Respite Care for Family Caregivers in Broomfield, CO: How the Free Breaks Work

The free respite the city already funds

Broomfield offers free in-home caregiver respite for eligible residents 60 and older who need help with daily activities and have a family caregiver. The program is funded by DRCOG, and the number to call is 303-464-5529. Eligibility and waiting lists apply, so call before assuming the timing will work for your situation.

The same office runs Broomfield Homemaker Services, which provides free help with light housekeeping, laundry and grocery shopping for eligible residents 60 and older, also at 303-464-5529. For a caregiver whose parent is still able to manage most of the day but can no longer manage the laundry, this is often the practical gap that closes.

If you are not sure what exists, start with the Senior Services Community Resources Coordinator at 303-464-5529, who gives free, confidential information and referrals. Broomfield Senior Services' main line is 303-464-5526. DRCOG, the Area Agency on Aging for Broomfield, also provides short-term planning and case management for people 60 and older and for their caregivers, at 303-480-6700.

Free things a caregiver can do instead of sitting at home

Respite does not have to be paid. Broomfield's Active Adult Recreation runs fitness, games, crafts, trips and social events for adults 55 and up, on 303-464-5536, with trips booked by lottery through B-REx.com. For a caregiver, a Wednesday trip is three hours of somebody else handling the day.

The Broomfield Community Center at 280 Spader Way, phone 303-464-5500, runs drop-in programs that need no registration, including Bridge, Canasta, Mexican Train, Needlework, Woodcarvers and American Mah Jongg. Check the current schedule and fee before you go. Healthy Hearts walking groups also meet at the Community Center and at Paul Derda Recreation Center, and B-REx.com lists the current times.

The Lakeshore Café at the Community Center serves a weekday lunch, and reservations go through B-REx.com or 303-464-5500; check current hours, menu and the reservation cutoff. If a caregiver can get out for a meal while a volunteer or relative covers the house, that lunch is part of the plan rather than a reward for it.

Caregivers often skip this one because it feels like signing up for something. It is not. Active Adult Recreation is for residents 55 and older and its schedule is published in advance, so the only work is the first booking. Once the trip lottery or a weekly drop-in is on the calendar, somebody else owns that stretch of the day and the caregiver can stop computing it.

A break that actually happens

Free programs run on set hours, so the break only happens if it was arranged the week before. Caregivers who pull this off usually pick one standing commitment that needs no decision each week, and they keep a second option in reserve for the weeks when the first one falls apart. A drop-in is the right kind of first choice: nothing is reserved, nothing is lost if Tuesday turns into a hospital day, and the card games at the Broomfield Community Center need no registration at all.

Good weather changes the math too. Broomfield County Commons Open Space covers nearly 350 acres with sports fields, playgrounds, walking paths and the Paul Derda Recreation Center, and the Big Loop Trail inside it is a 2.2-mile loop that passes reservoirs and protected wetlands. An hour on that loop, with the person you care for or alone while somebody else sits with them, is a break that needs no form, no fee and no waiting list.

Trips through Active Adult Recreation run by lottery, so book the month and treat any single trip as a bonus rather than the plan. The dependable version is the standing weekly thing: the same morning, the same room, the same people, arranged once and left alone.

Errands and groceries that somebody else can handle

Cultivate's Carry-Out Caravan sends volunteers to help older adults place grocery orders, shop and deliver to their homes, at 303-443-1933. Ask about the current service area and waitlist. Blue Spruce Neighbors provides free groceries to older adults in Broomfield and Boulder County, including fresh produce, dairy and frozen items, at 303-652-3663 ext. 225; check the current distribution schedule.

Broomfield FISH Food & Resource Center provides fresh and shelf-stable groceries, rent assistance and other support for qualifying Broomfield households, at 303-465-1600. Distribution hours sit on FISH's own site rather than the city guide, so check there before driving over.

For the caregiver who needs a place to go, McKay Lake Nature Area has a 1.5-mile trail around the lake with fishing access, a bike park and birdwatching, and the library's inventHQ makerspace at 6 Garden Center has tools and classes in 3D printing, sewing and electronics, open Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and Friday and Saturday; check current hours.

