Guardianship Services, Inc. has over 160 volunteers, some of whom serve for more than one client. The agency expects to serve over 350 clients during 2005. Colleen Colton is executive director of the agency, which has an eighteen member staff.

     Guardianship Services, Inc. was established in 1985 under the name Volunteer Guardians of Tarrant County. It was housed within United Way's Retired Senior and Volunteer Program until 1990, when Senior Citizen Services of Greater Tarrant County assumed sponsorship of the guardianship program. Since 1998, Guardianship Services, Inc. has operated as a freestanding nonprofit dedicated to providing services to incapacitated adults eighteen years and older.

     "Guardianship Services, Inc. is an excellently-run organization," said Ann Rice, United Way senior vice president. "The focus on older adults is increasingly important to United Way as the demographics of our community change. At the same time, it is important that there are also services available for people under age 60."

     About 15 percent of Guardianship Services' clients are under age 60, while the majority are older adults. For these individuals, having a volunteer is necessary to protect their well being and safety. Some indications of the need for a volunteer are severe memory loss, severe cognitive impairment, extreme confusion and hallucinations or paranoia, or uncertainty handling one's financial affairs.