SASH Vermont

06/01/2026

What a beautiful way to spend a morning! SASH participants in Swanton recently gathered at the Parish Hall at Holy Trinity Church for a Paint and Plant activity, partnering with local florist Tipsy Daisy. Each participant painted their own pot and filled it with blooms to take home. Kudos to SASH Coordinator Pam Hunt with Champlain Housing Trust for making this happen!

05/29/2026

SASH Coordinator Terri L'Esperance organized this wonderful shell art workshop for residents at Reid Commons and look at those results!

05/20/2026

The May SASH Beat is out! A newly published, peer-reviewed study confirms that SASH participants gained more than a year of healthy life and stayed home at far higher rates than expected. The research puts numbers to what staff have always known to be true. Read the full Beat here: https://sashvt.org/news/sash-beat-may-2026

05/15/2026

May is Older Americans Month, and we're celebrating with a look back at the heart of what SASH is all about. This video from our archives captures participants sharing, in their own words, what SASH means to them. Hope. Home. Life. Community.

Did you know we are celebrating 15 years of SASH this year? Thank you to every participant, coordinator, and community partner who has helped make SASH what it is today. Just imagine what we will accomplish in the next 15 years!

Participants share their thoughts about SASH.

05/14/2026

This week is Nurses Week, and we're taking a moment to celebrate the incredible nurses who make SASH what it is.

Every day, our SASH wellness nurses show up with compassion, clinical expertise, and a deep commitment to the health and well-being of our participants. They navigate complex needs, build trusting relationships, and advocate tirelessly for the people in their care.

To our nurses: thank you. Your leadership, your heart, and your persistence make a real difference in communities across Vermont. We are so grateful for you.

Happy Nurses Week! 💚

04/17/2026

A huge congratulations to Cathie Cassano, Cathedral Square's Community Engagement Specialist, on being named a Community Collaborator of the Year by the UVM College of Nursing and Health Sciences Department of Occupational Therapy! Cathie has been a wonderful partner in bringing OT students into SASH communities to conduct falls, cognitive, and vision screenings for participants. We are so grateful for her dedication to the health and wellbeing of older Vermonters. Congratulations, Cathie!

03/20/2026

Big news for SASH and the people we serve! A peer-reviewed study published this month in Health Services Research found that SASH participants gained more than a year of healthy life, and that the cost of achieving that is less than a tenth of what is typically considered a good value in the U.S. health system.

The numbers are striking: the cost per quality-adjusted life year gained ranged from $4,013 to $8,344. The U.S. benchmark for a cost-effective health intervention is $100,000. SASH comes in well under that bar by any measure.

Those results come down to something our wellness nurses and coordinators do every day: helping participants manage their blood pressure, stay on their medications, and make small changes that add up to real health gains over time.

You can read the full press release: https://sashvt.org/news/peer-reviewed-study-confirms-sash-adds-over-a-year-of-healthy-life-at-low-cost

03/03/2026

Rain or snow, this group keeps moving! For over 13 years, SASH Coordinator MJ Merchant has been bringing older adults together for the SASH Indoor Walking Program, held twice a week at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction. The Nordic Soccer Club generously shares their winter rental of the space, making it all possible. With around 25 walkers each session, it's not just exercise, it's friendship, connections, and a whole lot of steps. At the end of every season, participants receive a certificate showing how many miles they've walked. What an incredible accomplishment! The program runs November through mid-April in partnership with Essex Junction Recreation and Parks.

01/28/2026

SASH is celebrating 15 years of keeping Vermonters healthy and connected in their homes! Cathedral Squares CEO Kim Fitzgerald shares how coordinated healthcare built into housing improves outcomes and reduces costs, and why continued investment in SASH is critical for Vermont's aging population. Read the full op-ed here: https://cathedralsquare.org/news/oped-age-specific-housing-improves-health-outcomes-and-reduces-costs

New research confirms what we've seen for nearly 50 years: when older adults move into housing designed for their needs with supportive services, they thrive. Our CEO Kim Fitzgerald explains why Vermont needs to prioritize investments in age-specific affordable housing through Vermont Housing & Conservation Board and supportive services through SASH Vermont .

Read the full op-ed here: https://cathedralsquare.org/news/oped-age-specific-housing-improves-health-outcomes-and-reduces-costs

01/22/2026

VITL recently highlighted the incredible work of SASH Wellness Nurses across the state, showcasing the vital role they play in supporting older Vermonters to live independently in their homes and communities. A huge thank you to SASH Wellness Nurses Donna Tatum at Cathedral Square and Michelle Downing at RuralEdge for sharing their insights and expertise with VITL. Their interview beautifully illustrates the variety of critical work SASH teams do every day to coordinate care and improve health outcomes!

Read the full story:

VITL is a Vermont nonprofit that shares health information responsibly to help providers care for their patients