Portrait of American family evolves to include more and more elderly people
11:12 a.m. Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Janis and Andy Mink got married, raised a daughter and sent her off to college, but they are hardly empty-nesters.
Three years ago Janis's mother moved in.
"I worried about her in the winter living by herself. Well, what is she slips? What if she gets hurt ? Who can help her?" Janis said.
Marie is 87 years old.
"I lived in my own house after my husband died for a few years, and it just got to be to many things to be done," Janis' mother, Marie Hendrickson, said. The Minks are just one of the more than three and a half million American families making room for older parents -- many who need care or have outlived their savings.
"I really think we are going to see an increase in multi-generational households based on need, based on what's happening in our economy, on foreclosures, on people having more difficulty staying in their homes or maintaining their homes," Generations United Executive Director Donna Butts said.
It's not just elderly parents moving in. The census finds a 75 percent increase in parents under the age of 65 now living with their adult children -- an old world approach to the challenges of life today.
Moving in under one roof can create a whole new set of conflicts. Family relations can be strained over everything from who pays bills to who's in charge. Susan Avery not only studies the trend, she's living it. Her mother moved in 11 years ago.
"It really is who's going to be the disciplinarian in this house? Who gets the last word? Those are the things we're finding when inter-generational families live together," Avery, Grandparents.com Executive Editor, said.
For the Minks, the conflicts have been few.
"We only have troubles when it comes to how long the broccoli should be cooked for Sunday dinner. I prefer it crisp and firm, and my mother-in-law likes to cook it," Andy Mink said.
Marie is financially independent and helps pay taxes on the property they share.
It seems the new American family chooses to take on life's challenges together.
The Census Bureau reported the number of parents living with their grown children jumped 67 percent in the past seven years, to 3.6 million.
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