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Taking care of your Loved One Is What We Do BEST!

It's no secret, most of us would like to stay in our own home as we age. Yet, sometimes our loved ones just need a little extra help to remain comfortable at home. That's where Always Best Care can help....we are dedicated to exceeding expectations....always

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Home Care In Mexican Hat, UT

Home Care Mexican Hat, UT

They say that your golden years are the best years of your life. For most older Americans, that's how it should be - a time to relax, reflect, and live life in a familiar place. After all, senior citizens in the U.S. have worked tirelessly to build a better economy, serve their communities, and raise families.

However, as seniors grow older, completing daily tasks like showering and enjoying activities such as visiting the historic Mexican Hat Rock gets harder without someone by their side. Unfortunately, many older Americans aren't able to rely on their adult children for help. The reality in today's world is that family members do not have the skills or time to dedicate to caring for their parents. That's where Always Best Care Senior Services comes in.

Our in-home care services are for people who prefer to stay at home as they grow older but need ongoing care that family or friends cannot provide. More and more older adults prefer to live far away from long-term, institutionalized facilities and closer to the place where they feel most comfortable - their home. Home care in Mexican Hat, UT is a safe, effective way to give your loved ones the care they need when they need it the most.

 In-Home Care Mexican Hat, UT

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The Always Best Care Difference

Since 1996, Always Best Care has provided non-medical in-home care for seniors to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle as they get older. We are proud to have helped more than 25,000 seniors maintain higher levels of dignity and respect. We focus on providing seniors with the highest level of in-home care available so that they may live happily and independently.

Unlike some senior care companies, we genuinely want to be included in our clients' lives. We believe that personalized care is always the better option over a "one size fits all" approach. To make sure our senior clients receive the best care possible, we pair them with compassionate caregivers who understand their unique needs. That way, they may provide care accordingly without compromising their wellbeing.

The Always Best Care difference lies in life's little moments - where compassionate care and trustworthy experience come together to help seniors live a fruitful, healthy life. Whether you are an aging adult that can't quite keep up with life's daily tasks or the child of a senior who needs regular in-home services, Always Best Care is here to help.

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TESTIMONIALS

“MUST READ!! This is the best company to hire for your loved ones who need ongoing caregiver and companion services. Very thoughtful and experienced caregivers and admin staff who care deeply about the details and about customer satisfaction. Brent and Lea have been incredibly supportive and flexible, and caregivers Aarylyn, Sabrina, Lydia, and Hailie have been accommodating, patient, professional and safe. They regularly take my loved one on outings in the community to help her claim her independance and have become a vital part of her healthcare and happiness. LOVE THIS PLACE!!”

Jackie J.
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TESTIMONIALS

“I am a caregiver with ABC, and I am so happy with the company!! They are so flexible and understanding with my schedule:) such genuine people and the clients are amazing!! They truly embody the name of the company... Not just for the clients but also for their employees???? it makes for an amazing place to work ????”

Rebecca E.
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TESTIMONIALS

“I am a current client of this provider I have Always Best Care Serving Southern Utah for my husband. We got somebody coming in to help. The caregivers are good. They provide total a.m. care help like getting up and getting dressed. We have different ones and so they're trying to get us some steady people coming in. The scheduling is a little bit hard right now. The care has been good, though.”

Loretta
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TESTIMONIALS

“I am a current client of this provider I have Always Best Care Serving Southern Utah for my husband. We got somebody coming in to help. The caregivers are good. They provide total a.m. care help like getting up and getting dressed. We have different ones and so they're trying to get us some steady people coming in. The scheduling is a little bit hard right now. The care has been good, though.”

Loretta
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TESTIMONIALS

“Absolutely the best company here in St George! The care goes above and beyond what any family could ever ask for when handling care. They only have the best of the best caregivers that love to help! Their training and communication is top notch. Love this company! I refer all my friends and family! Couldn’t be more proud of an exceptional company!”

Diamondzragrlzbf
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TESTIMONIALS

“i’ve been working for ABC for about 6 months now & love it! they’re super flexible & have true love & passion for helping others!”

lydia T.
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TESTIMONIALS

“I've been with ABC 3 years now. They have been gracious and kind whenever I have had to change my schedule or not be able to work a shift. They make me feel like family, and they strive to help the clients feel the same. We love our clients, caregivers and staff.”

TheXploringKay O.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Love working here! Brent and lea are so sweet and understanding towards everyone! They work very hard! Great pay and amazing communication!”

aaralyn G.
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TESTIMONIALS

“This is a great company to work for if you’re interested in a flexible schedule. Management is so supportive and will do what they can to make everyday at work a good day. They communicate effectively and quickly to ensure nothing is miscommunicated or misunderstood. Working here as been so rewarding and educational.”

Mckinlye G.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always Best Care of Southern Ut is a great company. In November I will have worked with them for three years. I am a senior myself and absolutely love working with them. They always try to make sure the client and the caregiver have a good relationship with each other. They are family owned and genuinely care about both client and employees.”

Helen M.
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TESTIMONIALS

“I work for Always Best Care and it's amazing they really do care for their clients and they'll go the extra mile to meet their needs ! Not only that but they care for employees i love the flexibility they give us.”

