Uplift Home Care: Supporting Independence, Offering Peace of Mind
Celebrating the official Uplift Home Care ribbon cutting are (l-r) Adam Bartlett, co-owner; Marlene Bartlett, co-owner; Walnut Creek City Councilmember Craig DeVinney; caregivers James Schaufler and Lacey Gentry; and Sally Romero, caregiver recruiter and employee engagement generalist.
Uplift Home Care owners Adam and Marlene Bartlett recently celebrated their official grand opening with a ribbon cutting and festive event that drew family and friends, colleagues and caregivers. The Bartletts have launched a tailored approach to non-medical home care with the founding of a boutique brand they promise will live up to its company name.
“We want our home care business to be a positive and uplifting experience for both our clients and our caregivers,” said Marlene, whose extensive corporate marketing background has been vital to creating the fresh look and feel of the company. “We’re uplifting the lives of our clients and their families by providing a means for safe and healthy independent living. And we’re uplifting the lives of our caregivers by providing livelihoods with training, good pay, and benefits that support the work they see as a calling.”
Uplift Home Care sprung from the experiences of both Marlene and Adam, who watched as their grandmothers, who could no longer live safely on their own, were given second chances at independent living in their own homes, near family and friends, through the love and companionship of in-home caregivers. They felt the impact on their own parents, who had struggled as primary caregivers, and the transformation of both their parents and grandmothers as the caregivers became essential parts of their lives and families.
“With home care for my grandmother, my dad could go back to being the son and spending those last years in the mother/son relationship,” said Adam. “It was a nice way for my grandmother to live out the rest of her years and for my dad to enjoy those years with his mother, as well, free of the stress and physical toll of being her primary caregiver. That stayed with us.”
Marlene and Adam Bartlett, co-owners, Uplift Home Care—The first thing you notice when you step through the door to Uplift’s office is its serene, gently appointed space. Marlene said the lobby reflects the inner beauty that is in every caregiver.
Those positive experiences with home care and life-changing caregivers were turning points for the Bartletts. In 2024, they decided to establish their own home care business, from the ground up, as an independent home care agency, With guidance from Becky Reel, an award-winning home care industry consultant, they are building Uplift Home Care to serve their community with the same dedication and compassion they would want for their own loved ones.
Leveraging her professional background in marketing and his in finance and operations, they created a vision of what they want home care to be, injecting their passion for serving the greater good and doing so with joy and appreciation for those who join them on the journey, including Client Care Manager Kirsten Sawyer, RN, BSN, and Sally Romero, the agency’s caregiver recruiter and employee engagement generalist.
Uplift Home Care provides assistance with non-medical activities of daily living for seniors in Walnut Creek and neighboring cities in Central Contra County. Services include bathing, toileting, cooking, light housekeeping, and transportation. As seniors age, they may experience decreased energy or mobility, making these core functions of everyday life challenging. Conditions such as Alzheimer's, dementia, Parkinson's, or recovery from a stroke or major surgery can further impact their ability to manage daily tasks. Additional help from a skilled Uplift caregiver allows clients to stay active, healthy, and safe in their own home. Based on the client’s needs, that might be 24-hour care, or just a few hours per day or week.
“Sometimes, it’s simply companionship — to be heard and seen,” said Adam. “Someone to talk with, share a meal with, play cards with. No one will ever replace family, but sometimes family can’t be there for one reason or another. And that’s when we step in.”
(l-r) Adam Bartlett; Sally Romero, the agency’s caregiver recruiter and employee engagement generalist; and Marlene Bartlett.
“In order to provide great care for our clients, we need to provide great care for our caregivers — to provide them a really great place to work, where it’s not just a job, but an outlet for their calling,” said Marlene. “Our caregivers are truly compassionate people who have a heart for service. We have so much respect for people who choose to go into people-facing professions, and we have this respect built into our business model. We treat our caregivers like rock stars because that’s what they are. They’re rock stars to the people they help who are able to stay at home and retain their independence safely with loving, compassionate support.”
Uplift caregivers come from a variety of skilled backgrounds and share in common a “caregiver demeanor,” according to Marlene. Training is provided online and in the office, which is home to a special “body mechanics” room with a bed, walker, wheel chair, and shower chair — training tools to master the art of the transfer. Caregivers learn how to properly transfer clients from the bed to the chair; from the wheelchair to the shower chair; from the walker into the car — and all such. combinations. Safety and comfort are key for both the client and the caregiver.
Hands-on training in the body mechanics of properly and safely transferring clients from one mobility or assistive device to another is conducted by Client Care Manager Kirsten Sawyer, RN, BSN, in Uplift’s training room, complete with bed, wheelchair, walker, and shower chair.
The first point of contact for people interested in exploring Uplift Home Care is the website or a phone call to the office, 925.644.7472. Then comes a complementary visit with the client and family to assess needs and expectations.
“We get a clear understanding of the client’s personality so we can ultimately make a good match for them if they choose to engage us,” said Adam. “All of our caregivers have the skills to help clients with the tasks, but we want to go the extra mile and match personalities, which will go a long way toward building a bond between client and caregiver.”
“We also check in a lot,” said Marlene. “We have care plans for our clients, but we also have care plans for our caregivers. We want to make sure everything is working out for all parties. And this is where Kirsten, our client care manager and registered nurse, comes in. She makes periodic visits to clients on site while caregivers are there checking on the success and progress of the care plan, checking to see if there is additional training needed at the office or in the home. With her medical background, she is the expert eyes on the client. If needed, we modify for changes in client needs.”
Joining Adam and Marlene Bartlett at Uplift Home Care are (far left) Sally Romero, caregiver recruiter and employee engagement generalist, and (far right) Kirsten Sawyer, RN, BSN, client care manager. Becky Reel (center), an award-winning home care consultant, has played a significant role in helping the Bartletts create and launch the Uplift Home Care brand.
“A distinctive characteristic of the San Francisco Bay Area is that a lot of families don’t live near each other. Adult children often move on and out to new jobs or to begin their own families. But they want to know that their parents are safe and well cared for, whether they’re one mile away or hundreds of miles away,” said Adam. “At the same time, for many clients who have lived in this area for 20, 30, 40 years, the thought of having to move out of their homes and leave those roots behind to move into an assisted living community is not an option they relish. Many want to stay in their homes where they have family and friends and neighbors and familiar, dependable services nearby. Home care is an appealing option for these folks, and Uplift is there to give them their second chance at independent living.”
