Four Generations at Joy's House Dementia Care

Little House, Big Dreams

Founded in 1999 by Tina McIntosh, Joy’s House offers a welcoming space for aging adults and those with life-altering diagnoses. What began in a small farmhouse has grown to two locations: a spacious Broad Ripple home and a cozy house on the southside at UIndy.

We understand that a diagnosis impacts the whole family, which is why we were one of the first to offer caregiver support. Our compassionate care makes a lasting difference.

At Joy’s House, we’re committed to helping individuals and their families live with comfort and dignity. We’re proud to lead the way in making that vision a reality.

We celebrate our value of individuality, understanding that each team member brings with them their unique expertise that elevates our Joy’s House strengths and helps us to innovate new programs.

What’s in a name? A whole lot we’ve found! And ours doesn’t represent a particular person, but rather an emotion we strive to provide to our families – joy!

The community we’ve been blessed to build at Joy’s House over the years has positively impacted the lives of thousands of caregiving families, and we’re not done.

Volunteers at Joy's House celebrating at Gala

We celebrate our value of individuality, understanding that each team member brings with them their unique expertise that elevates our Joy’s House strengths and helps us to innovate new programs.

What’s in a name? A whole lot we’ve found! And ours doesn’t represent a particular person, but rather an emotion we strive to provide to our families – joy!

The community we’ve been blessed to build at Joy’s House over the years has positively impacted the lives of thousands of caregiving families, and we’re not done.

Volunteers serving desserts at Joy's House
Volunteers at Joy's House celebrating at Gala

We celebrate our value of individuality, understanding that each team member brings with them their unique expertise that elevates our Joy’s House strengths and helps us to innovate new programs.

What’s in a name? A whole lot we’ve found! And ours doesn’t represent a particular person, but rather an emotion we strive to provide to our families – joy!

The community we’ve been blessed to build at Joy’s House over the years has positively impacted the lives of thousands of caregiving families, and we’re not done.

Volunteers serving desserts at Joy's House

Annual Report

2023 – 2024

Joy’s House is pleased to share our 2023-2024 Annual Report with the community. Details include stats from both of our locations from January 1 – December 31, 2024.

Updated numbers are published each spring.

Annual Report

Joy’s House FAQ

Find the answers to frequently asked questions about Joy’s House.

Joy’s House is a not-for-profit adult day service. We host Guests (clients) seeking safety, companionship and engagement in community. Many of our Guests are no longer able to stay at home alone safely due to basic aging or a variety of diagnoses. Joy’s House services are designed for those with a wide range of abilities and interests.

Joy’s House has two locations in Indianapolis, Indiana.

  • Joy’s House Broad Ripple is located at 2028 E. Broad Ripple Avenue, just west of Keystone Avenue.
    View map
  • Joy’s House at UIndy is located at 1615 E. Castle Avenue, just south of the University of Indianapolis campus.
    View map

Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

We host Guests (clients) who either can’t stay home alone and adults who are simply getting older. Many are living with dementia, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, are recovering from strokes, have diagnosed mental challenges, or other medical challenges.
Learn more about Joy’s House adult day services.

The medication policy and procedure at Joy’s House is fairly extensive, but bottom line is this – if your loved one can swallow a prescribed medication, needs additional supervision in regard to checking blood sugar levels, administering syringed medication or something of this nature, we can help. Let’s talk.

Yes. We are happy to assist our Guests that need assistance in the restroom. It is our goal to make sure that our Guests are clean and comfortable at all times.

Keep in mind that most families are not trained medically and care for their loved one for the majority of the day. All staff is trained in CPR, first aid, and transferring, but Joy’s House is a non-medical model Adult Day Service. Joy’s House provides care and activities to Guests is a safe and welcoming space. Adult day services also provide respite to caregivers during the day.

  1. The potential Guest must be over the age of 18.
  2. He or she must be able to take care of basic needs independently.
  3. If medication is needed the Guest must be able to swallow it without assistance.

You and your loved one are greeted with a smiling face as soon as you enter our front door. “Coffee and conversation” begins as we reminisce about this day in history, followed by many well-planned physically and mentally stimulating activities throughout the day. You may find us stretching during chair aerobics, laughing as we knock down bowling pins or singing familiar songs during karaoke. During nice weather our garden is accessible at all times. Lunch, provided by American Village in Broad Ripple and by Forest Creek Village on the South side, is served family-style, and the fantastic menu is mailed to you each month so you know what to look forward to each day. An afternoon snack may be as fun as elephant ears or as entertaining as happy hour (non-alcoholic, of course!). No matter what, we make sure to keep your loved one safe and occupied, but if he or she needs a moment of quiet, we can provide that too.

We have many Guests who visit with us each day. Others have a schedule that fits their family’s varying needs. We can work with you no matter the need of your family, but do encourage a regular schedule so that your loved one can get to know us and we can get to know him or her. Consistency is important for all of us, and after all, we want your loved one to look forward to our time together.

A full day of service includes a morning snack, lunch and an afternoon snack, as well as activity costs $80 per day.

We accept Aged and Disabled (A&D) Medicaid Waiver, CHOICE, and your long-term care insurance may have a reimbursement policy available.

We want all families to know that we don’t want finances to stop you from coming to Joy’s House. If money is an issue, let’s talk and we will do everything in our power to make sure that we can work together through our Guest Scholarship Program.

