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Striking a Balance: Family caregiver Conference

The Striking a Balance: Family Caregiver Conference showcases local, state and national resources for family caregivers to help ease the challenges that unpaid caregivers face while caring for their loved ones. The 26th annual conference will take place in person from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026 at the Austin Community College, East View Campus.

Striking a Balance connects family caregivers with new resources, tools and techniques that improves their total quality of care while forging a path to one of the most valuable caregiver resources — each other. Attending nonprofessional caregivers are invited to share their own experiences with their peers during the conference. The conference features a keynote speaker during lunch with other talks from local and national caregiving and gerontologist experts and a resource fair consisting of local aging service organizations.

"Family caregivers provide so much to their loved ones and our communities. It's an honor have offered this conference and give back to them what we can for the last 25 years."
Jennifer Scott
AAACAP Director
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Striking a Balance: A Family Caregiver Conference is presented by:

Area Agency on Aging of the Capital Area
Age of Central Texas Logo. AGE next to a tree.

This program is funded in part by Texas Health and Human Services.

The 2026 Conference

Striking a Balance

The speakers for the conference are still being gathered. The conference will feature a keynote speaker and then allow attendees breakout to hear tracks of discussion topics based on their families’ needs or interest. The tracks include:

  • Caregiver TLC – Rest and recharge through support and gentle experiences
  • Life Care Planning – Plan ahead with clarity and confidence
  • Practical Caregiving – Build skills for everyday caregiving

More details to come.

Previous Conferences

2025: The Silver Anniversary

The 2025 Striking a Balance: Caregiver Conference brought together several speakers and a panel discussion on caregiving. It was held at the Austin Public Library bringing the conference to downtown for the first time since the conference launched. Vendor booths also helped deliver need information to family caregivers.

Click to read more.

Speaking Sessions

 
Keynote Session: The Emotional Journey of Caregiving

Dr. Barry Jacobs and Dr. Julia Mayer will lead a heartfelt and practical keynote talk from their decades of experience as caregivers and clinical psychologists to explore the emotional challenges and rewards of caregiving.

Through their personal stories, expert insights, and actionable guidance, they will address common caregiving struggles such as guilt, burnout, family conflict, and selfcare. They want their lessons to teach caregivers how to feel seen, supported, and empowered with realistic tools to manage stress and sustain compassion throughout the caregiving journey. 

Jacobs is a clinical psychologist, a family therapist and a member of AARP’s Caregiving Advisory Panel. He has authored numerous columns on caregiving for the AARP and written several books on the topic. He is currently the principal of Health Management Associates in Philadelphia and the former director of behavioral sciences at Crozer-Keystone Family Medicine Residency Program.
Mayers also is a clinical psychologist whom specializes in women’s issues. She has published several articles for APA journal, Family, Systems and Health and has co-authored several books with her husband, Jacobs. Their latest books is The AARP Caregiver Answer Book.
 
Affordable Care Options: Navigating Support Without Breaking the Bank
 
This discussion explores cost-effective care solutions in Central Texas to help families balance quality care with their financial realities. 
Topics include housing alternatives such as income-based senior apartments and assisted living options; community-based respite programs that offer caregivers a break; adult day health centers that provide supervision, health monitoring, and social engagement at affordable rates; and in-home care services with options for sliding-scale or subsidized support.
The goal of the discussion is to teach caregivers about practical tools and local resources to help plan for sustainable care and improve quality of life for the caregivers and their loved ones.
 
Planning Ahead: Legal Essentials for Aging and Caregiving Presented by Terry Garrett, Certified Elder Law Attorney
 
Elder law attorney, Terry Garrett, will guide attendees through the critical legal matters every caregiver and older adult should understand to help them navigate the legal landscape of aging with confidence.
During his discussion, he will cover topics such as powers of attorney, advance directives, guardianship, Medicaid planning, and protecting assets while ensuring quality care. The discussion is meant to guide caregivers in understanding the importance of preparing key legal documents, avoiding common pitfalls, and making informed decisions that honor their loved ones’ wishes.

Previous Conferences

2024

A Family Caregiver Conference.

The 2024 conference featured a key-note speech about dementia causing diseases, advances in medications, caregiving strategies and resources for dementia caregivers. It was delivered by Jennifer Scott, CAPCOG’s Aging Services director.

The speech was part of the main event for the weeklong conference which held both in-person and virtual sessions. Other in-person activities included a resource fair and talks about relieving stress and anxiety to empower yourself and build resilience as a caregiver as well as innovative assistive technology geared towards older adults age in place. Samantha Cervantes Young, a local author; and Dr. Anita Swanson of Texas Technology gave the talks.

Virtual sessions took place earlier in the week and covered the topics:

 Advanced Care Planning

Hospice Austin’s Ginny Erboe and Beryl Kenney talked about what kind of health care we might want if there comes a time when we can’t speak for ourselves. They included in their talk how to identify your wishes, decide who you would like to speak for you, discuss your wishes with loved ones, and the basics of advance directives.

Hoarding Behaviors

Helen Flores shared valuable information and resources to support people who are struggling with hoarding disorders.

Long-distance Caregiving

Aging life care professionals Catherine Vergara of CareFor and Lina Supnet-Zapata of Mir Senior Care Management discussed how caring for loved ones from a distance can be a challenge and how to build your caregiving team.

Resource HUBs

Central Texas is home to some wonderful Resource HUBs including the Area Agency on Aging, AGE of Central Texas, Connect ATX and United Way. Each  organization discussed how they support people on their caregiving journey.