“The toughest job you’ll ever love” may be a Peace Corps slogan, but it rings true for caregivers like Denice Rhodes, too. 

Rhodes is the founder of Caregivers’ Safe Space. The organization will celebrate its one-year anniversary on Saturday, May 23, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at  North & Maple Kitchen + Bar in Tinley Park.

Caregivers’ Safe Space, with an office in Homewood, offers a monthly support group for caregivers and provides them with resources such as mental health services, nutritional information and exercise. Attendees have gotten a chance to try Tai Chi and hula hoop exercises at meetings. Rhodes said she comes from a holistic approach and wanted to offer something fun and relaxing for caregivers.

Rhodes started the organization because she saw that many caregivers were struggling and were often “unseen and underserved,” she said. She knows from experience how hard caregivers work and that for many, it is a labor of love.

Tonya Jackson, who has an adult daughter with autism, is a regular at the Caregivers Safe Space support group meetings. 

Jackson met Rhodes at an Arc of Illinois seminar about six months ago. The two shared stories about their roles as caregivers. 

“After she told me about her organization, it felt like perfect timing,” said Jackson, who lives in Chicago. “You need that safe space where you can go in and take care of yourself. Denice is a fantastic motivator – such a gentle soul and spirit. I look forward to the Zoom meetings. I really do.”

Meetings were held via Zoom during the colder months, but will return to in-person meetings now that the weather is warmer, Rhodes said.

Before she started her organization, Rhodes and her daughter, Amanda Battles, owned a business in downtown Homewood called Roots & Firewater. They sold herbal teas, self-care items and exotic plants. They closed the shop after three years, but still have an online presence, Rhodes said.

“My caregiving goes way back,” said Rhodes, who remembers how her own mother cared for her mother. 

Then Rhodes had a son who was on the spectrum, she said. 

“That’s how I felt I was destined to be a caregiver,” Rhodes said. 

Her caregiving duties didn’t end there. During the pandemic, Rhodes cared for her late husband who suffered from dementia and her father who suffered from depression. 

After her husband’s death in 2024, Rhodes said she felt like God wanted her to create an organization to support caregivers. She started making plans to bring that vision to life. 

“I knew it was divinely orchestrated because everything went very smoothly,” Rhodes said, referring to the planning phase. For example, she was able to get her 501-(c)(3) tax exempt status without delay.

“We kicked off our first support group meeting in 2025,” she said.

In the past year, Caregivers’ Safe Space has held monthly support group meetings where attendees get to talk, exercise and hear speakers. Topics covered by speakers have included  grief, wills, trust and financial literacy.

Jackson said she found the session on grief especially helpful. Jackson lost her sister in 2018 and assumed guardianship of her two nephews. Both are college graduates now, she proudly shared.

The support group is open to all caregivers. Currently, however, the majority of attendees are caregivers for the elderly and for people with special needs, Rhodes said.

“It doesn’t matter who you take care of, we want to make sure that you are cared for,” Rhodes said. 

Rhodes wants to see her organization grow. Average attendance at meetings is about 20 right now and there are 50 people on the mailing list, she said. 

“My long-term vision is to get a building where we have therapists on hand,” she said. And she wants to be able to cover the costs for services that people receive. 

Rhodes knows how important it is for caregivers to take care of themselves.

“Before I even started this organization and was a caregiver, I would walk everyday. I would walk 45 minutes in the morning,” she said. 

Her other go-to self care tip: “I always made sure I got proper sleep,” Rhodes said.

The Caregivers’ Safe Space anniversary celebration will recognize two people for their service. This year’s honorees are Tom Skinner, who worked at Sertoma Star Services for many years and her son-in-law, Landon Battles, who was a caregiver for his mother and grandmother.

A special video will be shown at the event. Hors d’oeuvres will be served and there will be a champagne toast, a raffle and remarks from Rhodes and a member of the Caregivers Safe Space Board.  

“We’re giving out gift bags to caregivers,”  too, Rhodes said.

Tickets for the event are $80 and can be purchased on the Caregivers’ Safe Space website. Donations can also be made on the website and are welcomed and appreciated, Rhodes said.

Funds will go toward programs and mental health services, she said.