The Link-Letter Sept. 20, 2013

v. 8-38

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.  The ESCC board of directors will hold a Meet the Candidates Breakfast on Oct. 15 from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at the Chateau Louis Conference Centre, 11727 Kingsway. Executive directors and board members of ESCC organizations are invited to speak with municipal council candidates about issues of concern and interest to seniors and the senior-serving sector. The deadline to register for this free event is Oct. 4. Email Rich at or call 780-423-5635.

Top of document

NEWS FOR AGENCY STAFF

1.  Sector staff are asked to help spread the word about the Seniors’ Housing Forum presented by the Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton on Sept. 28 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Central Lions Seniors Recreation Centre, 11113 - 113 Street. Extensive information and resource materials will be available to seniors and their families. The event, lunch and parking are free. Door prizes will be drawn for at the end of the day. For an event poster, go here. More information about the sessions and event is available here. Encourage seniors to register by calling 780-423-5510 ext. 310 or by emailing . Agencies interested in an exhibitor booth or sponsorship will find a registration package here.

2.  “The Government of Alberta is no longer convinced that we have the right benefits at the right price to attract and retain our future workforce.” Finance Minister Doug Horner announced Monday that his department will consult with employees and employers until the end of the year regarding the Local Authorities Pension Plan (LAPP), Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP), Management Employees Pension Plan (MEPP) and Special Forces Pension Plan (SFPP). To listen to Horner’s comments, for links to more information, and for instructions on how to respond, go here.

3.  “Aggressive seniors with cognitive decline don’t fit neatly into our response mechanisms. Striking an appropriate balance between health and justice system involvement is a challenge.” To help find this balance, the continuing care sector needs to join legal, forensic and policing experts to discuss “how we can best support seniors with dementia who have committed violent acts”. To read more of the Vancouver Sun opinion piece on Aging poses new challenges for justice system, go here.

4.  Alberta Blue Cross has launched a Healthy Communities grant program. “Four $50,000 grants will be awarded each year to support community amenities and facilities that promote active living.” For more information, go here. For an application form, go here. The deadline to apply is Sept. 30.

Top of document

EVENTS FOR AGENCY STAFF

1.  Blackbaud, a developer of software and services for nonprofits, and HJC, which provides leadership to nonprofit organizations in using new technologies, have issued the results of a 2013 Next Generation of Canadian Giving Study. It reveals that “Canadians from Generation X are ahead of their counterparts in the United Kingdom and the United States” in making charitable donations “because they are just now beginning to generate disposable income and because Canada wasn’t hit as hard by the recent global recession”. For more information, register for a free webinar on Sept. 25 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Fundraising Today and Tomorrow: The Next Generation of Canadian Giving 2013 by going here.

2.  Catholic Social Services offers its next Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Sept. 26 and 27. “This workshop is helpful to all people who wish to understand what people at risk of suicide are needing from the caregiver. This program is designed for all people interested in learning suicide first aid skills.” Registration is $185. Sessions are held at 8212 - 118 Avenue, Edmonton. To register, contact Kari Boult at 780-420-6081 or . For a complete course description, go here.

3.  The Alberta Caregivers Association will present a My Fair Fashion Show in conjunction with its tenth annual luncheon and silent auction fundraiser on Sept. 26 from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Chateau Louis Conference Centre, 11727 Kingsway Avenue, Edmonton. Tickets are $45 or $400 for a table of 10. For more information or to purchase tickets, go here or call 780-453-5088. For an event poster, go here.

4.  Alberta Culture Days, Sept. 27 to 29, celebrate “our heritage, arts and cultural diversity”. They provide a platform for organizations to spotlight their cultural programming. For resources to “help you plan and promote your events” go here. For more information, go here.

5.  “Food security means all people at all times have physical and economic access to adequate amounts of nutritious, safe, and culturally appropriate foods.” On Oct. 1 from 8 to 10 a.m. at the Shaw Conference Centre, the Edmonton Community Foundation and Edmonton Social Planning Council will launch Vital Signs, “a report on food security in Edmonton”. For an event poster, go here.

6.  Alberta Health presents an International Wellness Symposium on Oct. 1 and 2 at Lake Louise. To find out about the program for Wellness: It’s For Life, go here. To register, go here.

7.  The Institute for Strategic Funding Development is offering a Strategic Grant Proposal Workshop at the University of Alberta from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 2 to 4. It will “teach individuals and groups a comprehensive overview of effective grant development techniques, including finding best fit funding sources, creating innovative programs, grant proposal writing, grant research, grant submittal process,and planning for funding sustainability”. For more information, go here. To register, go here. The cost is $548.

8.  The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations is accepting registrations for its Oct. 3 and 10 Financial Management for Non-profits workshop series. Sessions will be held from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Commonwealth Stadium Green and Gold Room. The first week’s sessions cover financial roles and responsibilities, policies and procedures, and developing and tracking budgets. The second week’s sessions deal with financial statements, audit preparation, and compliance and reporting. For more information contact Mandie at . To register, go here. The cost is $200.

9.  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. “Through exploring the social organization of care in continuing care facilities, 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.

