SAIL - Supporting Active Independent Lives

SAIL – Support for Active Independent Lives began as a vision over 20 years ago and has evolved into a real-life opportunity to improve the health and well-being of people as they age.

The vision began taking shape in September 2002, when the Madison Area Continuing Care Consortium, Inc. (MACCC) sponsored a public forum in Dane County, Wisconsin, to explore the growing population of people over 60 years of age and the resources needed to uphold the quality of life for them.

Following this forum, MACCC submitted a proposal to the U.S. Agency on Aging for a one-year Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) Demonstration Project, a term coined by University of Wisconsin professor Dr. Michael Hunt, a SAIL colleague. In 2004, MACCC received a federal appropriation to begin the project, in addition to receiving funding from the Madison Community Foundation.

The NORC project, now called SAIL, provides an economical, holistic, collaborative, and practical model of services aimed at keeping people healthy and in their own homes as they age.

SAIL addresses the challenges associated with a rapidly growing population of seniors, a limited labor force, lack of government funding, and changing preferences of people as they age. Through combining public and private funding, collaboration with the University of Wisconsin, partnerships with local existing agencies and state-of-the-art technology, SAIL will not only meet the needs of the growing population, but will improve the quality of care provided to older people in general.

To ensure a positive future, MACCC developed a five-year business plan, which includes additional grant funding and growth in membership. By January 2010, SAIL is expected to be self-sustaining and available throughout Dane County.