Our Staff
Our staff consists of trained volunteers and sometimes student interns from Siuslaw High School. These students are hand selected from the Health Occupations and Alternative Education programs. Participants receive an individualzed approach to socialization and memory care during Coffee Club. Our diverse board, ranging in age from 31 to 71, is made up of working people from the community as well as retirees.
Juels Larson
Interim Executive Director
Upon hearing that the Memory Care Respite Center of Florence might close, Juels made it her mission to save and revitalize this organization for our community. Knowing firsthand what a difference this service had made in her mother's life, she was determined not to let it fall to the wayside. "Attending Coffee Club is the highlight of my mother's week." After just a few weeks of attending Coffee Club, Juels noticed significant cognitive gains with her mother who had been diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer's. She knew it was vital to provide this service to other families in need.
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Juels, a former public school teacher, is a language and literacy specialist with a M.Ed. in Educational Leadership. Juels currently works as a yoga teacher using yoga as a tool to heal the body. Juels has lived in Florence since 2016 with her multiple four legged loved ones. She spends her free time in the woods or training her GSDs; one of which works as a therapy dog in our Adult Day Program.