October 22, 2025 • 43 mins
What if losing everything was the moment you found yourself?
Renee Balcom—former dot-com CEO turned healthcare advocate—shows how reinvention, resilience, and purpose can rise from total collapse.
In this episode, we meet Renee Balcom, a former Silicon Valley CEO during the dot-com era who lost it all — company, marriage, identity — and built it back stronger than ever. Her story is a powerful example of midlife reinvention, emotional resilience, and how purpose often hides behind our hardest seasons.
Renee shares how bankruptcy led to clarity, how caregiving opened her eyes to broken healthcare systems, and how she founded Scroll Care, a trusted network that helps families navigate aging, caregiving, and complex medical decisions with dignity.
You’ll learn how to:
- Turn career collapse into career transformation,
- Rebuild after failure with purpose and integrity
- Use your transferable skills to start again
- Find peace and direction through service, not status
If you’re a woman over 50 seeking clarity, caregiving support, or courage to reinvent yourself, this episode is your reminder: your story isn’t over — it’s just getting interesting.
✨ Subscribe, review, and share with someone ready for her next chapter.
Resources
For a similar story on caregiving and reinvention check episode 127 and 145 and you might also enjoy Wellness Wednesdays hosted by gerontologist Sally Duplantier. These webinars feature topics about healthy aging. Visit MyZingLife.com to learn more.
Dr. Prudence Hall – Founder, The Hall Center
🌐 thehallcenter.com
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Beverley Glazer – Life Transition Coach & Host of Aging with Purpose and Passion
📧 Bev@reinventImpossible.com
| 🌐 reinventImpossible.com
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| 👥 Women Over 50 Rock
🎁 BONUS: Take your first step to clarity, courage and momentum. Your free checklist: → From Stuck to Unstoppable – is here.
https://reinvent-impossible.aweb.page/from-stuck-to-unstoppable
Have feedback or a powerful story that's worth telling? Contact us at info@Reinventimpossible.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Announcer (00:07):
Welcome to Aging with Purpose and Passion, the
podcast designed to inspire yourgreatness and thrive through
life.
Get ready to conquer yourfears.
Here's your host,psychotherapist, coach, and
empowerment expert, BeverleyGlazer.
Beverley Glazer (00:34):
What happens when you soared in the dot-com
era and then lose it all, yourcareer, your finances, and your
marriage?
And how do you find the courageto reinvent yourself?
Welcome to Aging with Purposeand Passion.
I'm Beverley Glazer, a catalystfor women who are ready to
raise the bar in their own life.
(00:55):
And you can find me onreInventimpossible.com.
Renee Balcom is the founder andCEO of Squirrel Care, a
platform for caring needsthrough every stage of life.
With more than 15 years ofexperience guiding families
through health care andlong-term care planning, Renee
(01:16):
is on a mission to bring trust,transparency, and humanity back
into caregiving.
A seasoned entrepreneur, ahealthcare advocate, and a
grandmother.
She's passionate about puttinghumanity first in the system,
and often a system that feelsvery, very transactional.
Her incredible story willinspire you to overcome your
(01:39):
challenges to keep listening.
Welcome, Renee.
Renee Balcom (01:44):
Thank you, Beverly.
Thank you so much for havingme.
And I'm grateful for youraudience listening.
And I also appreciate youmentioning three of my favorite
things, and that is being anentrepreneur and my kids, my
grandkids.
So it's fun, fun, fun to be agrandmother.
Beverley Glazer (02:00):
It sure is.
Renee, take us back to thedot-com era.
You were not a grandmotherthere.
You were lying.
You were a woman in tech, andyou didn't even realize you were
in tech back then.
So tell us what that was thatall about.
Renee Balcom (02:17):
Well, listen, most of us can remember back in the
day when, you know, there was nosuch thing as a laptop computer
or even a desktop computer, andcertainly not cell phones.
And we were all, if we wereworking, we were operating on
mainframe computers and offices,right?
And legacy systems that werecustomized for our offices.
(02:39):
So I landed in Silicon Valleyin um 1978.
Yeah, 78.
And back then we just didn't,we didn't even know it was
Silicon Valley.
We didn't know what SiliconValley was, we didn't know what
tech was, but it was thisburgeoning industry that frankly
I can remember when I gotthere.
(03:01):
And I I left Missouri uh when Iwas 20 and headed to
California.
And the way I even landed inthe Bay Area was I ran out of
money, so I had to get a job,right?
And the one ads were threeinches thick at the time, and so
just about anyone could get ajob there.
And so I took a job um as aTwix girl, and some of us will
(03:23):
remember that.
I was literally had a positionwhere I was in a padded room
sending Twix messages, liketeletype messages to vendors in
you know, Japan and in othercountries.
And so literally it was a broomcloset that they put padding on
the walls, and I lived in apadded room all day.
So that was how I started.
(03:43):
And within 10 years, I was aCEO.
And, you know, there's there'sthat that saying that a rising
tide rises all boats, right?
And perhaps that was part of mysuccess, but I like to think
that my success was just puttingmy head down, becoming part of
the solution, and just learningeverything I could learn about
(04:05):
an industry that I fell in lovewith.
So I was it was the time of mylife.
I will forever be grateful forthat experience and for the ride
that it took me.
I came out of um abject povertyin the Midwest and um, you
know, ended up within 10 yearsmaking more money than my
collective family combined.
(04:26):
That solved a lot of familyproblems, and I was able to
really uh work at leaving alegacy for my family during that
time.
And, you know, it was just suchan experience.
I traveled all over the world,I got to fly first class.
I mean, there were it was justunbelievable.
And suddenly I found myselfliving a life that, to be honest
with you, I had never evendreamed of because I didn't even
(04:48):
realize it existed, right?
And here I am.
The other thing that wasfascinating about that time is
there were very, very few womenin the technology industry back
then.
It was predominantly uhdominated by uh male engineers.
Um, but but they also neededthe work that I did specifically
was they needed someone thatwasn't necessarily an engineer,
(05:11):
could communicate with theengineers and then bring down
the technology into layman termsbecause what we see today in
technology has evolved, right?
But back in those days, to beable to communicate at a
technical level was almostimpossible for the layman.
So part of my work wasactually, I worked primarily in
marketing and marketingtechnology, and that job meant
(05:33):
bringing down high-levelthinking and bringing it into a
space where most of us couldunderstand it.
So it was a great, greatlearning experience.
I did have a couple of mentors,I want to say, that you know,
championed me along the way andreally saw potential in me.
And then I just worked hard.
I I was one of those peoplethat would sit on my bed, you
know, on Sunday night waitingfor Monday morning to come
(05:55):
because I loved the job.
I loved the work I was doing.
So I was very committed andspent my 20s very, very uh
committed to that work.
Beverley Glazer (06:05):
And and you were flying everywhere, you were
in a leadership role, and youwere a CEO.
What did you want to quit?
Renee Balcom (06:13):
So I became a CEO in my 30s, early 30s, and um and
we had uh division in NorthernCalifornia, Southern California,
Puerto Rico, and we wereopening a division in Shenzhen,
China, because at that timeeverything was kind of moving
offshore in manufacturing fortech.
Um, I found myself on longplane trips, you can imagine,
(06:38):
coming in and out of China.
Um, at this point, I had twochildren, and my mother was a
full-time caregiver living inour home, taking care of our
kids.
But so I was had this sense ofbeing torn.
And what more importantly,Beverly, and you know, I'm proud
of myself because I was kind ofan early adopter to this idea.
I also felt my moral compassreally spinning about what I was
(07:02):
seeing in China, right?
I I really was compelled to tryto understand why we would be
handing our technology, belovedtechnology that again I was an
infant with, and suddenly we'rehanding it to a communist
government.
And and I could see clearlywith my own eyes what was going
(07:22):
to happen and what was happeningin China.
So, so on those trips, I juststarted realizing that the time
may have come for me to slowdown, get off an airplane,
because I was gone a few weeks amonth, get off an airplane and
focus with my kids.
At that time, my kids were sixand seven years old.
You know, that's almost out ofthe house, right?
(07:43):
Not much longer.
They're in school and highschool and they're off on their
way, right?
So I, and I had always beenable to compartmentalize my
work.
I could, when I was at work, Iwas at work.
When I was at home, I was athome.
But I was gone a lot.
So, so there were big gaps inthat.
So, so I really felt that Ineeded to make a change and uh
(08:04):
decided to leave Silicon Valleyand buy a small company.
I hired a business broker andand went about the task of
finding a little company Iwanted to buy, in tech, by the
way, still in technology, andbought a company in Southwest
Oregon in a county called CurryCounty, Oregon.
So, for those of your listenersthat aren't familiar with
Oregon, if you go up the 101highway up California into the
(08:28):
coast, 101 will take you fromMexico to Canada.
You take Highway 101, as soonas you cross the border leading
California into Oregon, nowyou're in Curry County, Oregon,
and that's where I bought mybusiness.
And for those of you who havebeen there, it you know it's
spectacular to the eye.
You're right on the ocean, it'sjust beautiful.
And for those of you thathaven't looked up, Google it
(08:50):
because it's spectacular.
So um, so I got there, I lovedit.
