Home Instead Senior Care
Toronto - North York, Don Mills, and Willowdale

The History of Home Instead Senior Care Toronto - North York

The front entrance of our offices at 1210 Sheppard Avenue East, Suite 310, with a visiting Canada Goose

The Home Instead Senior Care office supporting the territory known as Toronto - North York encompasses Don Mills; parts of North Toronto and North York; and Willowdale.  The office was founded in 2001 and was the first Home Instead Senior Care franchise in Canada.  Sharon Galway acquired the business from Alistar Hicks, the original owner, in 2005.  Alistar was moving to Victoria BC for personal reasons and wanted to make sure his highly successful business went to the "right person".  Sharon had all the qualities Alistair, and the franchisor, were looking for, and he left for BC knowing his many clients were being left in good hands.  (Alistair opened a Home Instead Senior Care franchise in Victoria BC shortly after his arrival in Victoria.)

Sharon came to the business with over 30 years experience within Ontario's health care system, and very specifically with a desire to work with seniors and the families of seniors in our community.   Sharon will tell you that "Most individuals in our industry are highly conscientious, civic minded individuals with a deep understanding of the struggles faced by senior citizens."  And, it is this among other traits that are used to measure all new CAREGivers and employees of the Toronto - North York office.

Many of the staff and CAREGivers are, or have, experienced caring for their own elderly parent or relative, and it is this first hand experience that deepens our resolve to always be there for our clients.  This is where the structure of the Home Instead Senior Care franchise works so well.  As a small community based business we get to leverage a wealth of knowledge and assets such as computer systems, procedures and training programs that would be out of reach if we were on our own.   Yet, as an independent office we can leverage the assets and expertise that are needed in OUR community and hence have a positive impact.

Home Instead Senior Care Began from Personal Experience

Paul and Lori Hogan founded Home Instead, Inc. and began serving seniors in Omaha, Nebraska, as Home Instead Senior Care in 1994. It was Paul Hogan's own family experience caring for his grandmother that made him realize the need for non-medical home care and elder companionship services to help seniors live independently at home.

Fulfilling a Growing Need as Our Population Ages

In June 1995, the company began franchising. By 1998, Home Instead Senior Care had grown to 99 offices and was recognized by Entrepreneur magazine as one of the 100 fastest growing franchise companies in the United States. In 2000, Home Instead Senior Care began international development with the opening of an international partner relationship in Osaka, Japan with Duskin Corporation.

Offering In-Home Care Worldwide

Today, the Home Instead Senior Care franchise network is the world's trusted source of companionship, Alzheimer's and home care for seniors, with more than 950 franchises in the United States, Canada, Japan, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Switzerland, Germany, South Korea, Finland, Austria, Italy, Puerto Rico and the Netherlands. The network employs nearly 65,000 trained Home Instead CAREGivers℠ who provide millions of hours of elder care services annually.

Philanthropic Endeavors

In 2003, the Hogans established The Home Instead Senior Care Foundation as a means to further enhance the lives of older adults. The Foundation's focus and objective is to provide financial assistance to non-profit organizations specializing in projects and programming that improve the quality of life for seniors. To learn more, visit The Home Instead Senior Care Foundation website.