The Link-Letter Nov. 12, 2010

v. 5-45

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New items are highlighted.

NEWS FOR AGENCY STAFF

1.  The release of a new report called Edmonton Seniors: A Portrait was announced by City of Edmonton Community Services this week. It contains demographic information and highlights the needs and interests of Edmonton seniors. The portrait supports Edmonton's Seniors Declaration and its ideals to make Edmonton a more age-friendly city. To download a pdf copy of the portrait, go here. To request a printed copy, email .

2.  Need some Christmassy items for your next newsletter? Check out the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council’s suggestions of “Gift Items for the Senior(s) in Your Life”, cut and paste to suit your needs, or even add some suggestions to the list. Go here to get to the document through our website.

3.  The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations has introduced SpareSmarts to the Edmonton Capital. “SpareSmarts features a shared calendar of up and coming seminars, workshops, webinars and events from training providers in the area.” This “one-stop-shop for training needs” is a collaborative effort between the ECVO, Resource Centre for Voluntary Organizations, City of Edmonton and the Board Development and Community Development Branches of Alberta Culture and Community Spirit. To visit SpareSmarts, go here.

4.  The Canadian Active Living Coalition for Older Adults (ALCOA) is promoting use by seniors of the HT Health Works website on which they can keep a record of all their medication, organize and record their complete medical history, share the information with doctors and others as desired, and enjoy member discounts on health-related products and services. Use of the site is free but you do need a referral ID to register. To find out more, go here and scroll down to Page 4.

5.  The Government of Alberta released its Aging Population Policy Framework this week. It’s the result of work undertaken by the Demographic Planning Commission in 2008. To read framework and additional information on the Alberta Seniors and Community Supports website, go to www.seniors.alberta.ca/Seniors/AgingPopulation/.

6.  Blackbaud Inc., a company that has worked exclusively for non-profits since 1981, has released the results of its most recent State of the Nonprofit Industry survey. This is a global report covering general operations, fundraising, technology and Internet usage, and accountability and stewardship. Input was received from 2,383 respondents in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, India, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. To download a pdf copy of the North American results, go here.

7.  Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre, a new facility with 14 bookable rooms and hourly rental rates of approximately $25 to $75 per hour, is accepting requests for Jan. 31 to June 30, 2011. The deadline to receive requests to be part of the original allocation is Nov. 19. Determination of space will occur in early to mid-December. Email if interested in booking rooms for this timeframe.

8.  Organizations can now apply for funding through the Government of Canada’s Enabling Accessibility Fund for projects that will “create or enhance accessibility for people with disabilities”. The intent is to support proposals for “mid-sized projects that can include retrofits, renovations or new construction”. The deadline to submit proposals is Jan. 13, 2011. To find out how to apply or for more information, call 1-866-268-2502 or visit www.hrsdc.gc.ca/disability.

EVENTS FOR AGENCY STAFF

1.  The Edmonton Chamber of Commerce celebrates Not For Profit Week with four events at the World Trade Centre Edmonton, 6th Floor, 9990 Jasper Avenue. On Nov. 16, 2 to 4 p.m., Bill Poon from the Canada Revenue Agency will speak on Filing Requirements: GST/HST and Your Non-Profit Organization; on Nov. 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Mirande Alexandre and Stephen Mill from Citizenship and Immigration Canada will talk about Available Grant Funds; on Nov. 18, 10 to 11:30 a.m., Justin Kowal will speak on The Importance of Your Online Status; and on Nov. 18, 2 to 4 p.m., Robbin Derry from the University of Lethbridge will talk about Corporate Giving and Community Partnerships: Sustainable Philanthropy. Tickets are $15 for members and $25 for non-members plus GST. Go here to select register the seminar(s).

2.  The Alberta Caregivers Association and ElderCare Edmonton are integrating their caregiver support programs. “We are inviting frontline leaders in Edmonton to participate in discussions on how we can collaborate across agencies to better support family caregivers with whom we work directly or indirectly.” Links to Caring Roundtables will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Nov. 17 and 22 at the Sutton Place Hotel. Discussion will be followed by a networking brunch. There is no charge to attend. RSVP by emailing . For more information, call Marjorie Scott at 780-444-2273 and/or go here.

