The Link-Letter Oct. 4, 2013
v. 8-40
For more information click on the links provided.
New items are highlighted.
INDEX
News for Agency Staff here
Events for Agency Staff here
Work Opportunities in the Senior-Serving Sector here
Items for Board Members here
Items for Seniors here
Volunteer/Work Opportunities for Seniors here
ESCC UPDATES
1. San San Sy and Kathleen Binnie have been hired by the Age Friendly Edmonton Information and Communication Working Group to research how Edmonton seniors access information. They have been supplied with contact names and phone numbers for seniors organizations and will be contacting some of you during the next few weeks. They also hope to set up focus groups with professionals who serve older adults and caregivers of older adults. The findings from this project will be helpful to the entire seniors sector and ESCC members are urged to participate.
2. The Age Friendly Edmonton Healthy Aging Working Group’s goal is to “ensure that seniors have a way to obtain education, knowledge and skills needed to support their own health. We are creating a roster of free Healthy Aging Information Sessions to be available to the senior serving organizations in Edmonton” and “a list of host venues that are able to host educational sessions for seniors.” For more information on how to respond, go here.
3. Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council is working with the Edmonton Federation of Community Leagues and City of Edmonton to organize a workshop from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 22 at Ritchie Community League, 7727 – 93 Street, on how to help community leagues become more welcoming to seniors. Community league members are being invited to provide input so that “seniors will not face barriers to participation in programs and services the leagues offer”. RSVP to Joanne Booth before Oct. 15 by emailing or calling 780-347-2913.
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NEWS FOR AGENCY STAFF
1. The Edmonton Social Planning Council has released Tracking the Trends 2013, a publication that offers “a comprehensive collection of current and historical demographic and socioeconomic data focused on the Edmonton region. The trends are divided into six major categories: Demographics, Education and Employment, Cost of Living and Housing Trends, Earnings and Income, Poverty and Government Income Supports. The publication also features an updated Social Health Index, which provides “a rough measure of the overall social health of Edmonton, and how it has changed over time”. For a free pdf download, go here.
2. “The City of Vancouver is planning a new building bylaw that, for the first time in Canada, will require all new homes to be adaptable for seniors and people with disabilities. Mandatory features could include wider doors, hallways and stairs, lever handles on all doors and plumbing fixtures, and electrical receptacles higher on walls. The city is also doing an 18-month study of the feasibility of insisting new homes have at least one exterior doorway with direct access to the ground without stairs.” To read more of the Vancouver Sun article on accessibility, go here.
3. A “burgeoning home-building trend” in North America, that is already popular in Europe, is the so-called granny pods. These provide a way for families to bring multiple generations under one household. Developers, noticing the trend, are starting to build homes that can accommodate seniors, adult children fresh out of college, and extended family members. To read more in the Tampa Bay Times, go here.
4. “Two mobile dental clinics that have shuttled dentists to long-term-care homes since 2007 will be parked because the Alberta Dental Association and College can no longer cover the operating costs.” The motorhomes were wheelchair-accessible, outfitted as roving dentists’ offices, and operated in and around Edmonton and Calgary. Edmonton’s clinic served six to eight patients per day. The provincial government spent $800,000 to buy the vehicles and equipment, expecting them to serve about 12,000 Albertans each year. To read more in the Edmonton Journal, go here.
5. “There has not been any decline in the incidence of long-term employment over the past quarter century, or conversely, any increase in the frequency of job changes.” That’s the conclusion of a Statistics Canada study of the working lives of older baby boomers conducted from 1983 to 2010. For more information and to access a pdf copy of the study, go here.
6. “Non-profits are businesses and, as they grow, they must invest in their infrastructure to survive, retain employees, and, ultimately, succeed at their mission.” Donors need to stop “obsessing over a non-profit’s administrative costs when deciding which charity to support, and to instead focus on the big picture and what it will take for a non-profit to achieve the best outcomes.” To read more of Overhead Costs: The Obsession Must Stop in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, go here.