Uh, we bought this business,um, and we landed in Brookings,
Oregon the Friday before 9-11.
And and I tend to, and we, itwas a very fast transaction, but
we did feel we did our duediligence and we had done all of
the work we needed to do.
(09:11):
Um, I spent five and a halfmillion dollars on this business
and um and felt I was making,you know, had made a good
business decision.
My husband had left his job.
My so we moved my whole tribe,right?
My mom, my husband, my kids, mybrother and his wife, and a few
of my employees uh came withus.
So so we landed the Fridaybefore 9-11.
(09:34):
And of course, 9-11 happenedthat following Tuesday, and the
world started changing prettyrapidly.
So I did not get into theoffice until that Thursday, two
days after 9-11.
And when I did, I discoveredthat I had purchased a shell
company.
So it was a complete scam, andthere really just wasn't
(09:55):
anything there.
And so um, so you know, it washurtful, right?
I spent a lot of wakelesshours, you know, um uh looking
at myself and examining myselfand thinking, how in the world
did I get here?
Right?
What did I miss?
I mean, you really, it's kindof an interesting phenomena.
And and I've met several peoplethat have been caught up in
(10:17):
scams.
And you really, the way thataffects you psychologically, you
play back over and over andover the steps that were taken.
And how did that, what did Imiss?
What were the signs?
What were the flags?
And in hindsight, it took acouple of years, but in
hindsight, there were flags.
I want to be open about that,you know.
So, so I also want to say thatwe're so eager and excited about
(10:42):
new opportunities in our life.
And sometimes when our gut orthere's a flag, we we tend to
ignore it and just think, oh,you know, I'm overthinking,
right?
Well, you know, cautionarytale.
If you if your gut says lookcloser, look closer.
Right.
Oh yeah.
And my ex-husband and I havehad long discussions about that.
(11:03):
We're great friends to thisday, and we both saw the flags
at the same time, which wasinteresting in hindsight, right?
But neither one of us wanted tosquelch the other one.
So we just put our concernsaway, tucked it away, and moved
forward.
So, you know, lesson learned,check that box, right?
Um, and then and then we wereoff to building.
(11:26):
I mean, my ego is involved.
I had been very successful inSilicon Valley, I was well
connected, and I thought, I'lljust build, I'll tell, take this
shell company and build acompany, right?
I still have yeah, I mean, I Iknow people, right?
I I got a little clout, right?
Right.
So that's what we went aboutdoing.
And you know, we pulled uhmoney out of properties we owned
(11:48):
in Silicon Valley because I wasdoing very, very well in
Silicon Valley.
So we had invested nicely, andso we just started pulling money
and putting it into thiscompany, and then the dot-com
bust happened, and then themortgage uh uh community flipped
over.
Most of us can still rememberthat, right?
And and you know, you know, notto sound profane, but all hell
(12:11):
broke loose, right?
Some people jumped off ofbuildings during that time, and
you know, it was a really,really big crisis period in our
nation, and um, and we weredefinitely dead center of a lot
of those concerns.
So, um, so a couple of thingsoccurred during that time.
Um, we had to bankrupt and wesold everything we had, my home,
(12:33):
my mother, we had bought mymother a home.
Uh, we ended up selling,liquidating everything.
The court had requested that.
And we also um ended upsurrendering our marriage and
just deciding we, you know,again, hindsight's perfect.
Today we look back and realizewe just weren't mature enough to
deal with, you know, theprocess we were going through.
(12:55):
Um, but we decided to end ourmarriage and go in different
directions.
Now, by this time, my kids,because we're we're kind of five
years in now, right?
My kids are thriving, they'reloving this community, they're
doing really well.
So, you know, again, that's thesilver lining, right?
We we moved there with anobjective, and that objective
(13:16):
was to raise our children in adifferent space and and see them
thrive differently.
And and we were successful withthat.
So, so again, you know, anotherlesson learned is always look
for the good in the bad.
There is good in the bad, findthat silver lining and
understand, you know, becauseyou we can get so caught up in
(13:38):
the in looking backwards thatwe're not looking forward,
right?
So if we can look, get out ofthe rearview mirror and look
forward and see what's actuallygoing on around us.
Um, we I was seeing greatthings for my kids and for my
family.
Now, for me personally, it wasa big, big shift.
Renee had to get a job.
(13:59):
And so I did, I applied, and ithad been a long, long time
before since I had applied forjobs.
When I worked in SiliconValley, I only worked for two
companies in the entire time Iwas in Silicon Valley.
So, so for me to like interviewfor a job and go get a job, um,
my first job was with ChaseManhattan Bank.
Very, very regulated.
(14:20):
Anyone that's worked inbanking, it's very regulated.
I had no idea.
Now keep in mind, I came out offreewheeling Silicon Valley
into a very regulatedenvironment.
You can imagine that I failed,right?
And I did fail.
I was not a good employee in aheavily regulated environment.
Um, and but you know, when Andyand I separated, I needed to
(14:40):
really be able to take care ofmy kids.
And the best job that I got wasas a bingo caller.
And the worst, I know peopleask me all the time, how do you
go from I I literally was buyinga car, a used car, and the
salesman came or the finance guycame to me and sat down and he
goes, What happened to you?
(15:00):
Because he was looking at myfinances, and that was a little,
right?
That was a little jab.
And my response to him was lifehappened, it happens to
everyone, you know.
And and some would say thatthat's a proud response, and in
some ways, I think it is.
I think it's a coping responseto understand that life does
(15:22):
happen.
And and one of my favoritesayings is, you know, you're
going through something.
And that was what I keptclinging to was that I was going
through some things, but whenyou're going through something,
that means you're gonna get outon the other side of it, right?
So if you just keepunderstanding that this storm
will pass, this time will pass,and you're gonna move through
(15:44):
time.
And again, I don't want topresent platitudes to the
audience, and but but it's justreally true.
If you can put your head down,find grace, find um a space of
uh contentment in whatever spacethat is, then you just keep
moving forward.
And I gotta tell you, being abingo caller is a fun job,
right?
I liked it, it was verydifferent, right?
(16:06):
I had definitely come out ofthe ivory tower where people
were telling me what theythought I wanted to hear, and I
was hearing people for the firsttime, really.
I think I really was, and andreally seeing people for the
first time in many, many yearsand understanding some of the
issues and concerns that peoplehave that that I had been so
(16:27):
removed from.
So, you know, I I tell my kid,my kids are adults now, they're
in their early 30s, and um and Iand here's one of the great
things.
My my kids say that they'venever seen such resiliency, that
I modeled resiliency to them,right?
That they that they saw someonejust put their head down and go
(16:48):
to work, connect the dots asbest as I could and just keep
going, right?
Beverley Glazer (16:52):
Well let me ask you about that.
Uh-huh.
For many people though, Renee,they couldn't do that.
They would be devastated.
How did you just keep going andkeep going?
Renee Balcom (17:04):
Well, I certainly don't want anyone to think I
wasn't devastated.
There were many nights that Iwould lay in my bed and again
playing that reel, trying tofigure out what in the heck
happened.
You know, I remember when myson was getting ready to go to
college, and and I had to, whenwe surrendered our business, our
homes, we had to surrender, youknow, college funds and all of
(17:28):
that, right?
In our bankruptcy.
So, so here I am filling outpaperwork, helping my son fill
out paperwork for student loans.
I never in my life thought thatwould occur, right?
And it was, and again, youknow, full transparency, my ego
was sitting right in the middleof that.
Like, how in the heck did myand I and I was praying to God,
(17:48):
how is my son asked, well, whyare we pursuing student loans?
What happened?
Right.
And and you know, but butagain, life happens.
And I had a really wise womansay to me, and I I just love
this.
She said, It's unfortunate, butbad things happen to good
people.
And and you have to just acceptthat and move forward.
(18:12):
There were two two things thatI learned, Beverly, that just
have I've lived with since.
The judge, because we did go tocourt, we went through the you
know, whole cycle, right?
The judge said to me, neverapologize for not thinking like
a criminal.
Never beat yourself up becauseyou didn't know, because you
(18:33):
don't think that way.
And criminals thinkdifferently.
And this is a professionalcriminal here.
I mean, the man who took mymoney was sitting eight feet
across the aisle from me infront of the same judge, right?
He held the door open for mewhen we left the court.
Yes, yes.
So, and and you know,unfortunately for him, life has
(18:54):
served him for his behavior, youknow.
20 years later, you know, I'veseen how his behavior has come
back to him.
Um, and mine, you know, I justagain, maybe it's pride.
I don't know.
I think it's just the fact thatI think I think we we if we can
(19:16):
just go through the moment andunderstand that it is a moment
and it's a moment in time, andwe hang on to our values and who
we are.
And and again, I wanted tomodel the best that I could for
my children.
Their dad wasn't having as gooda time as I was.
He was really floundering, um,you know, because he didn't know
he had a hard time recoveringfrom some of this for many, many
(19:40):
years.
But so one of us had to showthem some resiliency, right?
One of us had to model that.
Um, and I'm I'm proud as a astheir mother now to hear them
talk about it and say, gosh, youknow, it really gave them the
understanding that as life comesat you, you just keep moving
forward, right?