Aly T.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always Best Care has definitely been a blessing to our little familys life. As an employer of ABC they have been amazing with flexibility in chosing my schedule so that not only am I able to work but also be home with my kids when I need to be. They are amazing and put their employees first. I love being a member of ABC team.”

Falelua A.
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TESTIMONIALS

“1. Stay active. Exercise may be the last thing you want to do when your arthritis hurts, but many studies show that physical activity is one of the best ways to improve your quality of life. 2. Eat a balanced diet. Studies show that a variety of nutrients may help ease arthritis symptoms. 3. Lose weight. Being overweight puts undue strain on weight-bearing joints such as your knees, spine, hips, ankles, and feet. 5. Use hot or cold packs. By increasing blood flow, hot compresses can ease pain and stiffness. 6. Keep pain under control. Over-the-counter medications can help ease arthritis pain. 7. Talk to your doctor about supplements and complementary medicine. Many supplements have been tested for the treatment of arthritis. 8. Try splints, braces, and other aids. Devices that support painful joints, such as splints, braces, and canes can help ease your discomfort and prevent injury. 9. Seek support. Living with arthritis isn’t easy. Finding other people that you can talk to and share ideas with can help. Check out arthritis support groups online or in your area. 10. Stay positive. Your mental outlook can have a big impact on how you feel, and how well you function. #SelfCare #Osteoarthritis #Arthritis #Disability #GoodHealth #PainRelief #SeniorCommunity #Caregiver #Caregiving #WECANHELP #OlderAdult #SeniorCare #SeniorLiving #SeniorServices #SeniorHousing #AlwaysBestCare #Exercise #SelfManaging #Tips”

Always B.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always Best Care has some of the friendliest staff. They are quick to learn & eager to assist. Great schedulers who are on top of managing the schedules & keeping their employees accountable. I sure appreciate all the help they give!”

AsAn
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always Best Care has some of the friendliest staff. They are quick to learn & eager to assist. Great schedulers who are on top of managing the schedules & keeping their employees accountable. I sure appreciate all the help they give!”

Audrey S.
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TESTIMONIALS

“I can leave a long review if I wanted to . I can talk about always best cares credentials and talk about mine. But What’s the point of leaving a review if it sounds like everybody else’s. The bottom line is , that they are great at their jobs from the bottom to the top. They have a process and people in place . They keep accountability and are communicative . Ive represented many companies in the past and still do till this day contract with only the best.. If you feel you want to hear more about this company on a deeper level just lmk. Happy Healthy Safe”

Jay R.
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TESTIMONIALS

“I like working for ABC because it works well with my busy nursing school schedule! I also like how I get to work on my own, but there are options to work with other CNAs for the care of some of the clients. It’s the best of both worlds! I’ve been with Always best care since 2021 and have thoroughly enjoyed working with the clients I work with!”

Olivia S.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Love always best care ❤️”

Breezy H.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Amazing business. Staff are helpful and kind.”

Margot K.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always Best Care is always best!!! Highly recommended! Brent listens and hears what we need for my 94 year old mom and matches caregivers accordingly. Sometimes, the schedule changes and he works to fill the needs immediately and always with a great attitude! The caregivers are compassionate. Again, I highly recommend Always Best Care.”

shell S.
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TESTIMONIALS

“They are seriously so amazing to work with and really care for their clients. I came to them with some pretty difficult challenges that I was not sure we could work with but they were able to make it happen and truly did more than I thought was even possible. I highly recommend them.”

Mandy M.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Love working for this company”

Christina P.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Great to work with, caring, compassionate and willing to work with different situations! They take time to understand needs to accommodate the best way to help! They are trustworthy, dependable and a business you can count on!!????”

M S.

What is Non-Medical Senior Care in Mexican Hat, UT?

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Home is where the heart is. While that saying can sound a tad cliche, it is especially true for many seniors living in America. When given a choice, older adults most often prefer to grow older at home. An AARP study found that three out of four adults over the age of 50 want to stay in their homes and communities as they age.

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When you begin to think about why, it makes sense. Home offers a sense of security, comfort, and familiarity.

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The truth is, as we age, we begin to rely on others for help. When a family is too busy or lives too far away to fulfill this role, in-home senior care is often the best solution. Home care services allow seniors to enjoy personal independence while also receiving trustworthy assistance from a trained caregiver.

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At Always Best Care, we offer a comprehensive range of home care services to help seniors stay healthy while they get the help they need to remain independent. As your senior loved one gets older, giving them the gift of senior care is one of the best ways to show your love, even if you live far away.

 Senior Care Mexican Hat, UT

Types of Elderly Care in Mexican Hat, UT

To give our senior clients the best care possible, we offer a full spectrum of in-home care services:

Personal Care

Personal Care Services

If your senior loved one has specific care needs, our personal care services are a great choice to consider. Personal care includes the standard caregiving duties associated with companion care and includes help with tasks such as dressing and grooming. Personal care can also help individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes.

