In recent days, I have found myself in the role of caregiver for my mother, a friend of many senior adults who need special care and even having to say goodbye to some special elderly friends.

When I realized my mother was beginning to show signs of dementia and then recognized how many friends were dealing with the same thing, I had to acknowledge how unprepared I was to be an effective caregiver.

What do you suppose was the first thing I did when I realized I did not have any good information on the subject? Started searching for reliable books, naturally. And I found some great ones, whose titles I will share with you—but first I want to talk about a sometimes-forgotten category in your store.

Do you have a "grief," "bereavement" or "caring" section? Depending on the demographics of your congregation, this could be one of the most important categories in your store. Sunday school classes, small groups, staff and individuals in churches are always looking for cards, gifts and books to give to those who need encouragement, information or condolences.

Even if your congregation is mostly younger—say, under 40—they have grandparents and other relatives who fall into the category of senior adults, and may find themselves in the position of part-time caregiver or in some other role that falls into this category.

The space allotted to this need does not have to be large. It only needs to have good signage so that customers easily see it when they come into your store. It should contain an assortment of products so that the customer does not not have to go to several different areas of the store to find what will work in his or her circumstance.

Check with each of your gift companies for items that fit into this category. For instance, I remember a little box that was made especially to hold the wedding ring of a spouse or parent who had passed away. I gave one to my mother when my dad died, and she has treasured that special box in which to keep a very special ring.

There are many other items—picture frames, items to be used at the cemetery, guest books for the funeral. DaySpring and other card companies have individual and boxed sympathy cards. It would be good to keep a few of the boxed cards in this display so that your customers see them with the other items.

Of course, there will be many who, like me, will be looking for information. And for that you need some really good books included in your display. Some that I have found helpful in various situations are:

Setting Boundaries With Your Aging Parents by Allison Bottke (Harvest House Publishers). Your parents don't even have to be ill or disabled for this book to be useful.

My Mom Has Alzheimer's by Linda Born (Bridge-Logos Foundation). This book is a blessing for the novice and the experienced caregiver.

Stages of Senior Care by Paul and Linda Hogan (McGraw-Hill). Available through Spring Arbor, this book walks you through the various stages of care that you may be confronted with as time goes on.

The Boomer Burden by Julie Hall (Thomas Nelson). This addresses something that we will all have to face at one time or another-what to do with all of the "stuff." It goes into detail about the value of the many things that our folks leave behind and how to deal with it all.

If you do not have this category yet, I encourage you to really give it some serious thought. Baby boomers are being faced with these kind of situations every day. Your customers will be grateful that you have thought of this very critical, but niche category.