Frances Saus Hall, known to the University of North Georgia family as “Dean Saus,” Associate Dean of Students from 1984 to 1992, is the founder and executive director of ACAPcommunity, Adult Children of Aging Parents, a nationally unique 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that provides in-person and online support for those caring for their aging parents and other older adult loved ones. 

ACAP began when Frances’ mother was diagnosed with a rare cancer and made the decision to move from Alabama to be near her daughter in North Carolina.  The move and her mother’s ensuing decline posed unanticipated challenges for which Frances was ill prepared.  Recognizing her need for support and the caregiving concerns expressed by other faculty and staff on the university campus where she was working, Frances began inviting colleagues to a monthly lunch-and-learn.  Adult Children of Aging Parents was born to address issues related to aging, caregiving, and family dynamics, and to offer support for family caregivers.  The effort later became a community-based and community-led effort in Hickory, subsequently becoming a 501(c)3 nonprofit, developing a nationally validated and copyrighted curriculum, and establishing a growing network of local chapters. 

To date, seven local ACAP chapters have been established in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and, most recently, Atlanta, Georgia, with others scheduled to begin in 2023 and 2024.  Utilizing a collective-impact model, ACAP has provided educational supports to an estimated 12,000-15,000 persons across the globe via local monthly programs, conferences, podcasts, videos, and virtual symposia, begun in 2020, that have engaged 1,500-2,000 caregivers from 39 states, Virgin Isles, Canada and Great Britain.   

Frances and her then-business partner presented a TED talk about adult-child caregiving in 2014, and breaking the stereotype of older adults, Frances’s work is featured in a soon-to-be released book, Keenagers: Telling a New Story about Aging, by Corinne Auman, Ph.D.  Frances now lives in the foothills of the beautiful North Carolina mountains.  With the passing of her mother in 2016 and, three years later, her husband, her life now revolves around expanding ACAP and spending time with friends and family, including her stepchildren and grandchildren, true unexpected gifts and joys in her life.