Common personal care services include assistance with:

  • Eating
  • Mobility Issues
  • Incontinence
  • Bathing
  • Dressing
  • Grooming

Respite Care Mexican Hat, UT
Home Helper

Home Helper Services

Sometimes, seniors need helpful reminders to maintain a high quality of life at home. If you or your senior has trouble with everyday tasks like cooking, our home helper services will be very beneficial.

Common home helper care services include assistance with:

  • Medication Reminders
  • Meal Preparation
  • Pet Care
  • Prescription Refills
  • Morning Wake-Up
  • Walking
  • Reading
 Caregivers Mexican Hat, UT
Companionship Services

Companionship Services

Using this kind of care is a fantastic way to make life easier for you or your senior loved one. At Always Best Care, our talented caregivers often fill the role of a companion for seniors. That way, older adults can enjoy their favorite local activities, such as visiting Mexican Hat Rocks Dry Camping with friends while also receiving the care they need daily or weekly.

Common companionship services include:

  • Grocery Shopping
  • Transportation to Appointments
  • Nutritional Assistance
  • Conversation
  • Planning Outings
  • Completing Errands
  • Transportation to Community
  • Events and Social Outings
Home Care Mexican Hat, UT
Respite Care

Respite Care Services

According to AARP, more than 53 million adults living in the U.S. provide care to someone over 50 years old. Unfortunately, these caregivers experience stress, exhaustion, and even depression. Our respite care services help family caregivers address urgent obligations, spend time with their children, and enjoy nearby activities. Perhaps more importantly, respite care gives family members time to recharge and regroup. Taking personal time to de-stress reduces the risk of caregiver burnout. So, if you've always wanted to eat at the local Mexican Hat Grill/formerly Swingin' Steaks or visit Goosenecks State Park, don't feel bad. Doing so is great for both you and your loved one.

At the end of the day, our goal is to become a valuable part of your senior's daily routine. That way, we may help give them the highest quality of life possible. We know that staying at home is important for your loved one, and we are here to help make sure that is possible.

If you have been on the fence about non-medical home care, there has never been a better time than now to give your senior the care, assistance, and companionship they deserve.

 In-Home Care Mexican Hat, UT

Benefits of Home Care in Mexican Hat, UT

Always Best Care in-home services are for older adults who prefer to stay at home but need ongoing care that friends and family cannot provide. In-home care is a safe, effective way for seniors to age gracefully in a familiar place and live independent, non-institutionalized lives. The benefits of non-medical home care are numerous. Here are just a few reasons to consider senior care services from Always Best Care:

Always Best Care offers a full array of care options for patients at all levels of health. With our trusted elderly care services, your loved one will receive the level of care necessary for them to enjoy the highest possible quality of life.

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Aging in Place: The Preferred Choice for Most Seniors

While it's true that some seniors have complicated medical needs that prevent them from staying at home, aging in place is often the best arrangement for seniors and their families. With a trusted caregiver, seniors have the opportunity to live with a sense of dignity and do so as they see fit - something that is unavailable to many older people today.

In-home care makes it possible for millions of seniors to age in place every year. Rather than moving to a strange nursing home, seniors have the chance to stay at home where they feel the happiest and most comfortable.

Here are just a few of the reasons why older men and women prefer to age at home:

How much does a senior's home truly mean to them?

A study published by the American Society on Aging found that more than half of seniors say their home's emotional value means more than how much their home is worth in monetary value. It stands to reason, then, that a senior's home is where they want to grow old.

With the help of elderly care in Mexican Hat, UT, seniors don't have to age in a sterilized care facility. Instead, they can age gracefully in the place they want to be most: their home. In contrast, seniors who move to a long-term care facility must adapt to new environments, new people, and new systems that the facility implements. At this stage in life, this kind of drastic change can be more harmful than helpful.

Institutional care facilities like nursing homes often put large groups of people together to live in one location. On any given day, dozens of staff members and caregivers run in and out of these facilities. Being around so many new people in a relatively small living environment can be dangerous for a seniors' health and wellbeing. When you consider that thousands of seniors passed away in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, opting for in-home care is often a safer, healthier choice for seniors.

Aging in place has been shown to improve seniors' quality of life, which helps boost physical health and also helps insulate them from viral and bacterial risks found in elderly living facilities.

For many seniors, the ability to live independently with assistance from a caregiver is a priceless option. With in-home care, seniors experience a higher level of independence and freedom - much more so than in other settings like a nursing home. When a senior has the chance to age in place, they get to live life on their own terms, inside the house that they helped make into a home. More independence means more control over their personal lives, too, which leads to increased levels of fulfillment, happiness, and personal gratification. Over time, these positive feelings can manifest into a healthier, longer life.

More independence, a healthier life, and increased comfort are only a few benefits of aging in place. You have to take into consideration the role of cost and convenience. Simply put, it's usually easier and more affordable to help seniors age in place than it is to move them into an institutional care facility. According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, seniors who age in the comfort of their homes can save thousands of dollars per month.

In-home care services from Always Best Care, for instance, are often less expensive than long-term solutions, which can cost upwards of six figures per year. To make matters worse, many residential care facilities are reluctant to accept long-term care insurance and other types of payment assistance.