So that's something that I'mvery proud of.
(20:01):
Um it was sure.
Yeah, it wasn't pre-planned, itjust is, you know, who I was
emotionally, I guess.
I don't know.
But but again, I don't wantanyone to think it was easy
because there were many a lot ofanger, a lot of soul searching,
a lot of tearful nights, and alot to be grateful for.
I had healthy kids, they werethriving.
(20:22):
Um, I had I met my secondhusband during that time.
He's the love of my life,right?
I I was 52 years old when I metmy husband.
Um, frankly, it was thecraziest thing because he was
flirting with me and I hadn'tflirted in a long time, so I
didn't even know what that was,right?
And we just had the time of ourlife, right?
So, so there were so manywonderful things.
(20:45):
And by the way, I met him atthe casino that I was calling
Bingo at.
So there you go.
Yeah, I've not been there, Iwould maybe would never have met
him, right?
So so just you know, when youwhen you really just try to
connect the dots in life, thereit's they're gonna take you down
a road that's probably theright road for you, right?
(21:05):
For you as an individual.
Beverley Glazer (21:07):
And and you also got into caring from there.
Yes.
So tell us about that.
Here you are now a bingocaller.
And now, how did you moveforward into caregiving?
Renee Balcom (21:21):
Yeah, so so in uh Brookings, the Brookings area in
the casino, most of the bingouh players are older people, are
retirees and and and an olderpopulation.
So I had an opportunity to getacquainted with um this older
kind of population that, youknow, Silicon Valley just was
(21:44):
made up of 30-year-olds, right?
30 and 40 year olds.
So we, you know, it was it wasvery unusual for me to find
myself in the large group ofolder people.
And I was raised by mygrandmother.
So I have a huge regard andrespect of our elders.
And I was just raised by asouthern lady who, you know,
demanded respect as an elder,and that's how I treat our
(22:04):
elders.
So an opportunity came to me towork as a marketing director
for an assisted living company,a fortune company that was
trading in the Fortune 1000 thathad five residences in uh the
Southwest Oregon area.
So so I took that job and asand I was still bingo calling
because bingo calling was justpart-time, right?
(22:25):
So I took that job and startedworking with the aging
population and got fired fromthat job.
That's a whole other podcast.
So second firing in my life,right?
And um, in fact, I I had my mynew mother-in-law said to me,
Why do you keep getting fired?
But but at that point, I haddecided, like, I I there's not a
(22:50):
lot in Curry County to, youknow, hang your hat on.
And I wasn't willing to take mykids out of the area they were
thriving in.
We now we, you know, we werehad six more years before they
were going away to college.
So we were good, right?
So I um started this business,and but one day I my phone rang
(23:12):
and it was a little man in thecommunity, and he said, Hey,
I've heard you talk.
I'm not yeah, you're not, I'mnot, I don't want you to move me
into one of those places.
I'm not gonna do that, but Iwant you to go to the doctor
with me.
And I was like, Okay.
And and he said, and he told mehis problem, and he felt like
he wasn't being seen and heardby the doctor, and he had some
(23:33):
things he wanted to meet withthe doctor with.
And he said, and I'll pay youto do it, but I want you to help
me.
So I went and sat with him andlistened to him, and lo and
behold, he did have someconcerns that needed to be
heard.
And but I also could see thatwithin his home, he was 87 years
old, living independently, thathe had some obstacles in
(23:55):
compliance as well, and that thedoctor should probably be aware
of that.
So I took him, we made anappointment, went and saw the
doctor, had a great interactionand communication, and um, and
then took him home.
By the way, he remained myclient until he passed at the
age of 94.
So I worked with this man forseveral years as his health care
(24:16):
advocate.
But then my phone startedringing, and the doctor's office
is calling me saying, Hey, wehave someone else we think you
can help.
We have someone else we thinkyou can.
And in five years, I had 39healthcare advocates serving
five counties in SouthwestOregon.
So, you know, and and at onepoint in the very beginning, I
thought, what do you even callthis?
(24:36):
What is this, right?
So I started researching, andlo and behold, it was this thing
called health care advocacy.
And um, and interestinglyenough, we were very successful
at it.
We had a state contract inSouthwest Oregon, and the
governor got wind.
And I I also at that time wedidn't have a public health or
(24:57):
mental health department inCurry County, Oregon.
So I was a founding directorfor mental health and public
health department.
And again, I I kind offunctioned through the lens of a
CEO.
So I could just see thesethings that we needed to put
together, and my businessstarted growing and at really
rapid rates.
And the governor seated me on aon a council and I wrote the
(25:20):
scope of work for health careadvocacy for the state of Oregon
and pushed that through thelegislature.
And so I was gaining thisnotoriety for being this health
care advocate, right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah, it was it and it was veryexciting, right?
It's, I promise you, um, whenyou are coming alongside with
(25:40):
people that need better help,and when you are working with
them, there's a moment in time,especially I particularly worked
with behavioral health,cognitive impairment, and mental
health disease.
When you're when you're a voicefor the people that are
marginalized and are not beingheard, there's a moment that
they look at you, there's anexpression on their face that I
(26:01):
swear you're looking into theface of God.
That they're so grateful and sogenerous in their gratitude
that there's nothing like it.
And there was nothing like itin my career prior to that
moment.
And they're that from thatfirst time that's happened.
It's it's, you know, for anyonein your audience that's trying
(26:22):
to find their space and youknow, where do I get some
self-satisfaction?
I promise you, if you comealongside of someone, ever
you're wherever your passionleads you, whether it's helping
people learn how to paint,whether it's, you know, reading
to them, whether it's being acaregiver, whatever that is,
right?
Nothing changes that momentwhen you find that space.
And and there's that sense ofhumanity that happens in that
(26:45):
moment.
It sparks something thatnothing will ever replace.
And I don't care how much moneyyou make, I don't care.
And I'm the top of the mountainand back in the valley and back
to the top.
So I know what that looks like.
And it's in that moment,nothing else changes.
Beverley Glazer (27:00):
Yes, and I agree with you 100%.
That's why I've been mentalhealth for many, many years,
almost 40.
I I agree with you 100%.
Helping helps you.
Yeah.
And that's a complete platitudefor sure, but it's so true.
Renee Balcom (27:16):
Yeah.
Beverley Glazer (27:16):
Let's go right back to fast forward today,
school care.
Tell us about that.
Renee Balcom (27:22):
Well, thank you.
Thank you for asking.
So, so during this time, ofcourse, I'm heavily involved in
care and in the care businessand working with clients.
And but but my mind keptsaying, where is tech in all
this?
Like, where is technology?
What's going on in tech withthis care industry?
And the care industry is amulti-trillion dollar industry.
(27:44):
When I'm talking about care,I'm talking about anyone that
enters your ecosystem under theguise of care, pet care, you
know, home care, personal care.
Anyone that comes into yourlife and takes your money in
some kind of care circumstanceis in that care continuum,
right?
(28:04):
And it's a multi,multi-trillion dollar industry
and very heavily unregulated.
So there's a lot of people thathang shingles and say they're
in care and they don't know athing about care.
So I'm working with familiesand I'm hearing all of these
issues, and I'm watchingfamilies enter into the care
(28:24):
systems in crisis and makingdecisions that, if they had
knowledge, you know, realknowledge and really real
understanding of what they weredoing, they wouldn't make that
decision.
So my brain kept going back totech.
And I decided I needed to comeback to California, and I drug
my native Oregonian husband toCalifornia.
And uh, you know, I I wasn't inCalifornia two weeks when
(28:49):
Sacramento State Universityreached out and said, Hey, we we
have heard you're here.
We would like you to write thecurriculum for us for this for
our students.
So I took a job at SAC State,wrote a curriculum, taught there
for two years.
And then when the pandemic hit,my phone started ringing for
health care advocacy.
People were in crisis, theyneeded help, they didn't know
(29:10):
how to navigate these systems.
So I hung a shingle and starteddoing health care advocacy.
And but but with my with thework I did at SAC State, I had a
great entree into the medicaland the care industry in
Sacramento.
And so it helped me kind ofdevelop my thesis for this
technology that I wanted todevelop.
(29:31):
And uh two years ago, I pulledthe trigger and we started uh
the development and the andwriting the technology that is
now scroll.care.
And we released it in Januaryof this year.
And and I want you to think ofScroll that, you know, as
consumers, we've all adoptedkind of the single gateway
marketplace, right?
We go into Amazon and we sowe've all kind of are doing more
(29:54):
and more online purchasing, andwe're usually doing that
through a what's called a singlegateway.
So I wanted a single gatewaymarketplace for care providers.
And when I say care providers,it's that whole spectrum I was
just talking about, right?
But my providers are all 100%vetted.
So we background check everysingle provider.
(30:15):
Anyone we would send into yourlife under with any kind of care
services have been fullybackground checked, not just in
the US, but internationally aswell.
So we stand behind everyprovider that we put out into
the ecosystem, right?
And we launched in January,went live in January in the
(30:36):
greater Sacramento area.
We're still really focused inSacramento.
We're working to get 500providers on the app in
Sacramento.
Once we do that, that's kind ofthe math that I've worked out
that is going to be the mathwe're going to use as we
navigate across the country andinto other major areas.
