Visiting nurse helps couple stay on farm

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

Reuben ditches his walker in the house, exchanging it for two canes, when he heads out to do the chores. Lenora drives the pickup truck and they head over to the dairy, about two miles distant.

Snow from the last storm is still melting, leaving the barnyard a slick, muddy mess. Nonetheless, Lenora slogs through the muck in her new insulated boots, as sure-footed as a deer, to show off the young calves. Twice each day, she milks two cows and bottle-feeds the milk to her 15 calves. Reuben does his part, too, driving a small tractor to feed corn and silage to the youngsters.

It's a pretty typical regimen of life on the farm, except for two small details. Reuben Folot is 95 years old, and his wife Lenora is 88. They're both pretty healthy, although Reuben has circulation problems in one leg so it's hard to stay warm.

"That cold wants to creep right into you," he said. He has not appreciated the early snowstorms this year.

The Folots live on a 160-acre farm between Fort Collins and Wellington. Their son Richard does most of the farming, but the parents also help. When it's time to harvest the sugar beets, Reuben said, "I top the beets, Richard pulls them and Mom picks the beets up."

Richard used to milk 100 cows, before he fell victim to the failure of New Frontier Bank. The family managed to hold on to a dozen calves and two cows, and now Lenora is buying more calves to rebuild the herd and bring in some cash.

"It's not cheap living out here," Reuben noted. He and Lenora hope to make enough money from the calves to pay their taxes and the water assessment to North Poudre Irrigation Co.

Still, said Lenora, "We enjoy it here."

Both grew up on Colorado farms. Reuben said they tried living in town once, but with the houses so close together he found that if he moved his car just a bit, he was in a neighbor's driveway. "I couldn't live that way," he insisted.

One of the things making life on the farm possible for the Folots is the Rehabilitation and Visiting Nurse Association. Reuben had bypass surgery on his leg about two years ago because of the circulation problem, and the medication he takes has to be monitored closely.

Nurse Kay Valerio comes to the Folot home every two weeks to draw Reuben's blood. She calls in the results to his doctor, who adjusts the medication as needed. Valerio also sets up Reuben's medication for him for the next two weeks. Reuben and Lenora appreciate the nurse's visits, both for the medical help and the company.

The Folots used to make the five-mile trip to the lab for a blood draw, but as Lenora said, "It's so hard for us to go in" with four hours of chores every day at the farm. They generally make the trip to town just once a week for groceries.

RVNA, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, is one of nine designated charities for the 2009 Empty Stocking Fund, a project that raises funds for nonprofit agencies serving the area's most vulnerable residents.

RVNA is northern Colorado's only community-based, nonprofit home health care agency. It is funded through donations, grants and the Larimer County Office on Aging. With offices in Fort Collins and Greeley, the organization has 110 employees and cared for 888 clients in 2008. The organization serves clients of any age, but they must be homebound.

The current recession has had a big impact on RVNA and other nonprofits. According to CEO Crystal Day, "People who in the past had access to health care services are now without jobs, without insurance, or without the financial base to pay co-pays or other health costs - and thus without adequate access to health care."

RVNA offers a wide variety of services. Skilled providers include occupational, physical and speech therapists; nurses; a medical social worker and home health aides. The organization also has personal care providers and homemakers to help people with activities of daily living such as bathing, laundry and errands.

Earlier this year, RVNA received a grant to purchase 16 telehealth units. According to Sheri Sauer, director of patient services, these units remotely monitor patients with congestive heart failure, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or high blood pressure. Patients are monitored every day, and a nurse reviews the information.

The telehealth units even serve as educators, providing an interactive lesson on the screen each day that's related to the patient's condition. The units help to keep hospital readmissions down, Sauer said, by closely monitoring patients after discharge from the hospital.

Another piece of new technology used by RVNA is an electronic medication box. It contains the patient's daily doses and beeps when it's time to take the next pill.

RVNA also offers a personal emergency response system, similar to Lifeline, with a monthly fee for renting the equipment.

"We're the safety net for so many people," Sauer said. "We keep them at home, and that's where people want to be." Also, the expense is minimal compared with assisted living or nursing home facilities.

RVNA's oldest client was 104 years old. "We kept her home for years," Sauer said with a smile.

Reuben Folot may try to beat that record.

See information about the other Empty Stocking Fund charities and how to contribute at www.nocoemptystocking.org.