Posts Tagged ‘Senior Travel Assistance’
Phoenix Travel Companion Notes That Shoes May Soon Be Left On At Airport TSA Screening
Airport Check-in: Scanner would let fliers keep shoes on at security
Removing shoes at and airport security check point has gotten routine for the regular travelers, but remains a hustle for elder travelers. When traveling with an Elder Travel Companion, removing shoes may not be such a big deal as traveling alone.
New shoe scanners may eliminate the need to remove shoes altogether, Yea!
Now your Travel Companion Caregiver can help you with all the other items being searched.
By Ben Mutzabaugh, USA TODAY
From USA TODAY’s Airport Check-in column: A company vying to sell airport shoe scanners has finished its "trial" at Indianapolis International, collecting results from 3,000 travelers who volunteered to try its machine in the lobby.
Morpho Detection says its data-collection experiment, which ended in late July, showed its scanner can process more than 300 customers an hour. Travelers still had to remove their shoes at the airport’s security checkpoints.
Morpho says it’ll use the data to fine-tune machines and submit it to the Transportation Security Administration.
TSA wants to revive the idea of allowing travelers to keep their shoes on at checkpoints and has announced its plans to buy 100 shoe scanners by next year. About a dozen companies hope to bid for the business. — Roger Yu
When you could use some assistance while traveling, try a Travel Companion from Care-To-Go. In Home CareGivers are also available from Care-To-Go in the Phoenix area.
Travel Companion Reunites A Brother And Sister After Years Apart
It was a picturesque spring day in April when Evelyn and her personal Travel Companion headed for the airport shuttle going from Burbank California connecting to John Day Oregon. This should be a trip to remember. Evelyn 95 was on her way to reunite with her brother Howard now 93 in Oregon.
Evelyn and Howard are the only ones remaining of five siblings who grew up on a little farm in Missouri then moved to California and Oregon in the mid 1940s. It had been several years since the two of them had spent time together.
The trip to Boise ID went smoothly because Evelyn’s Travel Companion had scheduled an easy connection and had scheduled a wheel chair and pre-boarding for all the flight segments. Evelyn’s Travel Companion Pam handled the bags and arranged for transportation from Boise airport to John Day OR, about a 3 hour ride. Once checked into their hotel in John Day, Pam and Evelyn went to the ranch to reunite with Howard.
Ron, Gary, Brian, along with Donna also come to join in the get-together. Evelyn and Howard were so excited to see each other and they lost no time in catching up. Donna, Pam and Ron made dinner “Missouri” style which set the stage for several hours of conversation about the old days.
During the next three days, The seniors reminisced for endless hours, never running out of stories. They reminisced, went fishing (Evelyn caught the most fish for the dinner), looked at the scrap books, enjoyed Howard’s birthday celebration and just enjoyed their time all together.
Evelyn’s Travel Companion Pam, not only helped all the way making the trip possible, but she put forth the extra effort insuring that Evelyn was well taken care of and cared for. Besides the trip, Pam helped with meals, baited hooks for fishing, helped organize scrapbooks and took some family pictures. Pam roomed with Evelyn in the lodge to be certain she was well cared for and secure.
When it was time for the flight home, Evelyn and her travel companion boarded Southwest flight 405 to Oakland CA to connect to Burbank California. The standard wheel chair and preboarding were set and the boarding in Boise went fine.
After 30 minutes in the air, the pilot said that there was a warning light in the cockpit and we needed to return to Boise and have it fixed. When it was discovered that the delay could be lengthly, the gate agents had everyone to get off and wait for another aircraft. Evelyn was assisted from the plane and the circumstances was explained to her. Pam, the Travel Companion continued to handle everything; explaining the circumstances to Evelyn, re-booking the flight connection to Oakland, assuring priority boarding once more, and handling snacks and drinks. Thankfully the flights home were uneventful and went smoothly.
We are reminded constantly how precious family and friends can be to our well being. Our seniors regularly let life close in on them because retaining contact with loved ones who live far away becomes too difficult. Unfortunately, travel is one of the first things that drops out of the life of an aging senior. Travel Companions are a way for seniors to keep the lifestyle they love and maintain contact with friends and family.
Evelyn and Howard had a few wonderful days together and they now have more memories to last a life time. At the last dinner in Oregon, plans were already started to schedule the next family reunion.
One company specializing in Travel Companions is Care-To-Go. For information on scheduling your Travel Companion visit www.CareToGoTravel.com