With Always Best Care's home care services, seniors and their families have a greater level of control over their care plans. In-home care gives seniors the chance to form a bond with a trusted caregiver and also receive unmatched care that is catered to their needs. In long-term care facilities, seniors and their loved ones have much less control over their care plan and have less of a say in who provides their care.

 Elderly Care Mexican Hat, UT

Affordable Care

In-home care is a valuable resource that empowers seniors to age in place on their own terms. However, a big concern for many families and their loved ones is how much in-home care costs. If you're worried that in-home care is too expensive, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that it is one of the most affordable senior care arrangements available.

Typically, hiring an Always Best Care in-home caregiver for a few hours a week is more affordable than sending your loved one to a long-term care facility. This is true even for seniors with more complex care needs.

At Always Best Care, we will work closely with you and your family to develop a Care Plan that not only meets your care needs, but your budget requirements, too. Once we discover the level of care that you or your senior need, we develop an in-home care plan that you can afford.

In addition to our flexible care options, families should also consider the following resources to help offset potential home care costs:

If your loved one qualifies, Medicaid may help reduce in-home care costs. Review your UT's Medicaid program laws and benefits, and make sure your senior's financial and medical needs meet Medicaid eligibility requirements.
Attendance and aid benefits through military service can cover a portion of the costs associated with in-home care for veterans and their spouses.
Many senior care services like in-home care are included in long-term care insurance options. Research different long-term care solutions to find a plan that provides coverage for senior care.
Home care can be included as part of a senior's private insurance plan. Read over your loved one's insurance policy carefully or speak with their insurance provider to determine if in-home care is covered.
Depending on the life insurance plan, you may be able to apply your policy toward long-term care. You may be able to use long-term-care coverage to help pay for in-home elderly care.
 Senior Care Mexican Hat, UT

Compassionate Care. Trusted Caregivers.

When you or your senior loved one needs assistance managing daily tasks at home, finding a qualified caregiver can be challenging. It takes a special kind of person to provide reliable care for your senior loved one. However, a caregiver's role involves more than meal preparation and medication reminders. Many seniors rely on their caregivers for companionship, too.

Our companion care services give seniors the chance to socialize in a safe environment and engage in activities at home. These important efforts boost morale and provide much-needed relief from repetitive daily routines. A one-on-one, engaging conversation can sharpen seniors' minds and give them something in which to be excited.

At Always Best Care, we only hire care providers that we would trust to care for our own loved ones. Our senior caregivers in Mexican Hat, UT understand how important it is to listen and communicate with their seniors. A seemingly small interaction, like a short hug goodbye, can make a major difference in a senior's day. Instead of battling against feelings of isolation, seniors begin to look forward to seeing their caregiver each week.

Understanding the nuances of senior care is just one of the reasons why our care providers are so great at their job.

Unlike some senior care companies, our caregivers must undergo extensive training before they work for Always Best Care. In addition, our caregivers receive ongoing training throughout the year. This training ensures that their standard of care matches up to the high standards we've come to expect. During this training, they will brush up on their communication skills, safety awareness, and symptom spotting. That way, your loved one receives the highest level of non-medical home care from day one.

Assisted Living Referral Services

While it's true that many seniors prefer to age at home, sometimes in-home care isn't the best fit. For those seniors and their families, choosing an assisted living facility makes more sense. Unfortunately, finding the optimal care facility is easier said than done in today's day and age. That's when Always Best Care's assisted living referral services begin to make a lot of sense.

Assisted living is a form of housing intended for seniors who require varying degrees of medical and personal attention. Accommodations may include single rooms, apartments, or shared living arrangements. Assisted living communities are typically designed to resemble a home-like environment and are physically constructed to encourage the independence of residents.


Respite Care Mexican Hat, UT

At assisted living communities, seniors receive help with daily activities such as bathing, dressing, and eating. They may also benefit from coordination of services with outside healthcare providers, and monitoring of resident activities to ensure their health, safety, and well-being. Caregivers who work at assisted living communities can also provide medication administration and personal care services for older adults.

Other services offered within assisted living communities can include some or all of the following:

  • Housekeeping
  • Laundry
  • Recreational Activities
  • Social Outings
  • Emergency Medical Response
  • Medication Monitoring
  • Family Visitation
  • Personal Care
 Caregivers Mexican Hat, UT

At Always Best Care, our representatives can match your senior's emotional, physical, and financial needs with viable assisted living communities nearby. Results are based on comparative data, so you can select the best choice for you or your loved one.

Always Best Care works closely with local senior living communities to gain valuable knowledge that we then use to help seniors and their loved ones make informed decisions. This information can include basic care and rent, resident availability, and services provided. Because Always Best Care is compensated by these communities, we provide senior living referral services at no extra cost to you.

Some of the most popular assisted living communities to consider in our area include the following:

  • Southgate Assisted & Senior Living
  • Abbington Senior Living
  • Abbington Senior Living of Lehi - Memory Care
  • Spring Gardens Senior Living Mapleton
  • The Ridge Cottonwood
  • The Auberge at North Ogden
Home Care Mexican Hat, UT

For many seniors, moving into a senior living community revolves around how and when they want to make a transition to more involved care. Some seniors are more proactive about transitioning to independent living. Others choose to remain home until their care needs or other requirements are satisfied. Remember - our staff is here to help. Contact our office today to learn more about assisted living communities and how we can find a facility that exceeds your expectations.