When a paid visit is the better break

Free programs have limits: eligibility rules, waitlists, set hours, and a preference for the person receiving care rather than the person providing it. A paid visit solves a different problem. It is the same caregiver, the same schedule, and the same tasks every week, which is what actually lets a family caregiver plan a life around.

A three-hour visit has a shape: a shower and clean clothes, a real lunch, a load of laundry, the kitchen reset, and company. Then the caregiver leaves and the family caregiver has the afternoon. That is what the three-hour minimum is for, so tasks get finished instead of started. Most families try one visit a week and see where it lands before deciding anything bigger.

Colorado CareAssist is a family-owned home care agency, Hesed Home Care LLC dba Colorado CareAssist, and we provide non-medical home care in Broomfield. We match a caregiver on skills and personality, our Broomfield rate is $43 an hour for Denver metro and north visits with a three-hour minimum, and live-in care is a flat $650 a day. We do not use long-term contracts, so a family can try it for a month and change its mind without a fight.

Start with a free 20-minute phone consultation, then a free in-home assessment at the home or by video, with no obligation. Call (303) 757-1777 and a real person answers. If it turns out the city's free programs cover what you need, we will tell you that too.

There is also a middle option worth asking about. Broomfield's free Homemaker Services already covers light housekeeping, laundry and grocery shopping for eligible residents 60 and older, and a paid caregiver can pick up exactly those same tasks on the days nobody else is coming. Families often mix the two: the city program on the days it is available, a paid visit on the days it is not, and a schedule that finally holds still.

Local resources in Broomfield

• Broomfield offers free in-home caregiver respite for eligible residents 60+ who need help with daily activities and have a family caregiver; 303-464-5529, funded by DRCOG. Source
• Broomfield Homemaker Services provides free help with light housekeeping, laundry and grocery shopping for eligible residents 60+, funded by DRCOG; 303-464-5529. Source
• The Senior Services Community Resources Coordinator gives free, confidential information and referrals at 303-464-5529. Source
• Broomfield Senior Services' main line is 303-464-5526. Source
• Active Adult Recreation offers fitness, games, crafts, trips and social events for adults 55+, with trips booked by lottery through B-REx.com; phone 303-464-5536. Source
• Drop-in programs at the Community Center need no registration and include Bridge, Canasta, Mexican Train, Needlework, Woodcarvers and American Mah Jongg. Source
• Healthy Hearts Walking groups meet at the Broomfield Community Center and at Paul Derda Recreation Center; check the current schedule. Source
• The Lakeshore Café at the Broomfield Community Center serves weekday lunch, with reservations at B-REx.com or 303-464-5500. Source
• Blue Spruce Neighbors provides free groceries to older adults in Broomfield and Boulder County, including fresh produce, dairy and frozen items; phone 303-652-3663 ext. 225. Source
• Cultivate's Carry-Out Caravan sends volunteers to help older adults place grocery orders, shop and deliver to their homes; phone 303-443-1933. Source
• Broomfield FISH Food & Resource Center provides fresh and shelf-stable groceries, rent assistance and other support for qualifying Broomfield households; phone 303-465-1600. Source
• DRCOG provides short-term planning and case management for people 60+ and their caregivers at 303-480-6700. Source
• McKay Lake Nature Area has a 1.5-mile trail around the lake with fishing access, a bike park and birdwatching. Source
• inventHQ, the library's makerspace at 6 Garden Center, offers tools and classes in 3D printing, sewing and electronics. Source
• Broomfield County Commons Open Space covers nearly 350 acres with sports fields, playgrounds, walking paths and the Paul Derda Recreation Center. Source
• The Big Loop Trail is a popular 2.2-mile multi-use loop within the Commons area, passing reservoirs and protected wetlands. Source

More resources for Broomfield families

• Dementia Care at Home in Broomfield, CO
• Home Care After a Hospital Stay in Broomfield, CO
• How to Choose a Home Care Agency in Broomfield, CO
• Paying for Home Care in Broomfield, CO: Costs and Options