10.  The Good Samaritan Society is accepting registrations for its annual spirituality and wholeness workshop 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. Early bird registration until Sept. 10 is $80.

11.  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.

12.  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.

13.  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.

Top of document

WORK OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SENIOR-SERVING SECTOR

1.  No items this week.

Top of document


ITEMS FOR BOARD MEMBERS

1.  Seniors Outreach Network Society needs a board president. SONS “helps low-income seniors in northwest Edmonton. The ideal candidate would be a senior, retired, with a flexible schedule. Must have knowledge of and/or experience with non-profit board processes and preferably live near our office.Other qualifications must include computer literacy, connections in the community, being at ease at social events and with promoting a cause, great communication skills and some financial background and/or experience.We need someone with leadership experience, either as an employer or manager, who is able to see the strengths in others, encourage them and lead by example. A passion for seniors' issues is a must!” To learn more, go here. To apply, email or send resume to Board President, #104, 11427 - 132 Street NW, Edmonton, T5M 1G2.

2.  “Non-profits must be more bold” but “if we want to get better at solving social problems, we have to ask philanthropists to be more bold too. There is a huge disconnect between what non-profits really, truly need to solve social problems and how funding currently flows.” Go here to read more of Can Philanthropy Pave the Way, Not Get in the Way?

Top of document

ITEMS FOR SENIORS

1.  Scam Detector, a smart phone app that partners with the Better Business Bureau of Central and Northern Alberta, listed Free Groceries for Seniors as the top scam during the previous week. This identity theft attempt begins with a message advising seniors that they qualify for “$3,000 in free grocery savings certificates” and “a complimentary medical alert device”. Personal information is required to process these items, the scammers say, but the items never arrive. “Warning seniors is line of defence number one.”

2.  Varscona Theatre presents Cathy Derkach and Jeff Haslam in a “hilarious” musical revue entitled Dance for Grandma. The production includes contributions from some of Edmonton’s finest playwrights (Stewart Lemoine, Marty Chan, Jocelyn Ahlf, Jana O’Connor), some of our grandmothers’ favourite songs (Paper Moon, Que Sera Sera, Somewhere Out There) and music by their favourite composers (Lerner and Lowe, Cole Porter, Mancini and Mercer, Rodgers and Hart). The show is at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, Sept. 20 to 28. The Varscona is located at 10329 – 83 Avenue. For more information call 780-433-3399 or go here.

3.  “Join some of Edmonton’s finest musicians as well as professors from the University of Alberta’s Department of Music in their tribute to Violet Archer, one of Canada’s earliest internationally acclaimed and influential women composers.” The Violet Archer Centenary Concert will be held Sept. 22 at 2 p.m. in Convocation Hall, Old Arts Building, University of Alberta. “Anecdotes and information about Archer’s life and music will be presented along with performances of works displaying the wide scope of her music.” Included on the program will be both sacred and secular music. To purchase tickets, go here.

4.  North Edmonton Seniors Association will hold a Huge Book Sale on Sept. 24 to 27 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Northgate Lions Seniors Recreation Centre, 7524 - 139 Avenue. The sale is open late on Sept. 25 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. For more information, call 780-496-6969.

5.  The Edmonton Seniors' Action and Liaison Team (SALT), a “social action group formed in 1993 in reaction to cuts to seniors’ programs by the provincial government,” will hold an election candidates forum on Sept. 24 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton (SAGE), 15 Sir Winston Churchill Square. The three candidates for mayor have agreed to attend. “The forum will be open to the public: everyone welcome!” For more information, call John Wodak at 780-417-1705.

6.  The Edmonton Community Legal Centre presents a free information session on wills and estates at 7 p.m. on Sept. 25 at the Capilano Library, 5004 - 98 Avenue. No sign-up is necessary. For a poster that includes information about other ECLC presentations, go here.

7.  Grape Expectations, “an elegant evening of wine sampling in support of Edmonton Meals on Wheels,” will be held Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. at Edmonton BMW’s showroom at 7450 Roper Road. “The evening includes unique auction items and a rich selection of hors d’oeuvres” as well as Vinomania owner Gurvinder Bhatia’s wine selections. Tickets are $60 and are available at 780-429-2020 or by going here.

8.  Westend Seniors Activity Centre celebrates Alberta Culture Days with two events: Looking in the Mirror – Celebrating Alberta’s Cultural Image from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 27 and a visit to the Confucius Institute in Edmonton from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 28. The first event, held at the centre, will feature Western entertainment, a taste of Alberta, and Western art and craft workshops. The second will feature Chinese art and craft workshops, Chinese movies, traditional Chinese medicine workshops, and traditional Chinese cultural entertainment. Both events are free and open to the public of all ages. For more information, call 780-483-1209.

9.  Strathcona Place Senior Centre, 10831 University Avenue, Edmonton, holds its annual Falling Leaves Bazaar on Sept. 28 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. “Every room in the building is filled with all kinds of special items: homemade baking, sewing, raffles, door prizes, pottery, woodworking, art work, huge garage sale, books, puzzles, tea room and so much more!” For more information, call 780-433-5807.