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EVENTS FOR AGENCY STAFF
1. The Canadian Institute for Continuing Care Education and Research will present the results of its Community Needs Driven Research Network consultations on Oct. 8 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Room 2-140 at the Edmonton Clinic Health Academy, 11405 - 87 Avenue. “Participants will increase their understanding of the organizational systems that both support and inhibit responsive leadership behaviours. Recommendations for strategic initiatives that cultivate responsive leadership practices will be presented.” For more information, go here. To register, go here. You can join the session through audio or video link if you cannot attend in person.
2. The Edmonton Coalition on Housing and Homelessness will host a mayoral forum from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Oct. 8 at Norquest College, 10232 – 106 Street. The event will be moderated by CHED journalist Scott Johnston and will provide an opportunity to “ask your questions on issues related to housing”. For more information, go to www.ecohh.ca.
3. “Albertans can share their priorities for Budget 2014 by attending one of 11 open house sessions across the province or completing an online survey. We want to learn how Albertans think the province’s savings should be used, and explore more options to finance public infrastructure,” says Minister of Finance Doug Horner. The Edmonton session is Oct. 9 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Holiday Inn Conference Centre Edmonton South, 4485 Gateway Boulevard. The Calgary session is Oct. 16 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Greenwood Inn and Suites, 3515 26 Street NW. To complete the online survey, go here. The deadline is Oct. 31. To learn more about the budget, go here.
4. The Good Samaritan Society’s annual spirituality and wholeness workshop will be held on Oct. 11 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Sherwood Park. The event will feature Dr. Robert Neimeyer on the topic of Grief and the Quest for Meaning: The Spiritual Arc of Tragic Loss. For more information and to register, go here.
5. The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations will hold a mayoral candidate forum from 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 15 at the Four Points Sheraton, 7230 Argyll Road. The cost to attend is $10. Candidates will make a brief presentation, respond to questions on specific issues and address questions from the audience. To register, go here. For more information, call Russ at 780-428-5487.
6. Homeward Trust Edmonton is seeking individual sponsors for its Homeless Connect event on Oct. 20 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. “It is a one-day, broad-based, community inspired initiative that provides free appropriate services to people experiencing homelessness or at-risk of becoming homeless.” Seventy service providers connect with 1,500 guests at the event, held twice a year. To become a sponsor, go here.
7. This year’s Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital Foundation Spotlight on Research Breakfast will be held Oct. 23 at 7 a.m. at Northlands. The guest speaker, Dr. Jane McGonigal, is a game designer and futurist. For a biography, go here. She will demonstrate “how Internet games can help solve some of the biggest challenges facing our world”. The event will include “interactive displays to showcase innovations such as virtual reality and robotic systems which can improve rehabilitation across all sectors”. For more information and to purchase tickets, go here.
8. Concordia University College of Alberta will hold its 2013 Volunteer Fair on Oct. 23 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “We want to give you the opportunity to showcase your organization, meet face-to-face with Concordia students and alumni, gain exposure and visibility in the Edmonton community and recruit volunteers.” For more information and a registration form, go here. The deadline for registration is Oct. 4.
9. The Alberta Association on Gerontology’s next networking dinner on Oct. 23 will feature guest speakers Iris Neumann, Sandra Woodhead Lyons and Sharon Read on the Institute of Continuing Care Education and Research’s Community Needs Driven Research Network. The event, held in the Faculty Club at the University of Alberta, begins with a cash bar at 5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6 p.m. For an event poster, go here. For a registration form, go here. The deadline to register is Oct. 18.
10. Rhonda Newman, who has over 20 years of fundraising experience with the Alberta Lung Association, WIN House, Edmonton Humane Society, Good Samaritan Society and CKUA, offers Raise your Gaze: Moving Your Fundraising from Survive to Thrive on Oct. 29 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. “Learn the steps required to make your organization sustainable and stop worrying about how to meet your funding goals. This workshop is great for directors of the board, executive directors, fundraising professionals, non-for-profit staff, and volunteers.” For more information, go here. The early bird registration deadline is Oct. 10.
11. The Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers is seeking nominations for its eleventh annual Recognizing Immigrant Success in Edmonton (RISE) Awards. “This is your opportunity to recognize and celebrate the achievements and success of immigrant individuals or groups who have shown commitment, innovation, and dedication to achieving their goals on an individual, family and community level.” The deadline for submissions is Dec. 31. For more information, go here.
