“I had a lot on my plate professionally as well as worrying about my mother, and MPTF literally changed my mom’s life—multiple times.” That’s how Marion Dole describes her experiences with MPTF’s Elder Connection program. Marion (an assistant director) and her husband, Kevin (a director), have both been DGA members and have two children 
who are SAG members and heard about MPTF through their industry friends. Although her mother did not work in the industry, MPTF’s Elder Connection was able to assist her mother and can assist parents of industry members.
“When my mom started complaining that she was feeling dizzy,” Marion says, “she’d go to her doctor, and nothing would happen. I became aware that the roles were reversing, and I needed to take care of her.” Guided by her MPTF Elder Connection social worker, Marion saw rapid improvements in her mother Ginette (seen in the left photo here) as “the whole community just rallied around my mom and got her healthy.” Available to industry members and their parents 65 and older, Elder Connection offers a social worker to help navigate obstacles to aging in place for generations of entertainers and their parents, including guidance for housing, finances, medical needs, and more–something typified by Marion’s first visit to MPTF. “When I was waiting with my mom, I just remember looking at that picture of Mary Pickford and there was a quote, ‘We see a need, and we fill it.’ I thought, ‘Oh, we do! Wow, that’s cool. It just made me feel so good.”
Marion wishes to extended heartfelt thanks to the members of what she calls “Team Ginette:” social worker Maria Gisina (“my lifeline who helped me navigate the complex issues around my mother’s care beyond medical”), Dr. Saeed Humayun, and MPTF’s Jony Saravia, Therese L’Heureux, Holly Spiegel, and Dr. Makhijani. “We have a ball whenever we go to the clinic,” she says of their time at UCLA’s Age Well on our campus. “They all know my mom and make her feel so great, like a movie star. They see her holistically, they actually see her personality. I cannot express enough gratitude for their help and the community which has rallied around us to help me take care of my mom.” Learn more about Elder Connection and our other services here. >