 In-Home Care Mexican Hat, UT

Taking the First Step with Always Best Care

The first step in getting quality in-home care starts with a personal consultation with an experienced Always Best Care Care Coordinator. This initial consultation is crucial for our team to learn more about you or your elderly loved one to discover the level of care required. Topics of this consultation typically include:

A discussion of your needs and how our trained caregivers can offer assistance in the most effective way

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A draft of your care plan, which includes highly detailed notes and a framework for the care that you or your senior will receive

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Discuss payment options and help coordinate billing with your insurance provider

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Our caregivers are trained to spot changes that clients exhibit, like mental and physical decline. As your trusted senior care company, we will constantly assess and update your Care Plan to meet any new emotional, intellectual, physical, and emotional needs.

If you have never considered in-home care before, we understand that you and your family may have concerns about your Care Plan and its Care Coordinator. To help give you peace of mind, know that every team member and caregiver must undergo comprehensive training before being assigned to a Care Plan.

At the end of the day, we only hire the best of the best at Always Best Care. Whether you need home care in Mexican Hat, UT 24-hours a day or only need a respite for a couple of hours, we are here to serve you.

When you're ready, we encourage you to contact your local Always Best Care representative to set up a Care Consultation. Our Care Coordinators would be happy to meet with you in person to get to know you better, discuss your needs, and help put together a personalized Care Plan specific to your needs.

 Elderly Care Mexican Hat, UT

Latest News in Mexican Hat, UT

Your last-minute Utah guide to the annular solar eclipse

Saturday is the annular solar eclipse, and Utah is sma...

Saturday is the annular solar eclipse, and Utah is smack dab in the middle of the big shebang.

State of play: The moon will pass between the sun and Earth while it is at its farthest point from Earth, per NASA.

Details: The eclipse will first be visible at the Nevada border at 10:24am and reach the Four Corners 11 minutes later.

Zoom in: The whole "Ring of Fire" will be visible from a path that runs from about West Wendover to Monticello at its northern edge, and from the southwest corner of Millard County to Lake Powell's Wahweap Bay in the south.

Of note: The Utah Department of Transportation expects 300,000 visitors in central and southern Utah, with the biggest crowds in Richfield and Mexican Hat. Plan for hours of traffic delays after the eclipse.

Worth your time: Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Glen Canyon national parks and rec sites have issued crowd rules and viewing advice.

Be smart: Erin, here! My family made it to Idaho for the "zone of totality" in 2017, and there are a few things worth knowing.

What you need to know about the ‘Ring of Fire’ eclipse coming to Utah

It’s been 11 years since the last annular solar eclipse crossed the western United States, but on Oct. 14, millions will have a chance to see another one.See the eclipse in Utah: Viewing locations include Baker, on the border of Nevada, Richfield, Panguitch, Monticello and Mexican Hat — with a population of less than 100 that is nestled up against the banks of the San Juan River. It can also be seen over Four Corners.There are also prime recreation areas where it will be visible, including:Karen Garthw...

It’s been 11 years since the last annular solar eclipse crossed the western United States, but on Oct. 14, millions will have a chance to see another one.

See the eclipse in Utah: Viewing locations include Baker, on the border of Nevada, Richfield, Panguitch, Monticello and Mexican Hat — with a population of less than 100 that is nestled up against the banks of the San Juan River. It can also be seen over Four Corners.

There are also prime recreation areas where it will be visible, including:

Karen Garthwait, spokeswoman for Arches and Canyonlands, said the parks are expecting big crowds at a time when they are already crowded since October is an ideal, cooler time to visit.

One of Canyonlands’ two campgrounds does offer reserved spots, but all the reserved spaces at the Needles site are already taken. The parks are bringing in extra staff to help with congestion.

“If, once the eclipse happens and everyone is trying to leave at once, that will be problematic. It would be helpful if people plan and pack some extra patience that day,” she said.

Check Canyonlands website for tips on visiting during the eclipse as well as the website for Arches.

At Bryce, park staff are expecting its “first come first serve” camping spots to fill up in advance of the eclipse as well, said spokesman Peter Densmore.

“This is, of course, depending on if we have a winter-style event that could change availability.”

Anyone visiting the great outdoors to catch a glimpse of the eclipse should come prepared with plenty of food, water, gasoline and other supplies, park officials advised.

Garthwait also said eclipse enthusiasts should:

Most hotels are at capacity or nearing capacity in San Juan County, according to a Facebook post the county put out Sept. 12. The post warned residents that supplies may be limited due to the anticipated influx of visitors, so preparations should be made in the next few weeks, specifically area residents should make sure to have a full tank of gas and stock up the refrigerator and cupboards.

Falyn Owens, executive director of Bryce Canyon County/Garfield County Office of Tourism, said hotel rooms are being snapped up quickly.

“I connected with a few hotels near Bryce Canyon and the gateway communities. They are reporting hotels being very close to capacity. A hotelier in Tropic said whenever they get a cancelation it fills back up within the hour.”