So we're hoping to be able toscale the company within the
(30:57):
next 12 months and get it intothe community you're in.
Beverley Glazer (31:01):
So how exciting.
So what people that are justlooking for care, any kind of
care, can go into the app, findthe type of care and the
education, I might add, becauseyou also have an educational
component.
Find what you need.
All these professionals havebeen vetted.
And so it's a safe space, notonly to employ people, but to
(31:23):
get education and to keeplearning.
And you're building that rightnow, and it's going to be out
there for all of us.
That's so wonderful, Renee.
Renee Balcom (31:32):
Let me add to that, because I think this is
it's a passion of mine.
It was so important to me thatwe would have culturally correct
care because, you know,different cultures, different
religions have a different, youknow, code of conduct within
their homes and in theirexpectations of care.
I took care of my motherthrough the end of her life, and
(31:53):
my neighbor took care of hermother.
Now my neighbor's East Indian.
And the care going on in thathome across the street from me
was very different than the caregoing on in my home.
And that really alerted me, asalso as a healthcare advocate,
alerted, alerted me to thenecessity for culturally correct
care.
So Scroll speaks 15 languages.
We're working really hard tomake certain that we have all
(32:16):
the cultural correctness that wecan.
We'll continue to pursue that.
It's a little, another layer ofcomplexity, but it's but it's a
good one.
It's the right one.
And the biggest thing, youknow, people ask me, like, so
are and you can speak into theapp and say, you know, I'm going
to have a knee replacementsurgery.
Can you help me write a prepre-surgical care plan and a
(32:39):
post-surgical care plan?
Like, who's going to take careof me?
How am I going to navigate thestairs?
What, what kind of help do Ineed?
And the apple actually starthelping you write a care plan
and then directing you to thoseproviders that can help you.
The other thing that I'm verysensitive to, we never sell
anyone's information.
We don't blast you out toeveryone.
(33:00):
You, the consumer has control.
We simply introduce you tothese providers and you get to
choose who you want to speak to.
We never interface with that.
We allow the consumer tocontrol that.
I think that's reallyimportant.
We do full profile.
So when you look at ourproviders, you can see all about
them.
But I've, you know, I've seenfamilies just put their name out
(33:21):
on services and they'rebombarded with sales calls.
I find that offensive and Idon't want to do that to anyone.
So, you know, we just reallywanted to provide this
marketplace service so thatpeople understood.
And as you mentioned, it's allabout um education and
empowerment.
One of one of the everyindustry has its own language,
(33:42):
right?
And, you know, when I firststarted doing this work and I
was working with fiduciaries, Ihad to be honest with you.
I was like, what do thesepeople actually do?
Like what is their purpose,right?
And and I'm assuming, you know,I always say I'm from Missouri,
so you know, I'm pretty middleof the road.
So I figure if I'm wondering,then a lot of us are wondering,
(34:03):
right?
So you can go into scroll andyou can key up fiduciary, and
there's a video, a masterclass,15 minutes that tells you all
about fiduciary, what theirlicensing requirements are, what
you should know as a consumer,how to navigate through that
interview, how to choose afiduciary, or any other
category, right?
So so we are just aboutempowerment and enabling the
(34:28):
consumer to make you knoweducated decisions and really be
able to make critical decisionsthat they they have real
solutions to.
Beverley Glazer (34:37):
Terrific.
Absolutely terrific.
Renee, one last question.
What would you tell a woman whohas fallen, literally been
kicked in the head, and says, Icannot go forward.
There's nothing for me.
It's too late.
What would you tell someonelike that?
Renee Balcom (34:56):
Well, first of all, I believe, and I've worked
with lots of people well intotheir 90s, right?
I believe that if you are stillbreathing air, then there's
something for you.
There's a contribution for youto make.
And that you have aresponsibility to that
contribution.
And it may just be sitting andsharing your experience, right?
(35:19):
It may be, you know, listen, aswe age, we take, we have a
40,000 mile point of view thatthe younger, the people younger
than us need to know about,right?
And so I so I just feel likethere is a space of wisdom and a
space that space of knowledge.
And for that person that justfeels beat up, like I don't know
(35:40):
that I can go any further, youknow, I I would say I I always
talk about transitioning from aCEO to a bingo caller, right?
And even to owning my ownbusiness.
And I remember sitting andwriting out what I felt like my
gifts and talents were and whatwas transferable.
I took, wrote everything outthat I felt like I had a gift
(36:02):
for.
And then I took a highlighterand highlighted what I felt like
was transferable.
And then I took thatinformation and started writing
out what I was passionate about.
And listen, there were somethings that I discovered I'm
passionate about that I didn'teven know I was passionate about
until I learned about it,right?
And so, but but each life willgive us cues, Beverly.
(36:23):
And if we're open to thatcueing, if we're really
listening and if we're lookingat ourselves, I believe the
answers sit right with us,right?
We just have to sit quietly,shut down the noise, and really
examine ourselves.
And for me, that means writingit down, right?
I have to, I have to expressmyself, you know.
I take a pen and pad and I juststart writing, right?
(36:45):
Um, for some people, they'regonna, it's gonna come up
differently.
But if we take the time, it'sthere.
I promise you, it's there.
And I don't think there's anage limit on that.
I don't think it stops at anage.
I had a lady that we took careof.
She was so sweet.
Her name was Hatie.
Hatie was legally blind.
Hatie um she was such acharacter.
(37:06):
She didn't like to get up earlyin the morning, right?
She liked she wanted to sleeptill 11.
She goes, I've waited my wholelife to sleep till 11.
Don't wake me up before 11,right?
But interestingly enough, sheled a walking group every day.
She led a walking group, right?
And her quality of life and shehad it had meaning in helping
people, you know, get up.
(37:28):
She's like, get up at noon.
We're not gonna walk till oneo'clock, right?
But she she led this group.
And it was amazing how manypeople would walk with Haiti
because they knew she waswalking.
And she started out just herand a neighbor, and the next
thing you know, there's 10people walking with this lady,
right?
So, so again, that whatever itis, I mean, for some people it's
(37:50):
art, for some people it'scooking, for some people, it's
you know, taking care of ananimal or a loved one or a
neighbor.
I mean, there's thatopportunity is all around us.
We just have to be open to it.
And and I yeah, the the whatthe richness in life, the real
richness in life is in thatthose opportunities.
Beverley Glazer (38:10):
Perfect.
So just find your passion, findsomething that you really,
really have an interest in andsay nothing negative, just kind
of go with it.
Thank you, thank you, Renee.
Thank you.
Thank you.
So inspiring, so veryinspiring.
Renee Bouncon is the founderand CEO of Scroll Care.
(38:31):
This is a platform to accesscaregiving through every stage
of life.
With more than 15 years ofexperience guiding families
through the healthcare andlong-term care planning, Renee
is on a mission to bring trust,transparency, and humanity back
into healthcare.
A seasoned entrepreneur, ahealthcare advocate, and a
(38:54):
grandmother.
She's passionate about givinghumanity, putting that first,
putting that humanity and love.
I'm going to add that becausewhen you listen to Renee, you
will see that there's so muchsincerity into what she's doing.
Because this is a system thatcan feel very, very
transactional.
(39:15):
Here are a few takeaways fromthis episode.
That wrong turn in the road canlead you to a new purpose.
Resilience is built when youchoose not to quit.
Reinvention is not aboutstarting over, it's about
carrying your wisdom forward ina new way.
And if you've been relating tothis episode, here's some quick
(39:36):
actions that you could take foryourself right now.
Write down one area in yourlife that's asking for a fresh
start.
And they take one little smallstep to get there.
Keep saying yes toopportunities that feel just a
little bit uncomfortable.
They may be holding asurprising lesson and take one
(39:59):
small step towards somethingthat you've been putting off
until tomorrow.
Do that for a similar episodeon caring and reinvention.
Check out episode 141 of Agingwith Purpose and Passion.
And if you've enjoyed podcastsfor women in midlife and beyond,
the Late Bloomer Living Podcastis your weekly invitation to
(40:21):
embrace change, spark joy, andlive playfully at any age.
Yvonne Marchez talks toinspiring guests who share
practical real-world tips.
And that link will be in theshow notes below.
And so, Renee, where can peoplelearn more about you and get
more information?
(40:41):
Please, please share your linkso we can understand and see
Scroll Pierre in action.
Renee Balcom (40:47):
That's great.
Well, thank you for that.
Um, you can reach me on anysocial media outlet at Renee
R-E-N-E-E Falcom B-A-L-C-O-M.
Scroll.care is also out onevery outlet.
Um, you can reach me directlyum at Renee R-E-N-E-E at
scroll.care.
(41:07):
That's my direct email.
I'm happy to assist anyone thatmay have a question in maybe
their health journey and theirmedical journey.
I'm happy to provide someinformation on how they can
navigate that.
And my my direct phone numberis 541-661-2369, and you can
call me there.
So I I just appreciate so muchbeing here with you, Beverly and
(41:31):
your audience.
And I look forward to ustalking again.
I'll keep giving you updates asin the progress we're making,
but it's a very, very excitingjourney.