Joy’s House is pleased to offer services, programs and educational opportunities to family caregivers caring for an aging or disabled loved one. Joy’s House is particularly interested in supporting you as the caregiver. For Joy’s House families we do this through daily interaction, Annual Meetings, family meals, bathing services and our Caregiver Resource Area, just to name a few. We also have services open to caregivers in the greater community even if your loved one is not a Guest at Joy’s House.
Learn more >

  1. Introductory Inquiry Phone Call (approx. 20 minutes, optional)
  2. Initial Tour of Joy’s House (approx. 30 minutes, optional – please make an appointment)
  3. Formal Assessment (typically 1-2 hours, required)

  1. When someone calls to inquire about services, we have a very natural and simple conversation over the phone. We can usually tell by the conversation if the potential Guest sounds like he or she might be a good fit at Joy’s House and if we might be a good fit for their needs and desires. If there is interest in our services, we invite the family to visit Joy’s House and participate in a more formal assessment.

  • Physical examination paperwork (Joy’s House can provide in advance)
  • Doctor’s recommendation (Joy’s House can provide in advance)
  • List of all medications taken by loved one on a regular basis
  • List of all doctors and contact information
  • Legal paperwork, including PDA and Living Will

If Joy’s House isn’t the right fit, we do everything in our power to make sure that they receive the proper care from another venue.

It is unbelievable! Statistics show that one out of every three persons is a family caregiver for a loved one. This affects everyone involved—the aging adult, the caregiver, the caregiver’s employer and the community at large. Joy’s House is focused on helping in all of these areas. The Guest gets to enjoy visits and is in a safe environment, the family caregiver gets mental and physical relief, the employer gets a more attentive and less stressed employee and the public receives educational opportunities through our community programming.

Two Locations

Joy’s House welcomes Guests at two Indianapolis adult day service locations.

Joy's House Broad Ripple location

Joy’s House Broad Ripple

2028 E. Broad Ripple Ave.
Indianapolis, Indiana 46220
317-254-0828

Open from 8:00am – 5:00pm, Monday – Friday

Directions >
 Virtual Tour >

Joy's House UIndy

Joy’s House at UIndy

1615 E. Castle Ave.
Indianapolis, Indiana 46227
317-737-2515

Open from 8:00am – 5:00pm, Monday – Friday

Directions >

News & Updates

Stay up-to-date with Joy’s House stories and happenings.

  • Celebrating Committees (and Mr. Doug!)

    By Published On: February 5th, 2019

    This month, we honor members of current and past Joy's House committees. Their dedication and support have helped make us who we are through involvement in

  • 2019 Caregiver Reunion

    By Published On: January 30th, 2019

    Over the past 20 years, we have cared for some of the spunkiest women and kindest men that we’ve had the pleasure to meet.  While we

  • Celebrating Caregivers: Mwandishi, Connie & Pauline

    By Published On: January 25th, 2019

    Celebrating Caregivers: As we kick off our 20th year, we begin by celebrating caregivers during the month of January. It seems fitting to have these three

  • Gifts from the Guests

    By Published On: January 21st, 2019

    Over the last few months we've been working on a project called Gifts from the Guests. This has allowed us to bring local artists, volunteers, our

  • Celebrating 20 Years of Joy’s House

    By Published On: January 15th, 2019

      A Note from Tina: Joy’s House turns twenty this year! Wow. When I was a child, someone seemed super old when they turned twenty.  They

  • Profiles in Courage: Miss Catherine

    By Published On: January 2nd, 2019

    Miss Catherine hasn't been able to see clearly for a long time. As a matter of fact, she lost her sight, regained her sight, and lost

  • Squash the Threat of Cyber crime

    By Published On: December 13th, 2018

    The need to protect our information is as high as ever before.  Placing a security freeze on your credit is a great place to start (learn

  • Profiles in Courage: Mr. Tom and Mary Ellen

    By Published On: December 3rd, 2018

    Some people not only push the limits, they exceed them. Mr. Tom is one of those people. It started at a young age. As a young

  • What is a Trust?

    By Published On: November 8th, 2018

      by Corrina Judd, J.D. Assistant Vice President & Estate Officer Trust Legal, Tax & Estates The National Bank of Indianapolis  What is a trust? If

  • Profiles in Courage: Mr. Paul and Elsa

    By Published On: November 2nd, 2018

    When a young couple gets married, magic happens. Possibilities are endless. Families gather around to witness. Vows are spoken with great emotion. People kick off their

We are honored to be a proud recipient of the following grants:

Johnson County Community Foundation
Lilly Endowment
Noyes Foundation
Carl R. Hendrickson Family Foundation
Dalton Family Foundation
Healthcare Initiatives Inc.
I’m Still Here
The Indianapolis Foundation

“I firmly believe that Joy’s House provides an invaluable resource for Indianapolis. The guests are well served, and the guests’ families are supported in a meaningful way. It is a beautiful model of care. I hope the donation can further advance the excellent care-driven services.”

Ellen

“Caring people in a warm, loving environment. It truly feels like home.”

Broad Ripple Caregiver

“Each guest is accepted at their level and is encouraged but never forced into participation. Such a warm, positive, loving environment is a huge source of comfort to the family of each guest.❤️”

Susie