Matt Levi Investigates: Family First

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - There are 154,000 family caregivers in Hawaii and that number is expected to rise, as our elderly population grows.  Hawaii is the state where people live the longest, but elder care is incredibly expensive, $141,000 a year on average in a private facility, so more and more families are having to take on the task themselves.  While this is an act of love, it can also be a tremendous hardship on the caregiver.

Lance and Iris Yafuso are siblings forced to close the family business, Larry's Bakery named for their father, to care for their mother Irene living with Alzheimer's disease.  After 57 years in business, we chronicle their final days in the kitchen, and hear about their sacrifice for the mother who devoted her life to them.  We'll also give viewers insight on how to tackle some of the challenges of being a caregiver, and take you to a community on West Side, where a group of kupuna are thriving thanks to something unique to Hawaii: local music.

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