3.  The Mediation Interagency Network’s lunchtime seminar series presents Restorative Principles in Mediation Practice with Paula Drouin on Nov. 17 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at 15th Floor, Room 15G, Commerce Place, 10155 - 102 Street, Edmonton. “This will be an opportunity for mediators to learn and explore how they can apply restorative principles within the mediation process. Paula will speak about the benefits of this approach for when harm has occurred in workplace, family and community-based relationships.”

4.  The Arts & Humanities in Health & Medicine Program invites you to a “very special evening on art, medicine, and healing” with Dr. Steven Aung Nov. 18 at 6 p.m. in the Allard Family Theatre, Katz Group Centre for Pharmacy and Health Research Building, University of Alberta. The event will include a lecture and calligraphy demonstration on Integration of Art and Medicine: Enrichment and Enhancement in Healing, an auction of original calligraphy, calendar and books sales, and refreshments. To register or make an online donation, go here. Tickets are $25.

5.  Volunteer Alberta, The Co-operators and Alberta Culture and Community Spirit are offering a Risk Management Strategies & Tactics Seminar in Edmonton on Nov. 18 from 1:30 to 4 p.m. and in Calgary on Nov. 23 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. For more information and to register for the Edmonton seminar, go here. For more on the Calgary seminar, go here.

6.  The U.S. National Council on Aging is offering a free webinar on Nov. 18 at 11 a.m. on Improving Senior Eye Health. The focus will be on what senior-serving staff and organizations can do to raise awareness of conditions such as glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, low vision, age-related macular degeneration, dry eye and cataracts, and how to prevent them. The speaker is from the U.S. National Eye Institute. To register, go here.

7.  The Edmonton Chapter of the Alberta Association on Gerontology’s November networking dinner will feature guest speaker Doneka Simmons from the Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton (SAGE) with a presentation on an intervention program that assists older adults who live with compulsive hoarding. The dinner will be held Nov. 24 at the Faculty Club at the University of Alberta. Tickets are $38 for AAG members, $40 for non-members and $36 for seniors. The deadline for registration is Nov. 19. For information and a registration form, go here.

8.  The Edmonton Social Planning Council presents Open Minds, Health Communities: A Look at Mental Health in Our Backyard on Nov. 24 from 12 to 1 p.m. at the Stanley Milner Library (downtown branch located south of Sir Winston Churchill Square). Bring your lunch. The speaker will be Ione Chalborn, executive director of the Canadian Mental Health Association - Edmonton Region. For more information, go here, call 780-423-2031 ext. 354 or email .

9.  The Norquest College Volunteer Fair on Nov. 25 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. provides an opportunity to connect with students, 64 per cent of whom are over the age of 25 and 60 per cent of whom were born outside Canada, through scheduled class visits. To become an exhibitor, at a cost of $50, contact Melanie Aloisio at 780-644-6711 or .

10.  The Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council is organizing a Winter Conversation Cafe for Nov. 26 at 1:30 p.m. at the South East Edmonton Seniors Association (SEESA) activity centre. This event provides an opportunity for board members to meet with their counterparts from other organizations to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern. Presidents meet with presidents, secretaries with other secretaries etc. All senior-serving agencies and organizations that are ESCC members are invited to send representatives. Please pass this information on to your board members. For more information, go here. For a registration form, go here.

11.  The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations offers Smooth Sailing: Financial Reporting and the Year End Audit on Dec. 1, $20 for ECVO members and $30 for non-members, from 10:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at the Idylwylde Public Library, 8310 - 88 Avenue. The session is geared for executive directors or treasurers, and is intended to help them learn about “the types of service available from external accountants or auditors, what to expect, and how to manage the process to avoid surprises, control costs, and have the financial statements completed on time. Participants will receive a year-end plan, schedule and notes.” For information and to register, go here.

12.  The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations offers a breakfast session on Nonprofit Survival: Who is Surviving and Why? at 7:45 a.m. on Dec. 7 at the Santa Maria Goretti Centre. “Learn about the six key factors that are helping organizations survive during these critical times and find out how you can take advantage of Muttart Foundation's bursary program to attend leading edge professional development that may help you and your organization.” For more information and to register, go here.