Beverley Glazer (41:39):
Yes, I'd love that.
All Renee's links are going tobe in the show notes, and
they're also going to be on mysite too.
That's reinventedpossible.com.
And so, my friends, what's nextfor you?
Are you just going through themotions or are you living the
life that you truly love?
Get my free guide to go fromstuck to unstoppable.
(42:00):
And where do you think that is?
That's in the show notes too.
You can connect with me,Beverly Glazer, on all social
media platforms and in mypositive group of women on
Facebook.
That's WomenOver50 Rock.
And thank you for listening.
Have you enjoyed thisconversation?
Please subscribe and help usshare the word by dropping a
(42:24):
review and sending it to afriend.
And remember, you only have onelife, so live it with purpose
and passion.
Announcer (42:38):
Thank you for joining us.
You can connect with Bev on herwebsite,
reinventimpossible.com.
And while you're there, joinour newsletter.
Subscribe so you don't miss anepisode.
Until next time, keep agingwith purpose and passion.
And celebrate life.
Welcome to Aging with Purpose and Passion, the
podcast designed to inspire yourgreatness and thrive through
life.
Get ready to conquer yourfears.
Here's your host,psychotherapist, coach, and
empowerment expert, BeverleyGlazer.
Beverley Glazer (00:34):
What happens when you soared in the dot-com
era and then lose it all, yourcareer, your finances, and your
marriage?
And how do you find the courageto reinvent yourself?
Welcome to Aging with Purposeand Passion.
I'm Beverley Glazer, a catalystfor women who are ready to
raise the bar in their own life.
(00:55):
And you can find me onreInventimpossible.com.
Renee Balcom is the founder andCEO of Squirrel Care, a
platform for caring needsthrough every stage of life.
With more than 15 years ofexperience guiding families
through health care andlong-term care planning, Renee
(01:16):
is on a mission to bring trust,transparency, and humanity back
into caregiving.
A seasoned entrepreneur, ahealthcare advocate, and a
grandmother.
She's passionate about puttinghumanity first in the system,
and often a system that feelsvery, very transactional.
Her incredible story willinspire you to overcome your
(01:39):
challenges to keep listening.
Welcome, Renee.
Renee Balcom (01:44):
Thank you, Beverly.
Thank you so much for havingme.
And I'm grateful for youraudience listening.
And I also appreciate youmentioning three of my favorite
things, and that is being anentrepreneur and my kids, my
grandkids.
So it's fun, fun, fun to be agrandmother.
Beverley Glazer (02:00):
It sure is.
Renee, take us back to thedot-com era.
You were not a grandmotherthere.
You were lying.
You were a woman in tech, andyou didn't even realize you were
in tech back then.
So tell us what that was thatall about.
Renee Balcom (02:17):
Well, listen, most of us can remember back in the
day when, you know, there was nosuch thing as a laptop computer
or even a desktop computer, andcertainly not cell phones.
And we were all, if we wereworking, we were operating on
mainframe computers and offices,right?
And legacy systems that werecustomized for our offices.
(02:39):
So I landed in Silicon Valleyin um 1978.
Yeah, 78.
And back then we just didn't,we didn't even know it was
Silicon Valley.
We didn't know what SiliconValley was, we didn't know what
tech was, but it was thisburgeoning industry that frankly
I can remember when I gotthere.
(03:01):
And I I left Missouri uh when Iwas 20 and headed to
California.
And the way I even landed inthe Bay Area was I ran out of
money, so I had to get a job,right?
And the one ads were threeinches thick at the time, and so
just about anyone could get ajob there.
And so I took a job um as aTwix girl, and some of us will
(03:23):
remember that.
I was literally had a positionwhere I was in a padded room
sending Twix messages, liketeletype messages to vendors in
you know, Japan and in othercountries.
And so literally it was a broomcloset that they put padding on
the walls, and I lived in apadded room all day.
So that was how I started.
(03:43):
And within 10 years, I was aCEO.
And, you know, there's there'sthat that saying that a rising
tide rises all boats, right?
And perhaps that was part of mysuccess, but I like to think
that my success was just puttingmy head down, becoming part of
the solution, and just learningeverything I could learn about
(04:05):
an industry that I fell in lovewith.
So I was it was the time of mylife.
I will forever be grateful forthat experience and for the ride
that it took me.
I came out of um abject povertyin the Midwest and um, you
know, ended up within 10 yearsmaking more money than my
collective family combined.
(04:26):
That solved a lot of familyproblems, and I was able to
really uh work at leaving alegacy for my family during that
time.
And, you know, it was just suchan experience.
I traveled all over the world,I got to fly first class.
I mean, there were it was justunbelievable.
And suddenly I found myselfliving a life that, to be honest
with you, I had never evendreamed of because I didn't even
(04:48):
realize it existed, right?
And here I am.
The other thing that wasfascinating about that time is
there were very, very few womenin the technology industry back
then.
It was predominantly uhdominated by uh male engineers.
Um, but but they also neededthe work that I did specifically
was they needed someone thatwasn't necessarily an engineer,
(05:11):
could communicate with theengineers and then bring down
the technology into layman termsbecause what we see today in
technology has evolved, right?
But back in those days, to beable to communicate at a
technical level was almostimpossible for the layman.
So part of my work wasactually, I worked primarily in
marketing and marketingtechnology, and that job meant
(05:33):
bringing down high-levelthinking and bringing it into a
space where most of us couldunderstand it.
So it was a great, greatlearning experience.
I did have a couple of mentors,I want to say, that you know,
championed me along the way andreally saw potential in me.
And then I just worked hard.
I I was one of those peoplethat would sit on my bed, you
know, on Sunday night waitingfor Monday morning to come
(05:55):
because I loved the job.
I loved the work I was doing.
So I was very committed andspent my 20s very, very uh
committed to that work.
Beverley Glazer (06:05):
And and you were flying everywhere, you were
in a leadership role, and youwere a CEO.
What did you want to quit?
Renee Balcom (06:13):
So I became a CEO in my 30s, early 30s, and um and
we had uh division in NorthernCalifornia, Southern California,
Puerto Rico, and we wereopening a division in Shenzhen,
China, because at that timeeverything was kind of moving
offshore in manufacturing fortech.
Um, I found myself on longplane trips, you can imagine,
(06:38):
coming in and out of China.
Um, at this point, I had twochildren, and my mother was a
full-time caregiver living inour home, taking care of our
kids.
But so I was had this sense ofbeing torn.
And what more importantly,Beverly, and you know, I'm proud
of myself because I was kind ofan early adopter to this idea.
I also felt my moral compassreally spinning about what I was
(07:02):
seeing in China, right?
I I really was compelled to tryto understand why we would be
handing our technology, belovedtechnology that again I was an
infant with, and suddenly we'rehanding it to a communist
government.
And and I could see clearlywith my own eyes what was going
(07:22):
to happen and what was happeningin China.
So, so on those trips, I juststarted realizing that the time
may have come for me to slowdown, get off an airplane,
because I was gone a few weeks amonth, get off an airplane and
focus with my kids.
At that time, my kids were sixand seven years old.
You know, that's almost out ofthe house, right?
(07:43):
Not much longer.
They're in school and highschool and they're off on their
way, right?
So I, and I had always beenable to compartmentalize my
work.
I could, when I was at work, Iwas at work.
When I was at home, I was athome.
But I was gone a lot.
So, so there were big gaps inthat.
So, so I really felt that Ineeded to make a change and uh
(08:04):
decided to leave Silicon Valleyand buy a small company.
I hired a business broker andand went about the task of
finding a little company Iwanted to buy, in tech, by the
way, still in technology, andbought a company in Southwest
Oregon in a county called CurryCounty, Oregon.
So, for those of your listenersthat aren't familiar with
Oregon, if you go up the 101highway up California into the
(08:28):
coast, 101 will take you fromMexico to Canada.
You take Highway 101, as soonas you cross the border leading
California into Oregon, nowyou're in Curry County, Oregon,
and that's where I bought mybusiness.
And for those of you who havebeen there, it you know it's
spectacular to the eye.
You're right on the ocean, it'sjust beautiful.
And for those of you thathaven't looked up, Google it
(08:50):
because it's spectacular.
So um, so I got there, I lovedit.
Uh, we bought this business,um, and we landed in Brookings,
Oregon the Friday before 9-11.
And and I tend to, and we, itwas a very fast transaction, but
we did feel we did our duediligence and we had done all of
the work we needed to do.
(09:11):
Um, I spent five and a halfmillion dollars on this business
and um and felt I was making,you know, had made a good
business decision.
My husband had left his job.
My so we moved my whole tribe,right?
My mom, my husband, my kids, mybrother and his wife, and a few
of my employees uh came withus.
So so we landed the Fridaybefore 9-11.
(09:34):
And of course, 9-11 happenedthat following Tuesday, and the
world started changing prettyrapidly.
So I did not get into theoffice until that Thursday, two
days after 9-11.
And when I did, I discoveredthat I had purchased a shell
company.
So it was a complete scam, andthere really just wasn't
(09:55):
anything there.
And so um, so you know, it washurtful, right?
I spent a lot of wakelesshours, you know, um uh looking
at myself and examining myselfand thinking, how in the world
did I get here?