She said she also anticipates an increase in dispersed camping on nearby public lands.

“There are so many places in Garfield County to view the eclipse that we expect to see an influx in traffic on Scenic Byway 12 and the surrounding communities.”

Related

More about the Ring of Fire eclipse: An annular solar eclipse happens when the size of the moon’s disc is slightly smaller than the apparent size of the sun. As a result, only the outer edge of the sun is visible if you are in the path of the eclipse, creating a “ring of fire” both eerie and awesome.

According to the Great American Eclipse, a website chock full of just about everything you’d want to know about the Ring of Fire eclipse, it first meets up with the United States at 9:13 a.m. Pacific time at Reedsport, Oregon.

“The shadow of the moon at this point is screaming at 7,534 miles per hour. The maximum duration of annularity at the Oregon coast is 4 minutes, 29 seconds and the eclipse will be 13 degrees high in the sky,” the site said. It hits Utah in the 9:07 to 9:09 a.m. range Mountain time when the partial eclipse begins.

After that, the annular solar eclipse begins in the 10:24 a.m. range and by about 90 minutes later, the partial eclipse is over. It ends in Texas at 12:03 Central time.

Across the United States, according to the website, a little more than 6.6 million people in the United States live in the path of the eclipse. In Utah, there are 86,000 people who live in its path, and visitation to the state could bump up by as much as 314,000.

A total solar eclipse next year on April 8 bypasses Utah and most of the West. Instead, the Great Plains region and the upper East Coast will get the treat.

'Ring of Fire' eclipse: Officials warn of supply snafus

SAN JUAN COUNTY, UTAH, Utah — Officials in Utah are telling residents to prepare now for scarce supplies ahead of the annular eclipse that will be sweeping across most of the state on Oct. 14.The Utah Division of Emergency Management said hotels and other lodging in the southeastern county of San Juan are reporting 95% to 100% occupancy in the days leading up to and the days after the "ring of fire" eclipse. The crush of ...

SAN JUAN COUNTY, UTAH, Utah — Officials in Utah are telling residents to prepare now for scarce supplies ahead of the annular eclipse that will be sweeping across most of the state on Oct. 14.

The Utah Division of Emergency Management said hotels and other lodging in the southeastern county of San Juan are reporting 95% to 100% occupancy in the days leading up to and the days after the "ring of fire" eclipse. The crush of visitors is expected to strain supplies and resources around the areas of Mexican Hat and Monument Valley, according to officials.

Emergency managers are telling residents to stock up their refrigerators and cupboards with food and drinks before tourists come into the area. Residents are also being urged to make sure their gas tanks are filled up, too.

Visitors getting a late start on planning a trip to Utah's Canyon Country do have some options of events to see the eclipse. Goosenecks State Park in Mexican Hat will have telescopes, solar binoculars, eclipse glasses and more. A longer list of events happening around the eclipse in southeastern Utah can be found here.

For the U.S., the eclipse will begin in Oregon at about 10:15 a.m. Mountain Time and sweep south-easterly crossing over parts of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas.

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Brett Leigh Dicks Interviewed

Fifteen miles from Utah’s Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, mesas the color of burnt sienna erupt from the landscape, forming what look like the banks of a dry riverbed. A cumulonimbus cloud on the move hangs above the scene; a cerulean sky hugs the edges. It’s a serene image, beautiful and barren.But the picture becomes haunting when you realize you are looking at the former site of the Mexican Hat Disposal Cell uranium mill. The “riverbed” is actually 20 inches of riprap rock, with a 24-inch thick radon bar...

Fifteen miles from Utah’s Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, mesas the color of burnt sienna erupt from the landscape, forming what look like the banks of a dry riverbed. A cumulonimbus cloud on the move hangs above the scene; a cerulean sky hugs the edges. It’s a serene image, beautiful and barren.

But the picture becomes haunting when you realize you are looking at the former site of the Mexican Hat Disposal Cell uranium mill. The “riverbed” is actually 20 inches of riprap rock, with a 24-inch thick radon barrier beneath that. It covers 68 acres and 4.4 million tons of radioactive waste material, including a demolished school that had been constructed from contaminated matter.

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For photographer Brett Leigh Dicks, natural vistas used in the pursuit of nuclear energy, such as the one described above, offer an intriguing, if horrible, tale to tell. So, Dicks, who spends half of his time in his native Australia and the other half in Santa Barbara (he is a former Indy contributor), set about documenting myriad locations used in the production, housing, and waste of nuclear endeavors.

The result is an exhibit called, matter-of-factly, Nuclear Landscapes. The show is currently featured in the Head On Photo Festival, a decade-long program that showcases nearly 1,000 Australian and international photographers in more than 100 venues in Sydney. Although COVID-19 made that impossible physically, the festival is available virtually at headon.com.au.

I recently spoke to Leigh Dicks over email about Nuclear Landscapes. What follows is an edited version of our conversation.

What drew you to shooting nuclear landscapes? This series grew as a tangent to a body of work I started not long after arriving in Santa Barbara back in the early 2000s. I frequently visited Arizona and spent a lot of time in Tucson. A good friend of mine out there — Joey Burns — has a wonderful band called Calexico, which, in 2000, released an album called Hot Rail featuring the song “Sonic Wind.” That composition was inspired by an old nuclear missile base just south of Tucson.

