Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Hiles.
Hi Rachel, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Sandwiched KC began out of a need for connection. When Sandwiched was born, its founder, Rachel Hiles, was working to balance caring for her grandmother with Alzheimer’s and another aging loved one with a full-time career and the single life of a 20-something year old. She began searching for a way to connect with her fellow family caregivers. Rachel encountered many barriers to accomplishing this goal.
Back in those days, the main way to connect with fellow family caregivers was in-person. After months of research, everything Rachel found for family caregivers had either lost its funding or took place during working hours. The majority of those groups were hosted during working hours. Even if they weren’t, Rachel knew she didn’t have the wherewithall to travel across town, navigate her way to a room full of strangers to share her vulnerable experience.
Rachel reached out to a few of her friends who were also caring for a loved one and they all agreed that an online support group would be a meaningful way for people balancing work and caregiving to connect.
That was back in 2018. We began hosting Zoom support groups once a month, and now we have grown to host two virtual caregiver support groups each week. Sandwiched has also expanded to host four in-person caregiver support groups in the metro each month. In addition, we launched the Heartland Caregiving Conference, an annual gathering for family caregivers in the metro in 2022. This gathering keeps growing each year, reaching family caregivers in need of information and emotional support.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not — but the bumps have made us stronger.
Family caregivers who don’t see themselves as caregivers. One of our earliest and most persistent challenges has been reaching the very people we exist to serve. Many family caregivers — the spouses driving to every appointment, the adult children managing their parents’ medications, the siblings coordinating care from across town — don’t think of themselves as “caregivers” at all. They think of themselves as just doing what family does. That identity gap means they often don’t search for support, don’t reach out for resources, and sometimes don’t realize they’re burning out until they’re already running on empty. Finding language that meets people where they are, rather than where the sector wants them to be, has been an ongoing and intentional effort.
“Zoom… what’s that?” Before the pandemic reshaped everyone’s relationship with technology, connecting people virtually was an uphill climb. Suggesting a Zoom call was sometimes met with genuine confusion or reluctance… and convincing someone already stretched thin to learn a new platform just to attend a support group wasn’t always a winning pitch. We had to get creative, meet people where they were comfortable, and patiently build trust before we could build infrastructure.
Doing more with less… always. Marketing, outreach, and development on a shoestring budget is simply the reality of running a mission-driven organization in an underfunded space. Every dollar spent on a flyer is a conversation about tradeoffs. Getting the word out about programs, events, and resources without the budget to match the need requires hustle, creativity, and a lot of goodwill from community partners willing to amplify our message.
We are entirely volunteer-powered. Sandwiched KC runs on the dedication of volunteers… people who believe in this mission enough to give their time without compensation. That’s a remarkable thing, and we’re proud of it. But it also means capacity is always a constraint. There are no backup staff to call in, no departments to delegate to. What gets done gets done because our people make it happen.
Family caregiving is chronically undervalued as a funding priority. Despite the enormous economic and social role that family caregivers play — saving the healthcare system billions annually while absorbing tremendous personal cost — securing funding in this space remains a challenge. Family caregiving doesn’t always fit neatly into foundation priorities or grant categories. We’ve had to make the case, repeatedly and persistently, that supporting the people who are holding everything together is not a soft priority, it’s a critical one.
Being first doesn’t protect you from being overlooked. As the oldest caregiver-focused nonprofit in the Kansas City metro, we’ve watched the landscape change around us… sometimes in encouraging ways, and sometimes in frustrating ones. When other entities launch initiatives in this space without first doing their research or connecting with existing organizations, it leads to duplicated efforts and fragmented resources. Donors, volunteers, and referral partners get spread thin. The people who lose most in that equation are the family caregivers we’re all supposed to be serving. Collaboration and coordination aren’t just nice ideals. In a resource-limited sector, they’re an ethical obligation.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Sandwiched KC is a 501(c)3 nonprofit serving family caregivers in the Kansas City metro area. We provide free information and referral, support groups, education, and self-care activities — and we launched in 2018 with a clear mission: to create opportunities for family caregivers to find local support and shared wisdom.
Everything we offer is completely free. No fees, no eligibility requirements, no hoops to jump through. Just support, when and where people need it.
What makes Sandwiched different starts with who we are. We are entirely volunteer-led, and every single member of our board has lived experience helping a loved one. This isn’t a service designed at arm’s length from the people it serves. We are family caregivers, serving family caregivers.
We also took a different approach to who we serve. Rather than sticking to the conventional definition of the “sandwich generation,” we broadened it. At Sandwiched KC, we believe that anyone who is helping a loved one is sandwiched, regardless of what’s on either side of them. They are the filling holding everything together. That expansive, inclusive view of who belongs in our community shapes everything we do.
What we’re most proud of is simple: we show up. Year after year, on a volunteer budget, with a board full of people who know this road personally… we show up for Kansas City’s family caregivers.
Over the years, Sandwiched KC has provided information and referral services to hundreds of family caregivers in the Kansas City metro. Our annual conference, now in its fourth year, has consistently drawn between 50 and 100 participants, creating dedicated space for family caregivers (current and future) to learn, connect, and recharge.
Our support groups continue to grow in both reach and format. In 2025, more than 350 people attended our virtual support groups. We began meeting just once a month, and now we have two weekly groups. Weekly virtual groups run year-round, averaging four attendees per session. In September of 2025, we expanded into in-person programming, now meeting twice monthly at two locations across the metro, and over 50 people have attended since those groups launched.
Earlier this year, we hosted our first ever Caregiver Closet Supply Swap. Thanks to this event, we gathered several wheelchairs, walkers, commodes, and raised toilet seats, along with a mountain of briefs. We also received a wide range of wound care supplies, daily care tools, and hygiene items that can make a real difference in day-to-day caregiving. Because of the generosity of our community, we were fortunate to share the majority of the donated items with organizations that shared them to caregivers, families, and individuals in need across the region.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
We want to leave readers with something important.
Helping a loved one is one of the most meaningful things a person can do… and one of the most demanding. The reality is that it can be draining, hard on your health, and even traumatic. This isn’t an opinion; it’s one of the most consistent findings across decades of research. Family caregivers experience significantly higher rates of depression and anxiety than their peers. Their immune systems are measurably more run down. They’re less likely to keep up with their own preventative care: the annual exams, the screenings, the dental visits that quietly fall off the calendar when someone else’s needs take over.
That’s why we say it plainly: taking care of yourself is not selfish. It is a medical necessity. A caregiver who isn’t well cannot effectively be there for the person they love. Your wellbeing isn’t separate from your ability to show up… it IS your ability to show up.
We also know that in a culture that prizes independence and individualism, asking for help can feel like failure. It isn’t. Every one of us depends on other people to get through our daily lives… and that need only grows when we’re also helping a loved one through something hard. The myth of going it alone doesn’t serve anyone.
Here’s what we’ve learned: waiting until you’re in crisis to reach out means asking for help when you’re least equipped to receive it. Don’t wait. Find your people. Build your team before you desperately need one. That’s exactly what Sandwiched KC is here for, and everything we offer is completely free.
You don’t have to do this alone. We hope you’ll let us walk alongside you.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sandwichedkc.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/sandwichedkc
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/sandwichedkc
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sandwichedkc
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@sandwichedkc
- Other: https://sandwichedkc.com/donate/
