Providing Peace of Mind

Our mission is to empower aging adults by coordinating financial and personal care services to maintain independence and dignity.

We specialize in day-to-day financial services, coordination of personal care needs, long-term care planning, and transition services to help adults as they age. We focus on standing alongside clients and their families, by providing needed support services to enhance quality of life, independence, and peace of mind.

Smiling aging adults
older couple smiling

Financial Services

  • Assist with payment of bills, expenses, and taxes
  • Review invoices and statements from creditors and resolve account billing errors
  • Assemble tax reporting statements and coordinate preparation of annual income tax returns
  • Assist with filing proof of claims for long-term care insurance benefits and monitor for receipt of benefits
  • Appeal denial decisions of long-term care insurance benefits
  • Coordinate medical insurance benefits
  • Determine eligibility for, and access to, government benefits
  • Interface with financial advisors pursuant to client’s instructions
  • Interface with estate planning attorneys to implement client’s wishes
caring hands

Personal Care, Health, and Medical Services

  • Develop, implement, and monitor a personal care plan based on daily needs
  • Assist with the selection of home care agencies and home health aides
  • Monitor home health aides for compliance with health care goals
  • Assist with the selection of medical and other health care providers
  • Coordinate medical and other health care appointments and arrange transportation
  • Advocate for clients at appointments
  • Create a cohesive health care plan by facilitating communication between multiple medical and other health care providers
  • Navigate health care systems
older people smiling for the camera

Long-Term Care Planning

  • Develop a long-term sustainable living plan
  • Evaluate different long-term care options such as staying at home, moving to a continuing care retirement community, or moving to an apartment
  • Coordinate accommodations to the home to facilitate physical and/or cognitive health changes
  • Coordinate transition from home to an alternative living arrangement
  • Advocate for clients in long-term care communities at care conferences

About

Meryl Kobrin, CSA
Certified Senior Advisor®


Owner of Advocate For Aging Adults LLC

"I am a born advocate, committed to speaking up for people who cannot effectively do so for themselves due to a physical and/or cognitive disability."

Certified Senior Advisors (CSAs)® have supplemented their individual professional licenses, credentials, and education with knowledge about aging and working with older adults. It is recommended that you verify the validity of any professional’s credentials with whom you conduct business. Be sure you completely understand what those licenses, credentials, and education signify. The CSA certification alone does not imply expertise in financial, health, or social matters. For more details visit: www.csa.us

Meryl Kobrin has over 20 years of experience advocating for and addressing the needs of aging adults and individuals with disabilities.

Prior to creating AFAA, Ms. Kobrin worked as a Life Management Services Specialist with Wells Fargo Private Bank. In this role, together with her financial partners and approved home care agencies, she developed and implemented individualized financial and personal care plans designed to meet clients' physical, emotional, psychosocial, medical, financial, and legal needs and goals. Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Ms. Kobrin worked as a legal assistant at Wase & Wase, a law firm in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that specialized in the legal issues impacting aging adults and people with disabilities.

Ms. Kobrin’s passion to advocate for people led her to three volunteer positions in Philadelphia, PA, the Support Center for Child Advocates, Women Against Abuse Legal Center, and Disabilities Law Project.

Ms. Kobrin holds Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws degrees from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she was admitted to practice law as an attorney. She also graduated from Widener University Delaware Law School in Wilmington, Delaware, with a master’s degree in Corporate Law and Finance. Ms. Kobrin is also a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA)®. Earners of this designation are required to demonstrate advanced knowledge in health, social and financial issues relevant to the aging process. They are also required to uphold very strict ethical and moral standards of conduct to protect the welfare of older adults.

Testimonials

Meryl and I worked together during her almost 5 years in the Wells Fargo Private Bank where she worked as a Life Management Services Specialist. What struck me about Meryl was how “hands-on” she was when caring for our older adult clients. This translated into efficient identification of our clients’ needs, outstanding problem solving, and systematic implementation and monitoring of solutions, all designed to enhance the quality of life for our clients.