Right?
What did I miss?
I mean, you really, it's kindof an interesting phenomena.
And and I've met several peoplethat have been caught up in
(10:17):
scams.
And you really, the way thataffects you psychologically, you
play back over and over andover the steps that were taken.
And how did that, what did Imiss?
What were the signs?
What were the flags?
And in hindsight, it took acouple of years, but in
hindsight, there were flags.
I want to be open about that,you know.
So, so I also want to say thatwe're so eager and excited about
(10:42):
new opportunities in our life.
And sometimes when our gut orthere's a flag, we we tend to
ignore it and just think, oh,you know, I'm overthinking,
right?
Well, you know, cautionarytale.
If you if your gut says lookcloser, look closer.
Right.
Oh yeah.
And my ex-husband and I havehad long discussions about that.
(11:03):
We're great friends to thisday, and we both saw the flags
at the same time, which wasinteresting in hindsight, right?
But neither one of us wanted tosquelch the other one.
So we just put our concernsaway, tucked it away, and moved
forward.
So, you know, lesson learned,check that box, right?
Um, and then and then we wereoff to building.
(11:26):
I mean, my ego is involved.
I had been very successful inSilicon Valley, I was well
connected, and I thought, I'lljust build, I'll tell, take this
shell company and build acompany, right?
I still have yeah, I mean, I Iknow people, right?
I I got a little clout, right?
Right.
So that's what we went aboutdoing.
And you know, we pulled uhmoney out of properties we owned
(11:48):
in Silicon Valley because I wasdoing very, very well in
Silicon Valley.
So we had invested nicely, andso we just started pulling money
and putting it into thiscompany, and then the dot-com
bust happened, and then themortgage uh uh community flipped
over.
Most of us can still rememberthat, right?
And and you know, you know, notto sound profane, but all hell
(12:11):
broke loose, right?
Some people jumped off ofbuildings during that time, and
you know, it was a really,really big crisis period in our
nation, and um, and we weredefinitely dead center of a lot
of those concerns.
So, um, so a couple of thingsoccurred during that time.
Um, we had to bankrupt and wesold everything we had, my home,
(12:33):
my mother, we had bought mymother a home.
Uh, we ended up selling,liquidating everything.
The court had requested that.
And we also um ended upsurrendering our marriage and
just deciding we, you know,again, hindsight's perfect.
Today we look back and realizewe just weren't mature enough to
deal with, you know, theprocess we were going through.
(12:55):
Um, but we decided to end ourmarriage and go in different
directions.
Now, by this time, my kids,because we're we're kind of five
years in now, right?
My kids are thriving, they'reloving this community, they're
doing really well.
So, you know, again, that's thesilver lining, right?
We we moved there with anobjective, and that objective
(13:16):
was to raise our children in adifferent space and and see them
thrive differently.
And and we were successful withthat.
So, so again, you know, anotherlesson learned is always look
for the good in the bad.
There is good in the bad, findthat silver lining and
understand, you know, becauseyou we can get so caught up in
(13:38):
the in looking backwards thatwe're not looking forward,
right?
So if we can look, get out ofthe rearview mirror and look
forward and see what's actuallygoing on around us.
Um, we I was seeing greatthings for my kids and for my
family.
Now, for me personally, it wasa big, big shift.
Renee had to get a job.
(13:59):
And so I did, I applied, and ithad been a long, long time
before since I had applied forjobs.
When I worked in SiliconValley, I only worked for two
companies in the entire time Iwas in Silicon Valley.
So, so for me to like interviewfor a job and go get a job, um,
my first job was with ChaseManhattan Bank.
Very, very regulated.
(14:20):
Anyone that's worked inbanking, it's very regulated.
I had no idea.
Now keep in mind, I came out offreewheeling Silicon Valley
into a very regulatedenvironment.
You can imagine that I failed,right?
And I did fail.
I was not a good employee in aheavily regulated environment.
Um, and but you know, when Andyand I separated, I needed to
(14:40):
really be able to take care ofmy kids.
And the best job that I got wasas a bingo caller.
And the worst, I know peopleask me all the time, how do you
go from I I literally was buyinga car, a used car, and the
salesman came or the finance guycame to me and sat down and he
goes, What happened to you?
(15:00):
Because he was looking at myfinances, and that was a little,
right?
That was a little jab.
And my response to him was lifehappened, it happens to
everyone, you know.
And and some would say thatthat's a proud response, and in
some ways, I think it is.
I think it's a coping responseto understand that life does
(15:22):
happen.
And and one of my favoritesayings is, you know, you're
going through something.
And that was what I keptclinging to was that I was going
through some things, but whenyou're going through something,
that means you're gonna get outon the other side of it, right?
So if you just keepunderstanding that this storm
will pass, this time will pass,and you're gonna move through
(15:44):
time.
And again, I don't want topresent platitudes to the
audience, and but but it's justreally true.
If you can put your head down,find grace, find um a space of
uh contentment in whatever spacethat is, then you just keep
moving forward.
And I gotta tell you, being abingo caller is a fun job,
right?
I liked it, it was verydifferent, right?
(16:06):
I had definitely come out ofthe ivory tower where people
were telling me what theythought I wanted to hear, and I
was hearing people for the firsttime, really.
I think I really was, and andreally seeing people for the
first time in many, many yearsand understanding some of the
issues and concerns that peoplehave that that I had been so
(16:27):
removed from.
So, you know, I I tell my kid,my kids are adults now, they're
in their early 30s, and um and Iand here's one of the great
things.
My my kids say that they'venever seen such resiliency, that
I modeled resiliency to them,right?
That they that they saw someonejust put their head down and go
(16:48):
to work, connect the dots asbest as I could and just keep
going, right?
Beverley Glazer (16:52):
Well let me ask you about that.
Uh-huh.
For many people though, Renee,they couldn't do that.
They would be devastated.
How did you just keep going andkeep going?
Renee Balcom (17:04):
Well, I certainly don't want anyone to think I
wasn't devastated.
There were many nights that Iwould lay in my bed and again
playing that reel, trying tofigure out what in the heck
happened.
You know, I remember when myson was getting ready to go to
college, and and I had to, whenwe surrendered our business, our
homes, we had to surrender, youknow, college funds and all of
(17:28):
that, right?
In our bankruptcy.
So, so here I am filling outpaperwork, helping my son fill
out paperwork for student loans.
I never in my life thought thatwould occur, right?
And it was, and again, youknow, full transparency, my ego
was sitting right in the middleof that.
Like, how in the heck did myand I and I was praying to God,
(17:48):
how is my son asked, well, whyare we pursuing student loans?
What happened?
Right.
And and you know, but butagain, life happens.
And I had a really wise womansay to me, and I I just love
this.
She said, It's unfortunate, butbad things happen to good
people.
And and you have to just acceptthat and move forward.
(18:12):
There were two two things thatI learned, Beverly, that just
have I've lived with since.
The judge, because we did go tocourt, we went through the you
know, whole cycle, right?
The judge said to me, neverapologize for not thinking like
a criminal.
Never beat yourself up becauseyou didn't know, because you
(18:33):
don't think that way.
And criminals thinkdifferently.
And this is a professionalcriminal here.
I mean, the man who took mymoney was sitting eight feet
across the aisle from me infront of the same judge, right?
He held the door open for mewhen we left the court.
Yes, yes.
So, and and you know,unfortunately for him, life has
(18:54):
served him for his behavior, youknow.
20 years later, you know, I'veseen how his behavior has come
back to him.
Um, and mine, you know, I justagain, maybe it's pride.
I don't know.
I think it's just the fact thatI think I think we we if we can
(19:16):
just go through the moment andunderstand that it is a moment
and it's a moment in time, andwe hang on to our values and who
we are.
And and again, I wanted tomodel the best that I could for
my children.
Their dad wasn't having as gooda time as I was.
He was really floundering, um,you know, because he didn't know
he had a hard time recoveringfrom some of this for many, many
(19:40):
years.
But so one of us had to showthem some resiliency, right?
One of us had to model that.
Um, and I'm I'm proud as a astheir mother now to hear them
talk about it and say, gosh, youknow, it really gave them the
understanding that as life comesat you, you just keep moving
forward, right?
So that's something that I'mvery proud of.
(20:01):
Um it was sure.
Yeah, it wasn't pre-planned, itjust is, you know, who I was
emotionally, I guess.
I don't know.
But but again, I don't wantanyone to think it was easy
because there were many a lot ofanger, a lot of soul searching,
a lot of tearful nights, and alot to be grateful for.
I had healthy kids, they werethriving.
(20:22):
Um, I had I met my secondhusband during that time.
He's the love of my life,right?
I I was 52 years old when I metmy husband.
Um, frankly, it was thecraziest thing because he was
flirting with me and I hadn'tflirted in a long time, so I
didn't even know what that was,right?
And we just had the time of ourlife, right?
So, so there were so manywonderful things.
(20:45):
And by the way, I met him atthe casino that I was calling
Bingo at.
So there you go.
Yeah, I've not been there, Iwould maybe would never have met
him, right?
So so just you know, when youwhen you really just try to
connect the dots in life, thereit's they're gonna take you down
a road that's probably theright road for you, right?