13.  The Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council will hold its annual seasonal celebration at 1 p.m. on Dec. 10 at the Santa Maria Goretti Community Centre, 11050 - 90 Street. Save the date and watch for more details during the coming weeks. Email or phone 780-423-5635 by noon on Dec. 3 if planning to attend.

14.  Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council member agency staff interested in attending the April 26 to 30, 2011, Aging in America Conference in San Francisco are invited to use the ESCC’s National Council on Aging membership number to get a reduced registration rate (a saving of $106 per registration prior to Dec. 15). In return, ESCC would like a commitment to share knowledge gained with others in the senior sector. This could take the form of a presentation to sector groups such as programmers, executive directors, board members etc. For information on conference sessions, discounts and registration, go here. ESCC ED Sheila Hallett and Westend Seniors Activity Centre ED Janice Monfries attended the conference in 2008 and found it very beneficial. To discuss the ESCC’s offer, contact Sheila at 780-423-5635 or .

15.  The cover of the SAGE Directory of Senior Services 2010 was “a delightful original painting of seniors painted by Terrie Shaw from Strathcona Place Seniors Centre. We are conducting a competition for another original artwork for the cover of the 2011 directory. The competition is open to any senior (60+).” For more information about the requirements of the competition, go to www.mysage.ca, call David at 780-701-9012 or email . Entries will be judged at an art show on Dec. 16 at SAGE (Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton).

JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR SENIOR-SECTOR STAFF

GeriActors & Friends, an intergenerational company of 20 seniors and students that produces original theatre based on reminiscence and issues of concern, is looking for a general manager. This is a part-time (12 flexible hours per week) position responsible for scheduling and tour coordination, accounting and budget management, providing information to and liaising with other organizations, website development and maintenance, publicity and marketing, archiving and filing, managing non-profit status, and assisting with grant applications. The deadline to apply is Nov. 15. Send cover letter, resume, and the names and contact information (including email) of three references to David Barnet, Artistic Director, GeriActors & Friends, Department of Drama, University of Alberta, Edmonton, T6G 2E1 or . For more information, go to www.geriactors.ca or call 780-492-2472. For a complete job description, go here.


ITEMS FOR SENIORS

1.  The Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council has updated the access to fraud prevention information on its website. To check out the links to 10 different sources of information, go here. This also enables you to download a page containing all of the links for your own files.

2.  Want to find out the secrets of living a long life? Check out the New York Times’ feature Secrets of the Centenarians: Life Before, During and After 100 by going here, or a summary article based on the feature by going here. Also of interest may be a Calgary Herald article based on the third annual report on the state of public health by Canada’s chief public health officer. “Canada's seniors are living longer and are vastly less likely to struggle with poverty than they were three decades ago, but there's work to be done in areas such as diagnosing and treating mental illness, reducing social isolation and combating the ‘mythology’ of aging,” David Butler-Jones states. To read the article, go here.

3.  Metis Week 2010 is being celebrated in Edmonton Nov. 14 to 20. For a list of events, along with contact information, go here.

4.  The Multicultural Coalition, 10867 - 97 Street, presents Leadership Training #3: Partnerships, Project Implementation & Accontability (Outcomes, Outputs & Financial) on Nov. 15 from 5 to 8.30 p.m. “You will learn the ‘art’ of partnership and what ‘relationship building’ means in real life. You will learn about how to present your community to other organizations. We will talk about how to do project reporting: evaluation with outcomes and outputs. And a special section on understanding financials.” This is a free workshop designed for volunteers of emerging immigrant and refugee community groups. Contact Saba at or 780-760-1973 to register (indicate if you need childcare). Supper will be provided.

5.  CARP Edmonton’s fall public meeting will address the topic Ageism - Is it Harmful? on Nov. 18 at the Old Timers’ Cabin, 9430 - 99 Street (Scona Road). Registration begins at 12:30 p.m. with the program to follow from 1 to 3 p.m. The presenter is Dr. Sheree Kwong See from the University of Alberta. Her research looks at “what is normal and what is not in aging. She will share information on stereotypes about aging — how they develop, how they influence our interaction with older people and how these beliefs impact cognitive performance in old age.” There is no charge to attend this meeting. Refreshments will be served. To preregister or for more information, call Bernice at 780-450-4802 or email .