Ralph Legge Senior Vice President/Senior Fiduciary Advisory Specialist at
The Wells Fargo Private Bank
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Ralph Legge Senior Vice President/Senior Fiduciary Advisory Specialist at The Wells Fargo Private Bank

"Meryl and I worked together during her almost 5 years in the Wells Fargo Private Bank where she worked as a Life Management Services Specialist. What struck me about Meryl was how “hands-on” she was when caring for our older adult clients. This translated into efficient identification of our clients’ needs, outstanding problem solving, and systematic implementation and monitoring of solutions, all designed to enhance the quality of life for our clients. Meryl’s responsibilities included assisting clients with payment of bills ( both personal and medical), resolving billing errors, coordinating the preparation of our clients’ income tax returns, and filing claims for long term care benefits. Meryl also assisted with vetting home healthcare agencies where she was viewed as an advocate for the clients and their families. Meryl delivers “peace of mind” to situations that most would view as complex. Meryl is compassionate and impartial and will always place the clients’ needs 1st and foremost."

To say that Meryl Kobrin was my family’s angel is an understatement that does not do our experience justice. We are grateful, beyond measure and words, for Meryl's range of expertise, and humanity. When my mother fell prey to Alzheimers Disease and the creeping dementia that plagued her final years, Meryl helped all members of my family to understand what was happening at the time, prepare for what lay ahead, and navigate the tumultuous and complicated new reality that accompanies aging and Alzheimers.

The Watson Family
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The Watson Family

"To say that Meryl Kobrin was my family’s angel is an understatement that does not do our experience justice. We are grateful, beyond measure and words, for Meryl's range of expertise, and humanity. When my mother fell prey to Alzheimers Disease and the creeping dementia that plagued her final years, Meryl helped all members of my family to understand what was happening at the time, prepare for what lay ahead, and navigate the tumultuous and complicated new reality that accompanies aging and Alzheimers.

At the recommendation of a senior advisor at our bank, we were introduced to Meryl who worked with my family to provide what we needed as we needed it — from financial services, to personal care, health and medical services, to long term care planning — which on occasion meant skillfully playing the role of my mother’s advocate, or as an intermediary through a discordant family dynamic. With profound sadness and loss, as we experienced the deterioration of our once fiercely independent, strong and capable mother, Meryl supported each member of my family from the onset of my mother’s illness, and beyond.

While Meryl offers a unique and ground-breaking set of professional skills and services, I am most grateful for the sincere kindness, concern, respect, and understanding that she showed for my mother. Devoted to ensuring that the aged receive the best of physical and emotional care, and devoted to relieving the pressures that families face, Meryl understands, and more importantly anticipates, where support is needed and available at every step of the aging process. Meryl’s compassion, empathy and experience brought the right resources to bear as needed, including the ability to help navigate complex legal, health and financial systems. For all this and so much more, on behalf of my family, we are deeply and eternally grateful to Meryl Kobrin”

I first met Meryl Kobrin in 2016 when I was named primary medical power of attorney to both of my parents, already in their late eighties. Ms. Kobrin served as a Life Management Services Specialist for Wells Fargo Bank at the time. We immediately began working together, organizing priority areas of need which, at the time, involved arranging bill payment, organizing tax information and coordinating health insurance management. Meryl was sensitive to the needs of my parents as well as their willingness to gradually accept different levels of care over time.

Joanne Reilly
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Joanne Reilly

I first met Meryl Kobrin in 2016 when I was named primary medical power of attorney to both of my parents, already in their late eighties. Ms. Kobrin served as a Life Management Services Specialist for Wells Fargo Bank at the time.

We immediately began working together, organizing priority areas of need which, at the time, involved arranging bill payment, organizing tax information and coordinating health insurance management. Meryl was sensitive to the needs of my parents as well as their willingness to gradually accept different levels of care over time. She treated my parents with dignity and respect, while providing support to family members. At each stage and phase, Meryl provided needed resources and guidance to ensure optimal independence while assuring safety and quality of life.

When my father passed in 2017, Meryl assisted in reassessing Mom’s needs. We engaged a service that made needed modifications within the home to assure Mom’s safety in ambulation and daily activities. We worked closely together to select and then monitor and coordinate health aide services over time, creating a cohesive treatment and care plan. An important aspect of life management involved coordination of medical care and related insurance, particularly as Mom suffered from dementia. In addition, Meryl also effectively worked alongside of the attorney involved in estate planning to implement Mom’s wishes.

Mom passed away in February, 2021. She was able to remain in her home until she required skilled nursing for a brief period. Many of the insurance, tax, and medical resources which Meryl had put in place remained and are still assisting in aspects of the estate settlement process.

I am grateful to Meryl for her empathy, personal support, wealth of knowledge, and attention to detail in assisting Dad, Mom and the family.

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Serving Clients in Philadelphia and Surrounding Counties

Including Philadelphia, Montgomery, Delaware, Bucks, and Chester Counties

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