(21:05):
For you as an individual.
Beverley Glazer (21:07):
And and you also got into caring from there.
Yes.
So tell us about that.
Here you are now a bingocaller.
And now, how did you moveforward into caregiving?
Renee Balcom (21:21):
Yeah, so so in uh Brookings, the Brookings area in
the casino, most of the bingouh players are older people, are
retirees and and and an olderpopulation.
So I had an opportunity to getacquainted with um this older
kind of population that, youknow, Silicon Valley just was
(21:44):
made up of 30-year-olds, right?
30 and 40 year olds.
So we, you know, it was it wasvery unusual for me to find
myself in the large group ofolder people.
And I was raised by mygrandmother.
So I have a huge regard andrespect of our elders.
And I was just raised by asouthern lady who, you know,
demanded respect as an elder,and that's how I treat our
(22:04):
elders.
So an opportunity came to me towork as a marketing director
for an assisted living company,a fortune company that was
trading in the Fortune 1000 thathad five residences in uh the
Southwest Oregon area.
So so I took that job and asand I was still bingo calling
because bingo calling was justpart-time, right?
(22:25):
So I took that job and startedworking with the aging
population and got fired fromthat job.
That's a whole other podcast.
So second firing in my life,right?
And um, in fact, I I had my mynew mother-in-law said to me,
Why do you keep getting fired?
But but at that point, I haddecided, like, I I there's not a
(22:50):
lot in Curry County to, youknow, hang your hat on.
And I wasn't willing to take mykids out of the area they were
thriving in.
We now we, you know, we werehad six more years before they
were going away to college.
So we were good, right?
So I um started this business,and but one day I my phone rang
(23:12):
and it was a little man in thecommunity, and he said, Hey,
I've heard you talk.
I'm not yeah, you're not, I'mnot, I don't want you to move me
into one of those places.
I'm not gonna do that, but Iwant you to go to the doctor
with me.
And I was like, Okay.
And and he said, and he told mehis problem, and he felt like
he wasn't being seen and heardby the doctor, and he had some
(23:33):
things he wanted to meet withthe doctor with.
And he said, and I'll pay youto do it, but I want you to help
me.
So I went and sat with him andlistened to him, and lo and
behold, he did have someconcerns that needed to be
heard.
And but I also could see thatwithin his home, he was 87 years
old, living independently, thathe had some obstacles in
(23:55):
compliance as well, and that thedoctor should probably be aware
of that.
So I took him, we made anappointment, went and saw the
doctor, had a great interactionand communication, and um, and
then took him home.
By the way, he remained myclient until he passed at the
age of 94.
So I worked with this man forseveral years as his health care
(24:16):
advocate.
But then my phone startedringing, and the doctor's office
is calling me saying, Hey, wehave someone else we think you
can help.
We have someone else we thinkyou can.
And in five years, I had 39healthcare advocates serving
five counties in SouthwestOregon.
So, you know, and and at onepoint in the very beginning, I
thought, what do you even callthis?
(24:36):
What is this, right?
So I started researching, andlo and behold, it was this thing
called health care advocacy.
And um, and interestinglyenough, we were very successful
at it.
We had a state contract inSouthwest Oregon, and the
governor got wind.
And I I also at that time wedidn't have a public health or
(24:57):
mental health department inCurry County, Oregon.
So I was a founding directorfor mental health and public
health department.
And again, I I kind offunctioned through the lens of a
CEO.
So I could just see thesethings that we needed to put
together, and my businessstarted growing and at really
rapid rates.
And the governor seated me on aon a council and I wrote the
(25:20):
scope of work for health careadvocacy for the state of Oregon
and pushed that through thelegislature.
And so I was gaining thisnotoriety for being this health
care advocate, right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah, it was it and it was veryexciting, right?
It's, I promise you, um, whenyou are coming alongside with
(25:40):
people that need better help,and when you are working with
them, there's a moment in time,especially I particularly worked
with behavioral health,cognitive impairment, and mental
health disease.
When you're when you're a voicefor the people that are
marginalized and are not beingheard, there's a moment that
they look at you, there's anexpression on their face that I
(26:01):
swear you're looking into theface of God.
That they're so grateful and sogenerous in their gratitude
that there's nothing like it.
And there was nothing like itin my career prior to that
moment.
And they're that from thatfirst time that's happened.
It's it's, you know, for anyonein your audience that's trying
(26:22):
to find their space and youknow, where do I get some
self-satisfaction?
I promise you, if you comealongside of someone, ever
you're wherever your passionleads you, whether it's helping
people learn how to paint,whether it's, you know, reading
to them, whether it's being acaregiver, whatever that is,
right?
Nothing changes that momentwhen you find that space.
And and there's that sense ofhumanity that happens in that
(26:45):
moment.
It sparks something thatnothing will ever replace.
And I don't care how much moneyyou make, I don't care.
And I'm the top of the mountainand back in the valley and back
to the top.
So I know what that looks like.
And it's in that moment,nothing else changes.
Beverley Glazer (27:00):
Yes, and I agree with you 100%.
That's why I've been mentalhealth for many, many years,
almost 40.
I I agree with you 100%.
Helping helps you.
Yeah.
And that's a complete platitudefor sure, but it's so true.
Renee Balcom (27:16):
Yeah.
Beverley Glazer (27:16):
Let's go right back to fast forward today,
school care.
Tell us about that.
Renee Balcom (27:22):
Well, thank you.
Thank you for asking.
So, so during this time, ofcourse, I'm heavily involved in
care and in the care businessand working with clients.
And but but my mind keptsaying, where is tech in all
this?
Like, where is technology?
What's going on in tech withthis care industry?
And the care industry is amulti-trillion dollar industry.
(27:44):
When I'm talking about care,I'm talking about anyone that
enters your ecosystem under theguise of care, pet care, you
know, home care, personal care.
Anyone that comes into yourlife and takes your money in
some kind of care circumstanceis in that care continuum,
right?
(28:04):
And it's a multi,multi-trillion dollar industry
and very heavily unregulated.
So there's a lot of people thathang shingles and say they're
in care and they don't know athing about care.
So I'm working with familiesand I'm hearing all of these
issues, and I'm watchingfamilies enter into the care
(28:24):
systems in crisis and makingdecisions that, if they had
knowledge, you know, realknowledge and really real
understanding of what they weredoing, they wouldn't make that
decision.
So my brain kept going back totech.
And I decided I needed to comeback to California, and I drug
my native Oregonian husband toCalifornia.
And uh, you know, I I wasn't inCalifornia two weeks when
(28:49):
Sacramento State Universityreached out and said, Hey, we we
have heard you're here.
We would like you to write thecurriculum for us for this for
our students.
So I took a job at SAC State,wrote a curriculum, taught there
for two years.
And then when the pandemic hit,my phone started ringing for
health care advocacy.
People were in crisis, theyneeded help, they didn't know
(29:10):
how to navigate these systems.
So I hung a shingle and starteddoing health care advocacy.
And but but with my with thework I did at SAC State, I had a
great entree into the medicaland the care industry in
Sacramento.
And so it helped me kind ofdevelop my thesis for this
technology that I wanted todevelop.
(29:31):
And uh two years ago, I pulledthe trigger and we started uh
the development and the andwriting the technology that is
now scroll.care.
And we released it in Januaryof this year.
And and I want you to think ofScroll that, you know, as
consumers, we've all adoptedkind of the single gateway
marketplace, right?
We go into Amazon and we sowe've all kind of are doing more
(29:54):
and more online purchasing, andwe're usually doing that
through a what's called a singlegateway.
So I wanted a single gatewaymarketplace for care providers.
And when I say care providers,it's that whole spectrum I was
just talking about, right?
But my providers are all 100%vetted.
So we background check everysingle provider.
(30:15):
Anyone we would send into yourlife under with any kind of care
services have been fullybackground checked, not just in
the US, but internationally aswell.
So we stand behind everyprovider that we put out into
the ecosystem, right?
And we launched in January,went live in January in the
(30:36):
greater Sacramento area.
We're still really focused inSacramento.
We're working to get 500providers on the app in
Sacramento.
Once we do that, that's kind ofthe math that I've worked out
that is going to be the mathwe're going to use as we
navigate across the country andinto other major areas.
So we're hoping to be able toscale the company within the
(30:57):
next 12 months and get it intothe community you're in.
Beverley Glazer (31:01):
So how exciting.
So what people that are justlooking for care, any kind of
care, can go into the app, findthe type of care and the
education, I might add, becauseyou also have an educational
component.
Find what you need.
All these professionals havebeen vetted.
And so it's a safe space, notonly to employ people, but to
(31:23):
get education and to keeplearning.
And you're building that rightnow, and it's going to be out
there for all of us.
That's so wonderful, Renee.
Renee Balcom (31:32):
Let me add to that, because I think this is
it's a passion of mine.
It was so important to me thatwe would have culturally correct
care because, you know,different cultures, different
religions have a different, youknow, code of conduct within
their homes and in theirexpectations of care.
I took care of my motherthrough the end of her life, and
(31:53):
my neighbor took care of hermother.
Now my neighbor's East Indian.
