Rob McGoff and his wife, Elizabeth, in yellow, watch the ribbon fall after cutting it an a one-year-anniversary for their Seniors Helping Seniors franchise. Their color-coded daughters are, from left, Isabella, 6; Mirabella, 3; and Gabriella, 4,
The second time Rob McGoff was laid off in two years, he was at a loss, “not knowing what to do and where to go.”
“It was a very dark time,” he said.
McGoff and his wife, Elizabeth, who live in Hartford (Masury address) figured out what to do: they bought a Seniors Helping Seniors franchise and started offering in-home services.
Their first client came on board Sept. 16, 2018, a woman who lives in Girard.
“She is actually still with us,” McGoff said Sept. 10 at a one-year anniversary celebration held with the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce.
Seniors Helping Seniors, based in Hermitage, now has 25 clients in five counties in Ohio and Pennsylvania, and 22 employees.
“This couldn’t be any better,” McGoff said. “Sometimes, you have to go through that (dark time) to end up in the right place. I couldn’t be more excited for the future.”
Seniors Helping Seniors offers companionship, light housekeeping, meal preparation, transportation, handyman services and personal care to seniors to help them stay in their homes.
Sometimes the company is hired by the clients themselves, and sometimes by family members who want to make sure the clients are checked on.
“I want to care for people who don’t have that family support, or don’t have enough,” McGoff said.
Yet, Seniors Helping Seniors serves the caregivers as much as the clients, he said. Some are seniors – age 50 and older – who lost their jobs because of technological change or an adverse business climate. It’s simply hard for older workers to find work, he said.
In some cases, the employees are people who have retired, but want to stay active. They can set the hours they want to work, and the kind of work they want to do.
McGoff said he hires people who are loving, caring and compassionate.
“I can train them to do everything else,” he said. “When I hire people, I hire them specifically for their life experiences.”
He calls working for Seniors Helping Seniors “a volunteer experience that has a paycheck at the end of it.”
“When they go in there, they come out just as fulfilled as our clients,” he said.
All the services are private pay, and McGoff said he requires a minimum of two hours of service.
To reach Seniors Helping Seniors, call 724-877-3505 or email admin@shs-shenangovalley.com
