Home Care in Starke, FL

Starke Home Care for Bradford County Families

Starke is the county seat of Bradford County, a railroad town on US 301 where the 2020 Census counted 5,796 residents. Gainesville Home Care provides home care in Starke, FL for older adults in town, around the lakes east of the city and on the farm roads that once grew the area's strawberries. Our caregivers make the drive up from our Gainesville office, about 45 minutes each way by Waldo Road and US 301.

A County Seat Built by the Railroad and the Strawberry Fields

George W. Cole opened the first post office here in 1857, the railroad from Fernandina to Cedar Key arrived in 1858, and Starke was incorporated in 1870. The 1902 courthouse still stands on Call Street as the Andrews Center, and the Florida Twin Theatre has shown movies a block away since 1941. After World War II, strawberry fields around town drew workers and kept many families farming. The county still marks the harvest each spring with the Bradford County Strawberry Festival at the fairgrounds.

The other big chapter came from Camp Blanding, about 8 miles east. Building the training post during the war set off a boom, and Starke's population doubled by 1950. Plenty of older residents here served in the military, married someone who did or worked on the base. The free Camp Blanding Museum on SR 16 is still a favorite outing for veterans and their families.

Senior Care for Bradford County Families Who Stay Close

Bradford County is older than many of its neighbors. Census Bureau survey data for 2020 to 2024 put about 18.2% of county residents at 65 or older, compared with about 15.3% in Alachua County. Many Starke families have lived in the same house for decades, with grown children who now commute to Jacksonville or Gainesville. Often a daughter or son is already doing the shopping, the pill organizer and the Sunday visits. If that sounds familiar, our guide to getting paid to care for a parent in Florida explains the options.

Starke In-Home Care Services

The Starke ER and the Drive to Gainesville Hospitals

Starke no longer has a hospital with inpatient beds. Shands Starke ended inpatient care in 2020 when it was sold to HCA, and the building at 922 E Call Street now houses HCA Florida Starke Emergency, a 24-hour ER run as part of HCA Florida North Florida Hospital in Gainesville. It is close and handles emergencies around the clock, but a hospital stay usually means a trip down US 301. UF Health Shands and the Malcom Randall VA Medical Center are each about 45 to 50 minutes away.

That distance shapes the week. A specialist visit in Gainesville takes most of a four-hour visit, and a discharge means a long ride home for someone who is tired and sore. A caregiver can drive, wait, take notes and stop for medications before heading north. Our hospital discharge checklist helps you prepare before your parent leaves the hospital.

A Week of Elder Care in Starke

Veterans, Camp Blanding Families and Paying for Care

Because so many Starke families have military ties, we often help veterans and surviving spouses look into VA Aid & Attendance, which can help pay for care at home. Others pay privately with weekly billing or use long-term care insurance, and we help file those claims. Medicare generally does not pay for ongoing non-medical care. We share rates on the first call and put them in writing after the home visit, with no long-term contract.

Getting Started With Home Care in Starke, FL

1. 1
   Call (352) 352-9346.Tell Dana what is going on at home and ask anything about cost and scheduling.
2. 2
   Free home visit in Starke.We drive up, meet your parent and look at the steps, the bathroom and the daily routine.
3. 3
   Meet the caregiver first.Under the Right-Fit Guarantee you meet them before the first visit and can change caregivers at no charge.
4. 4
   Care begins.Most care starts within 48 hours of the home visit, with notes after every visit.

Neighborhoods and communities we serve in Starke

• Downtown Starke and the Call Street Historic District
• US 301 corridor through town
• Lake Crosby, a few miles from downtown
• Lake Sampson and Lake Rowell
• SR 16 east toward Camp Blanding and Kingsley Lake
• SR 100 toward Keystone Heights and Lake Butler
• Hampton, south on US 301
• Lawtey, north on US 301

Around Starke: places families know

• Call Street Historic DistrictStarke's old commercial core, listed on the National Register with more than 20 historic buildings.
• Andrews CenterThe former 1902 Bradford County Courthouse, one of the most recognizable buildings in town.
• Florida Twin TheatreA downtown movie house on Call Street that opened in 1941 and still shows films.
• Eugene L. Matthews Bradford County Historical MuseumA small museum on Call Street that tells the county's railroad, farming and Camp Blanding story.
• Camp Blanding Museum and Memorial ParkA free museum in a restored WWII barracks on SR 16, with tanks and monuments outside.
• Bradford County Strawberry FestivalA spring festival at the county fairgrounds that celebrates the local strawberry harvest.

Hospitals and healthcare near Starke

• HCA Florida Starke EmergencyA 24-hour emergency room at 922 E Call Street, run as part of HCA Florida North Florida Hospital, a few minutes from most Starke homes.
• Palms Medical Group, StarkeA nonprofit community health center offering primary care at the same East Call Street address.
• UF Health Shands HospitalThe region's academic medical center on SW Archer Road in Gainesville, about 45 to 50 minutes from Starke.
• Malcom Randall VA Medical CenterThe VA hospital at 1601 SW Archer Road in Gainesville, about 45 to 50 minutes away for Bradford County veterans.

Local resources for seniors and caregivers

• Bradford County Senior CenterThe county's senior center at 1805 N Temple Avenue, open weekdays; call 904-368-3955 for the activity calendar.
• Suwannee River Economic Council, Bradford officeSenior transportation to doctor visits and meal sites from its Starke office; call 904-964-4545.
• Bradford County Public LibraryThe library at 456 W Pratt Street, with books, large print and computer help.
• Elder Options Elder HelplineThe Area Agency on Aging that covers Bradford County, with free referrals and Medicare counseling at 1-800-262-2243.

Starke home care FAQs

Guides for Starke families

Hospital to homeHospital Discharge Checklist for Gainesville FamiliesPaying for careCan You Get Paid to Care for a Parent in Florida?Understanding careHome Care vs. Home Health

Home care near Starke