The Christian Brothers have dedicated their lives to educating and caring for young people. Those same Brothers continue to be involved in all ministries, especially mentoring new generations of students and lay partners, ensuring that our shared Lasallian mission continues though the number of Brothers continues to decline. Yesterday’s students are today’s alumni who now have the unique opportunity to do the nurturing by providing for our senior Brothers’ care so their retirement years are lived with grace and dignity. A Community That Cares - Comes Full Circle.

Like many Americans, religious communities face the monumental challenge of funding in-home healthcare, as well as independent/assisted/skilled nursing care. Currently, the average annual cost of care for one of our senior Brothers is over $59,000 per person. If you add in skilled nursing care, that figure jumps to over $90,000 annually per person. In the United States, the total cost of care for senior religious individuals exceeds $1 billion annually. In the last year, our costs associated with our senior Brothers have increased 26%. The largest increases have been in Nursing Facilities and Transportation Costs, but also include Nursing Care, Medical Care Expenses, and Supplies.

In 2019, the Midwest District had 128 Brothers. Of those, 71 (or 58%) were retired and 20 of those retired Brothers were in assisted living. The number of Brothers is declining, while the number of retired Brothers continues to grow. The Midwest District now has 85 Brothers (93% are retired) with an average age of 76, including 13 in assisted living or skilled nursing facilities. While these numbers are staggering, they paint a realistic picture of the challenges we face with the declining number of Brothers and increasing healthcare costs.

The Midwest District employs five nursing staff members to provide care for our senior Brothers. These healthcare professionals do wellness checks, take Brothers to doctor appointments, assist with medication, act as advocates, work with relatives of current Brothers on health concerns, and assist Brothers transitioning from home healthcare to assisted living or nursing home facilities.