And the care going on in thathome across the street from me
was very different than the caregoing on in my home.
And that really alerted me, asalso as a healthcare advocate,
alerted, alerted me to thenecessity for culturally correct
care.
So Scroll speaks 15 languages.
We're working really hard tomake certain that we have all
(32:16):
the cultural correctness that wecan.
We'll continue to pursue that.
It's a little, another layer ofcomplexity, but it's but it's a
good one.
It's the right one.
And the biggest thing, youknow, people ask me, like, so
are and you can speak into theapp and say, you know, I'm going
to have a knee replacementsurgery.
Can you help me write a prepre-surgical care plan and a
(32:39):
post-surgical care plan?
Like, who's going to take careof me?
How am I going to navigate thestairs?
What, what kind of help do Ineed?
And the apple actually starthelping you write a care plan
and then directing you to thoseproviders that can help you.
The other thing that I'm verysensitive to, we never sell
anyone's information.
We don't blast you out toeveryone.
(33:00):
You, the consumer has control.
We simply introduce you tothese providers and you get to
choose who you want to speak to.
We never interface with that.
We allow the consumer tocontrol that.
I think that's reallyimportant.
We do full profile.
So when you look at ourproviders, you can see all about
them.
But I've, you know, I've seenfamilies just put their name out
(33:21):
on services and they'rebombarded with sales calls.
I find that offensive and Idon't want to do that to anyone.
So, you know, we just reallywanted to provide this
marketplace service so thatpeople understood.
And as you mentioned, it's allabout um education and
empowerment.
One of one of the everyindustry has its own language,
(33:42):
right?
And, you know, when I firststarted doing this work and I
was working with fiduciaries, Ihad to be honest with you.
I was like, what do thesepeople actually do?
Like what is their purpose,right?
And and I'm assuming, you know,I always say I'm from Missouri,
so you know, I'm pretty middleof the road.
So I figure if I'm wondering,then a lot of us are wondering,
(34:03):
right?
So you can go into scroll andyou can key up fiduciary, and
there's a video, a masterclass,15 minutes that tells you all
about fiduciary, what theirlicensing requirements are, what
you should know as a consumer,how to navigate through that
interview, how to choose afiduciary, or any other
category, right?
So so we are just aboutempowerment and enabling the
(34:28):
consumer to make you knoweducated decisions and really be
able to make critical decisionsthat they they have real
solutions to.
Beverley Glazer (34:37):
Terrific.
Absolutely terrific.
Renee, one last question.
What would you tell a woman whohas fallen, literally been
kicked in the head, and says, Icannot go forward.
There's nothing for me.
It's too late.
What would you tell someonelike that?
Renee Balcom (34:56):
Well, first of all, I believe, and I've worked
with lots of people well intotheir 90s, right?
I believe that if you are stillbreathing air, then there's
something for you.
There's a contribution for youto make.
And that you have aresponsibility to that
contribution.
And it may just be sitting andsharing your experience, right?
(35:19):
It may be, you know, listen, aswe age, we take, we have a
40,000 mile point of view thatthe younger, the people younger
than us need to know about,right?
And so I so I just feel likethere is a space of wisdom and a
space that space of knowledge.
And for that person that justfeels beat up, like I don't know
(35:40):
that I can go any further, youknow, I I would say I I always
talk about transitioning from aCEO to a bingo caller, right?
And even to owning my ownbusiness.
And I remember sitting andwriting out what I felt like my
gifts and talents were and whatwas transferable.
I took, wrote everything outthat I felt like I had a gift
(36:02):
for.
And then I took a highlighterand highlighted what I felt like
was transferable.
And then I took thatinformation and started writing
out what I was passionate about.
And listen, there were somethings that I discovered I'm
passionate about that I didn'teven know I was passionate about
until I learned about it,right?
And so, but but each life willgive us cues, Beverly.
(36:23):
And if we're open to thatcueing, if we're really
listening and if we're lookingat ourselves, I believe the
answers sit right with us,right?
We just have to sit quietly,shut down the noise, and really
examine ourselves.
And for me, that means writingit down, right?
I have to, I have to expressmyself, you know.
I take a pen and pad and I juststart writing, right?
(36:45):
Um, for some people, they'regonna, it's gonna come up
differently.
But if we take the time, it'sthere.
I promise you, it's there.
And I don't think there's anage limit on that.
I don't think it stops at anage.
I had a lady that we took careof.
She was so sweet.
Her name was Hatie.
Hatie was legally blind.
Hatie um she was such acharacter.
(37:06):
She didn't like to get up earlyin the morning, right?
She liked she wanted to sleeptill 11.
She goes, I've waited my wholelife to sleep till 11.
Don't wake me up before 11,right?
But interestingly enough, sheled a walking group every day.
She led a walking group, right?
And her quality of life and shehad it had meaning in helping
people, you know, get up.
(37:28):
She's like, get up at noon.
We're not gonna walk till oneo'clock, right?
But she she led this group.
And it was amazing how manypeople would walk with Haiti
because they knew she waswalking.
And she started out just herand a neighbor, and the next
thing you know, there's 10people walking with this lady,
right?
So, so again, that whatever itis, I mean, for some people it's
(37:50):
art, for some people it'scooking, for some people, it's
you know, taking care of ananimal or a loved one or a
neighbor.
I mean, there's thatopportunity is all around us.
We just have to be open to it.
And and I yeah, the the whatthe richness in life, the real
richness in life is in thatthose opportunities.
Beverley Glazer (38:10):
Perfect.
So just find your passion, findsomething that you really,
really have an interest in andsay nothing negative, just kind
of go with it.
Thank you, thank you, Renee.
Thank you.
Thank you.
So inspiring, so veryinspiring.
Renee Bouncon is the founderand CEO of Scroll Care.
(38:31):
This is a platform to accesscaregiving through every stage
of life.
With more than 15 years ofexperience guiding families
through the healthcare andlong-term care planning, Renee
is on a mission to bring trust,transparency, and humanity back
into healthcare.
A seasoned entrepreneur, ahealthcare advocate, and a
(38:54):
grandmother.
She's passionate about givinghumanity, putting that first,
putting that humanity and love.
I'm going to add that becausewhen you listen to Renee, you
will see that there's so muchsincerity into what she's doing.
Because this is a system thatcan feel very, very
transactional.
(39:15):
Here are a few takeaways fromthis episode.
That wrong turn in the road canlead you to a new purpose.
Resilience is built when youchoose not to quit.
Reinvention is not aboutstarting over, it's about
carrying your wisdom forward ina new way.
And if you've been relating tothis episode, here's some quick
(39:36):
actions that you could take foryourself right now.
Write down one area in yourlife that's asking for a fresh
start.
And they take one little smallstep to get there.
Keep saying yes toopportunities that feel just a
little bit uncomfortable.
They may be holding asurprising lesson and take one
(39:59):
small step towards somethingthat you've been putting off
until tomorrow.
Do that for a similar episodeon caring and reinvention.
Check out episode 141 of Agingwith Purpose and Passion.
And if you've enjoyed podcastsfor women in midlife and beyond,
the Late Bloomer Living Podcastis your weekly invitation to
(40:21):
embrace change, spark joy, andlive playfully at any age.
Yvonne Marchez talks toinspiring guests who share
practical real-world tips.
And that link will be in theshow notes below.
And so, Renee, where can peoplelearn more about you and get
more information?
(40:41):
Please, please share your linkso we can understand and see
Scroll Pierre in action.
Renee Balcom (40:47):
That's great.
Well, thank you for that.
Um, you can reach me on anysocial media outlet at Renee
R-E-N-E-E Falcom B-A-L-C-O-M.
Scroll.care is also out onevery outlet.
Um, you can reach me directlyum at Renee R-E-N-E-E at
scroll.care.
(41:07):
That's my direct email.
I'm happy to assist anyone thatmay have a question in maybe
their health journey and theirmedical journey.
I'm happy to provide someinformation on how they can
navigate that.
And my my direct phone numberis 541-661-2369, and you can
call me there.
So I I just appreciate so muchbeing here with you, Beverly and
(41:31):
your audience.
And I look forward to ustalking again.
I'll keep giving you updates asin the progress we're making,
but it's a very, very excitingjourney.
Beverley Glazer (41:39):
Yes, I'd love that.
All Renee's links are going tobe in the show notes, and
they're also going to be on mysite too.
That's reinventedpossible.com.
And so, my friends, what's nextfor you?
Are you just going through themotions or are you living the
life that you truly love?
Get my free guide to go fromstuck to unstoppable.
(42:00):
And where do you think that is?
That's in the show notes too.
You can connect with me,Beverly Glazer, on all social
media platforms and in mypositive group of women on
Facebook.
That's WomenOver50 Rock.
And thank you for listening.
Have you enjoyed thisconversation?
Please subscribe and help usshare the word by dropping a
(42:24):
review and sending it to afriend.
And remember, you only have onelife, so live it with purpose
and passion.
Announcer (42:38):
Thank you for joining us.
You can connect with Bev on herwebsite,
reinventimpossible.com.
And while you're there, joinour newsletter.
Subscribe so you don't miss anepisode.
Until next time, keep agingwith purpose and passion.
And celebrate life.
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