I’ve spent a lot of time there over the years but until then was oblivious to the central role Tucson had played in U.S. missile defense during the Cold War, so I started looking into it. There were over a dozen of these Titan II missile installations surrounding the city, each armed with a fully fueled ICBM ready to launch at a moment’s notice, all subsequently decommissioned and abandoned.

That discovery inspired the series Opposing Forces, where I not only documented abandoned nuclear missile bases in the U.S., but also their Soviet counterparts across Eastern Europe. Doing so not only raised questions into what happened to the nuclear material when these missiles were scrapped, but where it had come from in the first place. That opened up the whole world of nuclear energy and led me and my camera to places ranging from old uranium mines and processing plants to atomic testing sites, missiles bases, submarine shipyards, nuclear reactors, sites of nuclear accidents, and waste-disposal sites.

Some of the photos show depressions in the earth, and other seemingly natural abstractions. How do you feel the images capture the reality/legacy of nuclear energy? Anyone who has seen aerial images of the Nevada Test Site will know it looks something like a crater-filled moonscape as a result of all the blasts conducted there. But what I found very haunting were less-obvious “nuclear landscapes,” like Snow Canyon State Park just outside of St. George, Utah. Snow Canyon is a gorgeous landscape featuring a canyon carved from the red and white Navajo sandstone. Yet being downwind of the Nevada Test Site, between 1951 and 1963, the area was regularly blanketed in radioactive fallout from atmospheric atomic tests.

In the mid-1950s, Dick Powell directed a Howard Hughes–produced film, The Conqueror, in Snow Canyon. The film starred John Wayne and Susan Hayward. At the end of location filming, Hughes additionally shipped 60 tons of contaminated earth from Snow Canyon back to Hollywood for reshoots. A crater left by a blast makes a very powerful statement about the might of atomic energy, but the legacy of its radioactive aftermath is less obvious. The entire cast and crew of that film were exposed to radioactive contamination and resulted in an inordinate number of them contracting cancer.

So along with documenting the physical legacy of atomic energy, I wanted to also tell some of the lesser-known “ground zero” stories. I was also intrigued by how our culture has embraced the atomic age. Las Vegas casinos used to have watch parties for the tests at the nearby Nevada Test Site and even crowned a Miss Atomic Energy. There is a bar there — Atomic Liquor — where a little of that culture is still encapsulated in the city’s famed neon glow.

Do you feel the threat of nuclear energy is understood by the masses, or accepted as basically benign? It’s a complicated science, and anything that’s complicated is difficult to grasp a thorough understanding of. And complicated processes also come with risks. There is definitely a fear factor associated with nuclear energy, and, well, there should be. We unfortunately seem to go through cycles where the ramifications of nuclear energy are dramatically brought home to us — Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. I think after Fukushima, as we sat and waited to see whether a cloud of radioactive fallout was going to be blown our way, nobody in Santa Barbara thought nuclear energy was benign. But it is certainly something we should all constantly pay more attention to.

Between 1944 and 1986, something like 30 million tons of uranium ore was extracted from the Navajo Nation in the Four Corners region. Scattered across the tribal lands are still hundreds of un-remediated uranium mines. Radiation pollution has contaminated groundwater and wells, houses and even schools were built from radioactive mine tailings, and, of course, there are the abandoned mines themselves. The EPA and Navajo Nation are identifying and addressing what is a very current and serious problem.

Tell me a bit about the Head On Photo Fest. The Head On Photo Festival has been running for over 10 years and is the largest photography festival in Australia and the second largest in the world. Staged across the month of May, the festival showcases over 900 Australian and international photo-artists in over 100 venues around Sydney.

The program is aimed equally at photographers and the general public. Along with exhibitions, it runs an extensive program of contests, workshops, seminars, artists’ talks, projections, and portfolio reviews. I was a finalist in last year’s Landscape Award, which in turn led to me being a featured photographer in the 2020 festival.

The exhibitions are staged in large and small galleries, museums, parks, cafés, and illuminations on buildings. While this year is very different due to the COVID-19 lockdown, what I love most about the festival is that it puts photography in public places where you don’t typically see it. My exhibition was planned for one of the most iconic locations in Australia: Sydney’s Bondi Beach. While it will now be an online exhibition for the month of May, the plan is to stage the physical exhibitions later in the year when restrictions are eased and a physical program is planned.

What are you working on now? I am currently preparing some prints for a Midwest-based museum that has put together an exhibition examining the legacy of photography in the American West. The exhibition is being curated by the Figge Art Museum in Iowa and is titled Magnetic West: The Enduring Allure of the American West. It features over 150 photographs by some of the most renowned photographers of the 19th and 20th centuries — and a couple from me, as well.

The plan was/is to be back in the U.S. for the opening of that exhibition at the end of June. In the meantime, I have been working on an Australian installment of Nuclear Landscapes — photographing test sites, mines, and waste sites across here — along with a new project that explores massacre sites here in Australia where colonialists massacred indigenous communities. These are events between the late 1780s and 1930s associated with what is loosely termed the Frontier Wars. There weren’t really wars, more the massacre of Aboriginal people in the process of dispossessing them of their land or as retribution for perceived crimes.