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WORK OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SENIOR-SERVING SECTOR
1. No items this week.
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ITEMS FOR BOARD MEMBERS
1. No items this week.
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ITEMS FOR SENIORS
1. The Huffington Post recently extracted a few guidelines for living the good life from the life of a man who lived to be 112. Among them are to be passionately curious, have some humility (dreading the inevitable tick of Father Time has a negative impact), find love and hold onto it (“love is really all that matters when it comes to living a meaningful life”) and rediscover or stick with the hobbies that make you “light up”. To read more, go here.
2. Jewish Senior Citizens’ Centre, 10052 - 117 Street, Edmonton, offers a Learning in Retirement Series starting on Oct. 7. Sessions include Pop, Politics & Protest – Popular Music with a Social Conscience with D.T. Baker; “Rockin” Artists of the Renaissance – How Renaissance and Early Modern Artists Danced Around Power with Luciana Erregue-Sacchi; Modernity, Morality and Democracy with Dr. David Wangler; and Israel and Its Neighbours with Abe Silverman. For more information call 780-488-4241 or email .
3. Seniors are invited to join the Council of Canadians at 7 p.m. on Oct. 8 at the Telus Centre on the University of Alberta campus for an evening with Maude Barlow. The occasion is the Edmonton launch of her new book, Blue Future: Protecting Water for People and the Planet Forever. It includes “inspiring stories of struggle and resistance from marginalized communities, as well as examples of government policies that work for people and the planet.” It is both a “call to action” and “a book of hope”. For more information about the book, go here.
4. Strathcona Place Senior Centre will hold an Art Reception Open House on Oct. 9 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. for an exhibition of watercolour paintings from the Edmonton Japanese Cultural Centre. “Everyone is welcome to come out and meet the artists.” The exhibit will be on display Oct. 7 to 30, Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information call 780-433-5807. Strathcona Place Senior Centre is located at 10831 University Avenue.
5. The Tri-Community (Stony Plain, Spruce Grove, Parkland County) Seniors Committee will hold an Art of Aging Seniors’ Conference on Oct. 10 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Holy Trinity Catholic Church Hall in Spruce Grove. Sessions include Travelling Solo, Exploring Your Creative Side, A Few Simple Things to Improve Your Memory and Myths of Aging. Tickets are $25/person, which includes morning snacks and lunch. For an event poster, go here. For more information call 780-963-7406. The conference includes entertainment and door prizes, including an excursion valued at $199.50.
6. The Alberta Caregivers Association presents Compass for the Caregiver workshops at North Edmonton Seniors Association, 7524 - 139 Avenue, on Thursdays Oct. 10 to Nov. 28 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. (call 780-496-6969); and South East Edmonton Seniors Association, 9350 - 82 Street, on Fridays Oct. 25 to Dec. 13 from 1 to 3 p.m. (call 780-468-1985). For more information, go here.
7. “Almost 15 per cent of Canadians are age 65 or older, according to the 2011 National Census. Are you prepared to become a caregiver? Learn what to expect, how to manage and where to find help in Rick Lauber's book, Caregiver's Guide for Canadians (Self-Counsel Press).” You can meet the author and get your copy of his book signed from 12 to 4 p.m. on Oct. 12 at Indigo - South Edmonton Common, 1837 - 99 Street.
8. SouthWest Edmonton Seniors Association (SWESA) is initiating a drop-in centre for seniors at Yellowbird Community League, 10710 - 19 Avenue, Oct. 15 to 18 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. “Join us for coffee, good conversation, and to find out about future SWESA activities.” For more information call 587-987-3200 or go to www.swedmontonseniors.ca.
9. GeriActors is starting a new Drop-in Drama program on Tuesdays, Oct. 15 to Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at SAGE, 15 Sir Winston Churchill Square. The program is intended for older adults age 55+. “Join us for eight weeks of theatre, storytelling and fun. No experience required.” The cost is a $2 drop-in fee. For more information, go here, call 780-248-1556 or email .