Aging with Dignity

Aging with Dignity is a national non-profit organization based in Tallahassee, Florida. The stated mission of Aging with Dignity is to "honor the God-given human dignity of the most vulnerable among us". The primary focus of Aging with Dignity is to improve end-of-life care by encouraging people to make medical decisions in advance of a serious illness.

Aging with Dignity was founded in 1996 by Jim Towey, who was inspired by his twelve years of work as legal counsel for Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Founding advisory board members include former Florida Governors Lawton Chiles, Jeb Bush, and Bob Graham, Assistant Secretary on Aging Josefina Carbonell and US Senator Bill Nelson among others. Initial support was provided by the Claude Pepper Foundation, the Harry & Jeannette Weinberg Foundation, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

In addition to founding Aging with Dignity, Jim Towey served as President until his appointment in 2002 as director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. He was succeeded by current President Paul Malley.

Five Wishes is a national advance directive that meets the legal requirements in 42 States and the District of Columbia. A Florida-only version was introduced in 1997, followed by a national version in 1998. An online version called Five Wishes Online was introduced in April 2011 allowing users to complete the document using an online interface or print out a blank version to complete by hand. More than 18 million documents are in circulation, distributed by more than 35,000 organizations worldwide. The document combines two legal documents, a living will and health care power of attorney in addition to addressing matters of comfort care, spirituality, forgiveness, and final wishes.

With support from the United Health Foundation, Five Wishes has been translated into 25 different languages: Albanian; Arabic; Bengali; Chinese Traditional; Chinese Simplified; Croatian; French; German; Gujarati; Haitian Creole; Hebrew; Hindi; Hmong; Ilocano; Italian; Japanese; Korean; Polish; Portuguese; Russian; Somali; Spanish; Tagalog; Urdu; Vietnamese. The grant-based project targets populations who speak limited or no English and are often under served.

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