Empowered Living was born out of love for a man named David.
David was a scientist and a wonder-seeker. He had mischievous eyes that lit up a room and a spirit that stayed relentlessly positive even as life dealt him a brutal hand. For thirty years he lived with a severe, progressive form of MS. I was by his side for the last ten of them, right up until his final day.
My name is Jason Hilton. David was my best friend and, in many ways, the closest thing I've ever had to a father. As his illness progressed I became the person by his side through the daily grind of it all. I worked with him through his ever-changing needs, helped coordinate his care, and was there every step of the way. In his final days he had a nurse and a hospice caregiver to help with his medical needs, but I was his constant. The person helping him navigate what came next. It was one of the most exhausting, humbling, and profound experiences of my life.
David was fiercely clear about one thing: he was not going to a facility. He said it plainly and without drama. He wasn't built for it. He wanted to be home, in his space, on his terms, for as long as he possibly could.
So that became our mission together. As his needs changed, we adapted. We figured things out sometimes painfully and sometimes creatively because we had to. Throughout those years I kept coming back to the same thought: why is this so hard? Why isn't there someone helping families navigate this better?
David passed away two Novembers ago after thirty years of fighting. I grieved him deeply and I still do. But somewhere in that grief I found clarity. I missed him terribly. I also realized how much I missed the work, the problem solving, the advocacy, the feeling of helping someone stay in the life they had built for themselves.
That's when Empowered Living became more than an idea.
I earned my CAPS certification through the National Association of Home Builders because I wanted to do this right, not just from the heart but with the training to make a real difference. Because here's what I know to be true: most people can stay home. With the right modifications, the right plan, and the right support, independence is possible for far longer than most families realize.
That's what I want for you.
Stay safe. Stay home. Stay empowered.
For David, and for yours.
— Jason Hilton