Marjorie Carlson notes with a chuckle that she teases herself about being 80 years old at heart. She loves working with older adults and building relationships and conversing with them about knitting, cooking, gardening and more.

Carlson recently joined the Mercer Island Youth and Family Services Department (YFS) as its part-time senior services specialist to provide case management and support services for seniors and older adults.

“It’s really satisfying to make people happy and be able to make sure that this thing that was really stressing them out… You know what? There is a way that we help them with that,” she said in a virtual interview.

Carlson, who originally hailed from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, earned a masters degree in public health — with a concentration in community health — from East Tennessee State University. She moved to Washington about two and a half years ago and previously worked with seniors in Snohomish County.

Liana Montague, a senior/individual/family therapist with YFS, said they’ve had a huge increase in the need for senior services during the pandemic. Carlson has been a great match with the city, Montague said.

“The pandemic has really exacerbated some of the existing concerns that all older adults have. Things like family support if families are isolating or not able to travel, so they’re not able to be there to help out,” said Carlson, adding that seniors may also be having a harder time accessing routine doctor’s appointments or performing their normal monthly tasks like paying bills, if they did so in person before COVID hit.

Older residents or their family members can call Carlson directly to discuss emergency assistance available through YFS, working with change in the senior’s functional ability, adapting to memory impairment, Medicare or Medicaid and more. Carlson will help find the resources they need and follow up with them.

Carlson said she’s always been intrigued by the interaction of the scientific and psychological/social sciences aspects of why humans act the way they do.

She had a strong relationship with her grandmother, who lived with her family since Carlson was a child.

“She was a really important part of my life and I really cared about supporting her life and really felt strongly that older adults really deserve everything that they can get for support in the world,” Carlson said.

Carlson will be available from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Thursday; call the confidential YFS intake line to arrange for services at (206) 275-7657.