Given my family heritage, this is a very personal project. I have been researching and photographing locations throughout Australia and will continue to do so once we’re permitted to travel again. Both projects are currently on lockdown hold — so for the past month or so I am finally been taking some time to organize my archives.

At Yale, Fazal Sheikh exposes the elements in every sense

NEW HAVEN — The title of “Fazal Sheikh: Exposures” begins straightforwardly enough, with the name of the photographer whose 150 images make up the show. There’s also a video, several texts, and a sound installation, by Jeffrey Ralston Moore. The show runs through Jan. 8 at the Yale University Art Gallery.Born in New York in 1965, Sheikh’s best known for his photographs of refugees and migrants. That work is visually restrained, deeply ...

NEW HAVEN — The title of “Fazal Sheikh: Exposures” begins straightforwardly enough, with the name of the photographer whose 150 images make up the show. There’s also a video, several texts, and a sound installation, by Jeffrey Ralston Moore. The show runs through Jan. 8 at the Yale University Art Gallery.

Born in New York in 1965, Sheikh’s best known for his photographs of refugees and migrants. That work is visually restrained, deeply humane, and no less deeply impassioned. It’s not inaccurate to say that Sheikh practices what one might call advocacy photography. His doing so, and doing it so well, puts him in the tradition of Lewis Hine and Dorothea Lange, and in the contemporary company of Sebastião Salgado.

Good advocacy photography shows without exhorting. Clarity of execution complements clarity of purpose, making exhortation superfluous. That’s the case with “Exposures.” Which brings us back to the title. With that third word, things become more complicated. “Exposures,” in the context of the show, has multiple meanings, and all of them matter.

The most basic, of course, refers to photography. Each of those 150 images (mostly landscapes, but also portraits) is an exposed piece of film: an exposure.

There’s also exposure in the sense of revelation. That revelation can take the form of moral or ethical insight. It can also mean the revealing of something hidden and/or illicit. That’s the kind of revelation we describe as an exposé. Both meanings apply here.

Finally, there’s exposure in an ecological sense, as in exposed to the elements; and exposure in the sense of physical hazard. “Exposures” is divided into two parts. They have in common a desert location (Israel’s Negev and the American Southwest) and depredation. A desert is the kind of landscape most exposed to the elements — and in both deserts, those people who have traditionally lived there, Bedouins and such tribes as the Diné (Navajo) and Hopi have been exposed to sometimes-deadly political force. In the Southwest, there are also serious medical threats from the toxins generated by mineral extraction.

“Erasure,” the Negev section, comprises four series. The most notable is “Desert Bloom.” It consists of 48 aerial photographs of the desert, shown in a tight grid. Their soft, even chaste, dun palette makes all the more unsettling what the images show: emerging Israeli settlements, newly planted forests encroaching on Arab villages, and the remnants of Arab villages whose residents were expelled.

Another series, “Independence/Nakba,” consists of five diptychs, large black-and-white portraits, each showing an Israeli and a Palestinian born in the same year. They’re drawn from the full series, which begins in 1948, the year of Israel’s founding, and extends to 2013. The portraits are in Sheikh’s standard mode: faces filling the frame, the sitters alert and engaged, seeming as much collaborators with the photographer as subjects.

None of the persons are identified. This makes a larger point, presumably, the idea being that personal information would be a distraction from the greater concept of hoped-for reconciliation that the diptychs are meant to evoke. These are as much representative figures as individuals. That makes sense, but it also robs the sitters of a specificity that could help make a different sort of point.

There are also portraits in the other half of the exhibition, “Exposure” (yes, singular, not plural). They, too, are black and white and tightly framed. They’re of Native Americans from the Four Corners area. Each sitter is identified, and several of the portraits include lengthy statements from the subject. The texts matter a great deal. One complaint about the hanging of the show is that the wall labels should be higher and have a larger point size, to enhance readability.

As with “Erasure,” the lion’s share of images are color landscapes, most of them aerial shots. Sixty-six of them make up the series “In Place.” Sheikh took them in and around Bears Ears National Monument, in Utah. Tightly gridded, they hang in a small side gallery. They’re large, roughly 25 inches by 37 inches, but not so large as to be overwhelming. With little space between individual photographs, the images become themselves a kind of visual landscape. The cumulative effect is transfixing.

The subdued, austere beauty of the “In Place” photographs makes all the more shocking the contrast with 10 photographs in the larger gallery space (that’s where the portraits are) which show coal mines, mineral disposal sites, and the like. The juxtaposition is an implicit, and unanswerable, condemnation. The violation of the land is shocking to see. It’s like something out of the Book of Job, with the terrain as Job. These extraction-industry photographs are striking, no question. They’re unreal looking, like toxic versions of color field paintings. Looking at them, one wonders if a better term than advocacy photography might be warning photography.

FAZAL SHEIKH: EXPOSURES

At Yale University Art Gallery, 1111 Chapel St., New Haven, through Jan. 8. 203-432-0600, artgallery.yale.edu

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