Catholic Family Services
Faith-Based In-Home Caregiving and Elderly SupportDescription
Event Involvements
Events with structured involvement data
Catholic Family Services is invoked as the shorthand solution for minimal, in-home assistance — a depersonalized option Tal mocks and C.J. considers as one of several practical supports. The organization functions as the institutional alternative to family-provided care.
Referenced indirectly through a hypothetical caregiver ('nice lady from Catholic Family Services') rather than a representative or protocol.
Low direct power in the scene; represented as an available resource that could shift caregiving burdens from family to institution if accepted.
Its mere invocation exposes class- and privacy-related anxieties about outsourcing intimate care and highlights the family's negotiation with social services instead of medical institutions.
Catholic Family Services is invoked as the modest, immediate caregiving option Tal disparages. The organization functions as the concrete alternative to full-time family care and as the symbol of 'outside' help that threatens Tal's sense of dignity.
Referenced by Tal as 'a nice lady from Catholic family Services' — represented through anecdote rather than physical presence.
Limited institutional power in the scene: they offer practical assistance but are subordinate to Tal's personal refusal and family decisions.
The organization's mention exposes the gap between available social supports and the family's emotional resistance; it highlights how institutions can be suggested as pragmatic fixes yet fail if the elder refuses.