come share in the bounty," said Graham.
If the city gains control, Johnson says improvements can be made for residents, including free parking and overnight parking options. She said municipal ownership would create a more unified citywide parking approach and increase community engagement.
"Pieces that will really improve the quality of life for people that live down there," said Mayor Johnson.
Helene Gallaway, a Manitou Springs homeowner supporting the measure, said resident input is crucial. She says 5A's passage would allow for community input on these two lots and the Ute Pass site.
"Having the opportunity to give input needs to be a priority. As a resident, who's not in the metro district, I didn't have a voice in what was going to be decided down there," said Galloway.
Ballots must be received by March 3. Both the mayor and Graham noted there is no precedent for a case like this in Colorado, meaning the outcome could influence metro districts statewide.
State lawmakers have given initial approval to a bill that would essentially reverse a Colorado Supreme Court decision to allow cities and counties to give noise permits to private businesses.
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