This Travel Companion Helps People With Disabilities And The Elderly See The World

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)

At 53, Minnesota native Maria Boileau has built an unexpected but deeply meaningful profession: helping seniors, people with disabilities, and anxious travellers explore the world safely. As a professional Travel Companion, she offers her personalised care for her clients, which mostly leads to the chance to see the world before time, illness, or circumstance makes travel impossible.

The turning point

Maria's ability to care so deeply is rooted in her earliest work as a Special Education paraprofessional. Her bond with her student Sarah, whom she still calls“my first child”, taught her patience, atonement, and unconditional compassion.

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Her hospital years added another dimension. She became known for bringing warmth to frightened patients, tired caregivers, and lonely seniors. One 96-year-old woman even mailed her a letter of gratitude.

For 24 years, she worked as a cardiac sonographer. She loved patient care but felt crushed by workplace politics, burnout, and self-doubt. When she applied for a new job within the field, a hiring manager asked why she wanted the role. Maria answered honestly: she needed to escape her current workplace.“That's a reason to leave your job,” the interviewer replied,“not a reason to work here.”

The words struck her hard. It wasn't another job she wanted, it was another life.

A medical mission trip to Vietnam planted the seed. Teaching echocardiography to local doctors, she rediscovered purpose, connection, and her love of travel. Soon after, she stumbled upon the profession of travel companionship online. It felt like destiny.

She found a mentor, took a two-day training in February 2024, and by June she took the leap, leaving behind stability to build something entirely her own.“It was terrifying,” she says.“But it felt right.”

Caring begins at home

Maria's caregiving extended to her own family. She helped care for her beloved grandparents, and later became a fierce advocate for her father when his health deteriorated. After months of misdiagnosis, her persistence led to the correct answer: Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. The surgery that followed restored his health.

During that time, she moved in with her parents, supporting her mother and guiding her father through recovery. The experience was exhausting and emotional, but it also strengthened her belief in reinvention and resilience.

A new kind of caregiving

Maria's work begins long before she meets a client at the airport. She collects detailed information about their needs, which includes mobility challenges, anxieties, medical considerations, and personal wishes. She then crafts an itinerary built around each client's comfort, safety, and accessibility. She secures ADA-compliant hotel rooms, plans step-free routes for blind clients, finds quiet corners in airports for anxious travellers, and books adjoining rooms when constant reassurance is needed.

Her clients include seniors, developmentally delayed adults, people with dementia, and those facing emotional or physical barriers to travel. For some, she manages medications and daily tasks. For others, she offers companionship or emotional support.

One of Maria's earliest assignments remains one of her most defining. She was hired to accompany a 90-year-old grandmother from her Illinois nursing home to her hometown in Iowa for a family reunion and the 100-year celebration of her church.

While it was a meaningful trip for the family, it was logistically complex.

The grandmother's mobility was extremely limited, and Maria could not safely transfer her without family assistance. Her dementia made evenings difficult, with confusion increasing as the day wore on. Mornings were equally challenging, often requiring long, patient efforts just to begin the day.

Originally planned as a multi-night stay, Maria quickly realised the grandmother's wellbeing had to come first. She made the difficult decision to shorten the trip and return her home on day two.

“You have to be flexible in this industry,” Maria says.“You have to advocate for what is best and safest for the client.”

And her clientele grew to include people of myriad needs. She has accompanied a woman with early-stage dementia from Minneapolis to Naples, Italy, to reunite her with her boyfriend. A developmentally disabled baseball fan went with her to Florida so that he could see his favourite team during spring break. She has also supported a man through a relocation that would have overwhelmed him alone.

Heart issues

Maria's own medical history gives her a rare, profound empathy for her clients. Diagnosed with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in the 1990s, she underwent surgery in 1997 and lived for years with congestive heart failure. Yet she kept showing up for others.

Then, in August 2025, a life-changing surgery, which involved replacing two heart valves, liberated her from the condition that had shadowed her for decades.

“With my new valves,” she says,“I finally feel free. I can travel. I can help. I can live fully.” This personal understanding of fear, fatigue, and uncertainty allows her to meet her clients exactly where they are.

Much of Maria's courage comes from the unwavering support of her husband, Scott Boileau, a programme coordinator for before- and after-school care in their local district. The couple met years ago working in the school system. When Maria considered reinventing her career, Scott didn't hesitate. He encouraged her, reassured her, and took on more financial responsibility to help her make the transition.

“He understood that I needed this,” she says.“He believed in me.”

Looking Ahead

Maria hopes to maintain a rhythm of traveling twice per month, building meaningful, long-term relationships with repeat clients. She has no desire to expand or hire; she wants her work to remain personal, authentic, and grounded in care.

But at the heart of it all is her philosophy:“Travel is a gift. With a little support, everyone deserves the chance to explore the world - no matter their age or ability.”

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