This new Gig Harbor business helps older adults age at home. Here’s how it works
A Gig Harbor native and former firefighter is opening a business designed to help older adults make modifications necessary to stay in their own homes.
Nathan Hokenson, 49, is opening Gig Harbor and Tacoma’s first TruBlue Total House Care this summer. The grand opening will be sometime in August.
Hokenson has experienced firsthand the obstacles of modifying a home for older adults while helping his parents safely age in their home. Once his mother was in a wheelchair he installed wheelchair ramps and grab bars in their home.
“Zero people are out there kind of focusing on the aging in place population,” Hokenson told The Gateway. “Most older people want to age in their own homes as they get older. They don’t want to go to a facility, they wanna have in-home care.”
When Hokenson was looking for a career change that would allow him to have more time to spend with his daughter, he began looking into and ultimately settled on TruBlue franchising. The house care service brand caters to older adults.
With the new location of TruBlue Total House Care South Sound, Hokenson and his team can step in and help South Sound residents with some of the tasks they might not be able to do.
Many people do not prepare their homes to be more accessible as they grow older, Hokenson said.
Hokenson and his team plan to offer those services, such as:
- Installing wheelchair ramps
- Installing grab bars
- Remodeling bathrooms to have a zero entry shower (a shower that does not have a wall or barrier to step over) to be able to accommodate a wheelchair
- Moving in specialty medical equipment
- Ongoing home maintenance such as plumbing, installing a new sink, and fence maintenance
“Our charges for services vary but are in line with the local market,” Hokenson said when asked about his rates.
In addition to older adults, he said he wants to cater to busy families that may need help getting to home maintenance projects, such as fixing a garbage disposal or a fence that blows down in a windstorm.
“Other than just doing new stuff to the houses, we’re also taking care of what’s already there and maintaining all of that,” Hokenson said.
More information about the company and how residents can request services can be found at trubluehousecare.com/south-sound.
Hokenson said he’s a licensed, insured and bonded contractor.
The team is made up of Hokenson, the general contractor; two technicians; and one administrative employee.
“Expansion is always on our mind because there is a tremendous demand for this type of work,” Hokenson said. “We want to do our best to meet that demand and bring premium service to people that need it.”
Hokenson graduated from Washington State University and was a firefighter there for three years. He went on to work as a volunteer firefighter in Gig Harbor for about seven years.
Before TruBlue, Hokenson was working for a company that implemented medication disposal programs throughout the state, to help residents properly dispose of medications they no longer needed. He managed 250 locations across the state.
“I have always enjoyed helping people,” Hokenson said. “When I was growing up my father was a general contractor, painting houses. I grew up in the trades and it’s nice to come back to that type of work and follow my love of helping people again, like I did at the fire department.”
In the first year, Hokenson wants to work on fine-tuning operations, keeping up with growth and hiring more technicians.
“My techs are very enthusiastic about the direction and get our vision to help the people who need it,” Hokenson said.
